Newport Beach, CA. (October 14. 2013) – After knockout victories for both Cheick Kongo and Vinicius Spartan in the Bellator Heavyweight Semifinals, the two giants will meet inside the Bellator cage on November 2nd live on Pay-Per-View from the Long Beach Arena, which is headlined by MMA icons Rampage Jackson and Tito Ortiz.
“Rampage vs. Tito” will be held at Southern California’s Long Beach Arena on Saturday, November 2nd, with tickets on sale now. Tickets can be purchased on Bellator.com, Ticketmaster.com, as well as at The Long Beach Arena Box Office.
“To be able to put on a card of this caliber for our first Pay-Per-View is something really special,” Bellator CEO & Chairman Bjorn Rebney said. “Kongo vs. Spartan should be absolute fireworks, and will be a fantastic way to kick off what should be a historic night on November 2nd from the Long Beach Arena.”
Kongo punched his ticket to the semifinals with a devastating combination of strikes and knees that left Mark Godbeer on the mat and advanced Kongo onto the Heavyweight Tournament Finals. Holding notable victories over “Cro Cop”, Pat Berry and Matt Mitrione, Kongo has his sights set on capturing his first tournament crown.
“I want to fight the best in Bellator so I can be the best,” Kongo said. “When I try to do things as a competitor, I want to be the best. I messed up before because I wasn’t focused like I’ve been from the beginning. But, now … I will be the best. It’s my time. I came to Bellator for the opportunity to show the best Cheick Kongo. And that’s it.”
Team Nogueira and Chute Boxe’s own Vinicius Spartan wasted no time collecting victory in the semifinals with a lightning-quick knockout over longtime MMA veteran Lavar Johnson. Now just one step away from his rightful title shot, Spartan will leave it all on the line November 2nd.
“Winning a Bellator tournament today is very difficult and actually achieving victory has tremendous value,” Spartan said. “I prefer it to be difficult and I know Cheick is going to be very tough–that is a motivating factor for me and my team.”
The fight card for Bellator MMA’s inaugural Pay-Per-View is below. Additional fights will be announced in the coming weeks.
Pay-Per-View Main Card
Light Heavyweight Feature Fight: Rampage Jackson (32-11) vs. Tito Ortiz (16-11-1)
Lightweight Title Fight: Michael Chandler (12-0) vs. Eddie Alvarez (24-3)
Light Heavyweight Interim Title Fight: King Mo Lawal (11-2) vs. Emanuel Newton (21-7-1)
Featherweight Title Fight: Pat Curran (19-4) vs. Daniel Straus (21-4)
Heavyweight Tournament Finals: Cheick Kongo (19-8) vs. Vinicius Spartan (7-3)
Spike TV Preliminary Fights
Fight Master Welterweight Finals: Joe Riggs (39-14) vs. Mike Bronzoulis (15-5)
Lightweight Feature Fight: Terry Etim (15-5) vs. Patrick Cenoble (9-2)
Spike.com Preliminary Fights
Welterweight Feature Fight: Joe Williams (10-3) vs. Jesse Juarez (20-8)
Light Heavyweight Feature Fight: Brandon Halsey (4-0) vs. Hector Ramirez (9-5-1)
Lightweight Feature Fight: Mike Guymon (14-6-1) vs. Aaron Miller (14-8)
Featherweight Feature Fight: Joe Camacho (13-18-3) vs. Cleber Luciano (8-5)
Lightweight Feature Fight: Darren Smith (4-3) vs. Josh Smith (8-5)
