Newport Beach, Calif. (September 24, 2014) – Bellator MMA will return to The Hawkeye State on Friday, October 17th from The Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs as Iowa natives Josh Neer and Paul Bradley square off in a welterweight affair that will be featured as the main event of the evening live on Spike TV. The night will also feature the return of the “The Colossus” as James Thompson battles veteran Houston Alexander in a heavyweight bout.
The event will broadcast live at 9 p.m. EST/ 8 p.m. CST on Spike TV. The preliminary card will be streamed live and free on Spike.com beginning at 6:30 p.m. EST/ 5:30 p.m. CST. Tickets for the event are on sale now and can be purchased at Ticketmaster.com, Bellator.com or by visiting the Mid-American Center Box Office.
A native of Tama, Iowa, Bradley became a two-time All-American at the University of Iowa in wrestling before transitioning to MMA, where he has amassed an impressive 21-6 record that includes 14 finishes. Neer enters the fight riding a three-fight win streak that have all ended via finish and is looking to make his mark on the big stage of Bellator. Originally signed to Bellator in 2010, Neer was submitted by Eddie Alvarez at Bellator 17 and has since collected a 9-3 record, including victories over Duane Ludwig, Jesse Juarez and Blas Avena.
The night will also feature a welterweight fight between long time Strikeforce veteran James Terry as he battles Bellator newcomer Andre “Chatuba” Santos. The Brazilian submission ace brings twenty seven finish victories into his October 17th fight against Terry and will look to keep his five-fight winning streak alive.
The Spike TV card will be rounded out by Cedar Rapids native Joe Vedepo taking on AKA’s own Davin Clark as he makes his Bellator debut. With back-to-back wins over Ben Crowder and Cortez Coleman, Vedepo is looking to keep his momentum going in front of his home state crowd.
The Bellator 129 preliminary card will feature a collection of some of the best talent from around the Midwest, including Chris Lane taking on John DeVall, Brian Green fighting Anthony Smith, as well as Marcos Marquez battling Victor Moreno.
The night will also see the first female fight of the Scott Coker era of Bellator, as Omaha native Jozette Cotton will face Holly Lawson, who is making her MMA debut. Known for a successful boxing career, Lawson is looking to start her professional MMA career with a huge win inside the Bellator cage on October 17th.
The full card for Bellator 129 can be found below:
MAIN CARD:
Welterweight Feature Fight: Paul Bradley (21-6) vs. Josh Neer (34-13-1)
Heavyweight Feature Fight: James Thompson (20-14) vs. Houston Alexander (16-10)
Welterweight Feature Fight: Andre Santos (36-9) vs. James Terry (14-7)
Middleweight Feature Fight: Joe Vedepo (16-8) vs. Davin Clark (5-1-2)
PRELIMINARY CARD:
Bantamweight Feature Fight: Chris Lane (14-11) vs. John DeVall (8-5)
Catchweight Feature Fight (150 lbs.): Eric Howser (4-2) vs. Tim Bazer (14-16)
Middleweight Feature Fight: Michael McBride (6-1) vs. TBD
Catchweight Feature Fight (150 lbs.): Martin Trey Brown (7-2) vs. Bryan Corley (2-1)
Catchweight Feature Fight (152 lbs.): Holly Lawson (0-0) vs. Jozette Cotton (4-0)
Middleweight Feature Fight: Brian Green (30-19) vs. Anthony Smith (18-11)
Welterweight Feature Fight: Marcos Marquez (5-3) vs. Victor Moreno (32-20)
Lightweight Feature Fight: Mike Estus (6-2) vs. Ryan Shell (6-1)
