Bellator 222 has added another big fight to the Madison Square Garden card with a cross-promotional superfight rematch between Kyoji Horiguchi and Darrion Caldwell.
ESPN’s Ariel Helwani was the first to report the addition to Bellator 222.
Darrion Caldwell and Kyoji Horiguchi first fought at RIZIN 14 on New Year’s Eve. Horiguchi’s title was on the line, and the Japanese phenom was able to submit the Bellator champion in the third round with a guillotine. Now, Caldwell’s bantamweight title will be up for grabs in June. According to Helwani, if Horiguchi wins the belt, he will be contractually obligated to defend once per year.
Kyoji Horiguchi is one of the best fighters in the world at the lighter weight classes. He went 7-1 in the UFC with his only loss coming to Demetrious Johnson. Since joining RIZIN in 2017, he’s gone 9-0, winning both the Bantamweight Grand Prix and the bantamweight title. He most recently defended the title against UFC veteran Ben Nguyen.
Darrion Caldwell is one of Bellator’s finest homegrown talents. The wrestler was 13-1 with two defenses of his bantamweight title beforehand falling to Horiguchi in December. Of his 13 wins, seven have been stoppages.
Bellator 222 will take place on June 14 from the World’s Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden, in New York City. The card is headlined by a legends fight between Chael Sonnen and Lyoto Machida. In the co-main event will (hopefully) be a Welterweight Grand Prix matchup between Neiman Gracie and Rory MacDonald. Also featured that night will be Heather Hardy and Dillon Danis.
