Bellator lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov will fight Alexander Shabliy on September 07 in San Diego.
𝙎𝘼𝙉 𝘿𝙄𝙀𝙂𝙊! 🇺🇸
Bellator is BACK at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego on Saturday September 7, bringing another stacked fight card to California, headlined by @Usmannmgdv looking to defend his Bellator Lightweight Title against @AlexandrShabliy.
Tickets go on sale this… pic.twitter.com/Gtca45lBYx
— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) June 18, 2024
On Tuesday morning, Bellator announced that their lightweight champion Usman Nurmagomedov will be back in action this summer as he takes on top contender Alexander Shabliy on September 07 as the headliner for the Champions Series event in San Diego, California.
Nurmagomedov, 26, will be fighting for the first time since Bellator 300 last October. Undefeated at 17-0, Nurmagomedov is widely regarded as one of the top new talents in all of mixed martial arts after having winning and having defending his title. He was forced from the bout with Shabliy earlier this May due to an injury. He has also been serving a suspension following a failed drug test from his bout against Brent Primus, also in San Diego, last year.
Shabliy, 31, has had a breakout run going back to the previous Bellator regimes he rides a nine fight win-streak going into the bout. “Peresvet” had reached the finals of the Bellator Grand Prix following victories over Tofiq Musayev, and former champion Patricky “Pitbull” Freire. It was announced before their previously scheduled bout in May that the fight would not be considered part of the tournament and the winner will not be awarded the $1 million grand prize that had previously been set prior to the acquisition of the company by the PFL.
No other bouts have been announced at this time. The event will take place at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego and air on Max.
