A certain Caveman will be taking his talents to Temecula later this month. On Thursday, Caveman Rickels (properly David Rickels) announced on social media that he was joining the Bellator 219 card. His opponent at the event will be none other than A.J. Matthews. Surprisingly given Rickel’s popularity, the fight will be part of the preliminary card.

This a banger baby let's gooo! @1FutureLegend @Venumfight @Onnit @suppworldstores pic.twitter.com/SlpaPhgVA1

— David Rickels (@TheCaveman316) March 7, 2019

Rickels (20–5 (2)) is coming off a win over Guilherme Vasconcelos, better known as ‘Bomba.’ The Caveman won that bout by unanimous decision at Bellator 210 back in November. It was a fight that helped eliminate the sting of a tough loss to Michael ‘Venom’ Page at Bellator 200.

With his unique entrances and entertaining fight style, Rickels has become a fan favorite in Bellator. He holds promotional records for most fights in Bellator MMA, and most wins among non-champions. Bellator 219 will mark his 22nd fight in the promotion.

A.J. Matthews (9–8) returns to the Bellator cage in the midst of a major slump. 1-5 in his last six fights, Matthews is coming off a loss against Logan Storley at Bellator 204. His only win since 2015 came via split decision against Kendall Grove at Bellator 193 last year.

Matthews formerly competed for Strikeforce, King of the Cage, and has appeared for RIZIN FF during his Bellator MMA run.

Bellator 219 takes place March 29 at the Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula, California. Saad Awad faces Brandon Girtz in the main event.

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In the co-main event at Bellator 204 in Sioux Falls, SD on Friday, Logan Storley looked to keep his perfect record intact as he took on A.J. Matthews. The welterweight bout saw ‘Storm’ enter the night at 8-0. And while he’d been passed over for the Bellator Welterweight Grand Prix, the standout wrestler and protege of Brock Lesnar could certainly make a statement.

Matthews, meanwhile, was the fighter who had send Kendall Grove packing from the promotion, snapping a three-fight losing streak in the process.

Once the pair got underway, Matthews leaned in with his strikes, no doubt aware of the takedown. It didn’t matter. Storley changed levels early, taking his opponent down briefly. He then tied up Matthews along the fence, kneeing the thigh several times, then dragging Matthews down. Matthews gave up his back, left with little alternative really. Storley was on him like a seatbelt, and every time A.J. Matthews came close to making it to his feet, Storley adjusted and took him down once more. By the midway point Matthews was eating blow after blow, covering up, with the ref taking a close look. Yet Matthews kept moving just enought to survive, and Storley’s punches didn’t have enough behind them. However, with Storley in full control, the ref stood him up, as a knee to the shoulder slipped and connected with Matthew’s head. The doctor was brought in, and Matthews given up to five minutes to recover, but the fight would continue. Storley would finish the round with another takedown and submission attempt, but they’d go to the second.

Round two once again saw Logan Storley get the action to the ground early. This time, he went to work from side control, then sunk in an arm triangle choke. Unable to finish that, he worked the body, though Matthews managed to maneuver him back to half guard. As in the first round, Storley was in full control, and peppered A.J. Matthews with strikes whenever possible. Eventually he would trap Matthews by the cage and mix in some elbows, which forced Matthews to cover up and try to roll free. He could not, and the ref had finally seen enough, putting a stop to the beating.

Now 9-0, Storley would be a lock as an alternate for the welterweight grand prix — only, alternates (at least one pair) have already been announced. Which makes the promotion’s plans for him something of a puzzle moving forward, but he deserves a solid step up.

Logan Storley def. A.J. Matthews by TKO, Round 2, 3:56

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Bellator 193 touched down in Temecula, CA on Friday, airing live on the Paramount Network. The second fight in on the evening’s main card saw Ultimate Fighter 3 winner Kendall Grove taking on A.J. Matthews. Grove had spoken candidly about losing his father and other personal losses prior to the bout. However, a secondary story line of Grove and Matthews being friends and occasional training partners also made their middleweight bout one to keep an eye on.

Matthews looked to work his way inside early on the much taller A.J. Matthews. However it was Grove landing a significant strike first, catching Matthews on the side of the head, though a slip made it look worse than it was. Matthews landed a leg kick, then went to the body moments later with another kick. Matthews continued to chop at Grove’s lead leg, utilizing both inside and outside leg kicks that landed with a crack. Grove was going to need to start checking some of those, and was already showing damage to the leg. Then it was time for Grove to fire off some offense, grabbing a Muay Thai clinch and firing off a knee.

Matthews, however, got the better of his opponent in round one. He pressed the action, controlled the cage, landed the greater volume of strikes, and his leg kicks were extremely effective. Round two saw more of the same. Matthews continued to find his way inside, avoiding the jab and counters of Grove. He continued to work in kicks, though with slightly less volume than in the first. Another problem for Grove, he spent a large chunk of the round backpedaling, allowing Matthews to be the aggressor.

Round three opened with one big question: was Matthews up two rounds, or was it a round a piece? While Grove had retreated through much of round two, Matthews’ output had dropped. In the third, however, an early exchange saw Matthews hurt Grove. Kendall would later have an opportunity to attack off an A.J. Matthews kick, but couldn’t capitalize. In the end, it went to the scorecard, and Grove was simply on his heels too much. A.J. Matthews picked up the split decision victory.

A.J Matthews def. Kendall Grove by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 30-27)

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