On Monday, promotion officials announced that the planned main event between Usman Nurmagomedov and Alexander Shabliy was off, the result of an undisclosed injury sustained by lightweight champ Nurmagomedov. As a result, the planned co-headliner between bantamweight champ Patchy Mix and Magomed Magomedov now shifts to the main event slot.

Nurmagomedov vs. Shabliy, which closes out Bellator’s lightweight grand prix (seemingly without the million dollars in prize money, since the promotion was scooped up by the PFL and rebranded as the Bellator Champions Series), is expected to be rebooked for a later date.

Additionally, French star Cedric Doumbe has been added to the Bellator Paris card; he’ll face Bellator vet Derek Anderson in the new co-main event.

Doumbe was last seen fighting under the PFL Europe banner last month, were a freak accident – a splinter in his toe – led to the first loss of his career. The injury TKO came against fellow French standout Baissangour Chamsoudinov, who has reportedly singed on with the UFC.

Bellator Paris is set to take place at the Accor Arena in Paris, France on May 17, 2024. The following match-ups have been announced for the event:

• Patchy Mix (c) vs. Magomed Magomedov – for the Bellator MMA bantamweight championship
• Cédric Doumbé vs. Derek Anderson
• Gregory Babene vs. Costello van Steenis
• Yves Landu vs. Jonas Bilharinho
• Archie Colgan vs. Thibault Gouti
• Slim Trabelsi vs. Louie Sutherland
• Mansour Barnaoui vs. Yusuke Yachi
• Imamshafi Aliev vs. Mike Shipman
• Aspen Ladd vs. Ekaterina Shakalova
• Asael Adjoudj vs. Bruno Fontes

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Now under the ownership of the PFL, Bellator is carrying on as the Bellator Champions Series, and it seems that Mix will be, well, in the mix for some time to come.

“I signed a new deal right before Sergio [Pettis] and Patricio [Pitbull] had fought. Right after I won the grand prix,” Mix told Cageside Press this past Friday, while in attendance at the PFL 2 card in Las Vegas. “And then they had merged. I have a lot of fights left on my deal, so I’m going to be with PFL for a while.”

Mix plans on becoming a face of the promotion, in fact.

“I’m ready to take over not just the division but the promotion, to show that I’m the most exciting fighter, the best finisher in the whole league,” exclaimed Mix. “19-1, I’m fighting a very good, formidable opponent May 17, six weeks from now, in Paris. I’m the co-main event, I think I should be the main event, but I think I’m going to finish the guy, put him to sleep and show I think everyone in the world who the best 135lb’er is.”

Watch the full PFL 2 media appearance by Patchy Mix above.

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In a press release distributed on Wednesday, promotion officials announced a return to the Accor Arena on May 17, 2024, where Usman Nurmagomedov will face off against Alexander Shabliy for the promotion’s lightweight title.

Joining that main event fight will be 135lb champ Patchy Mix, who puts his belt on the line against Magomed Magomedov.

The inclusion of Usman Nurmagomedov vs. Alexander Shabliy is likely to raise some eyebrows. That pairing would have been the Lightweight Grand Prix final, had Nurmagomedov (17-0, 1NC) not seen a win over Brent Primus in the tournament semifinals overturned after failing a drug test for prescription medication.

Despite the result of the bout being overturned, Nurmagomedov was not stripped of his title.

Shabliy (24-3) defeated Patricky Pitbull in his own Grand Prix semifinal fight, and hasn’t been beat in eight years. Despite that, there has been no mention of the Bellator Paris headliner officially closing out the Lightweight Grand Prix. Nor has there been any mention as to whether the million dollar purse offered to Grand Prix winners under Bellator’s previous ownership would remain intact.

As for Mix (17-3), he defeated Sergio Pettis to claim undisputed bantamweight gold in November. Patchy is also a grand prix winner, running the gauntlet from 2022 to 2023 in a streak that saw him pick up a submission win over opponent Magomed Magomedov in the semifinals.

Magomedov (20-3) bounced back with a victory against Danny Sabatello last July.

Also featured on the Bellator Paris, card, Mansour Barnaoui (20-6) will face off against Japanese Bellator and RIZIN vet Yusuke Yachi (26-13) in prelim action. On the main card, Gregory Babene (23-11) goes up against Dutch star Costello van Steenis (14-3) in a number one contender’s bout, and heavyweight Slim Trabelsi (6-0) gets Louie Sutherland (6-2).

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