Some things just aren’t meant to be and last night’s Bellator 75 main event was proof of that. The third time was not the charm for Bellator and the Eric Prindle versus Thiago Santos heavyweight bout as their bizarre trilogy has hopefully come to an end.
A day after the current Bellator heavyweight champion Cole Konrad surprisingly announced his retirement from the sport; the promotion introduced the finalized field for their season 7 heavyweight tournament.
The Bellator Fighting Championships will return to Louisiana on Friday, March 16 for Bellator 61 from Bossier City at the Horseshoe Riverdome to finally crown a heavyweight tournament champion. The night will be headlined with heavyweights Eric Prindle and Thiago Santos finishing what they started last season as well as the start of the Season 6 Middleweight Tournament.
The final semifinal round of Bellator’s fifth season takes place at this weekend’s Bellator 56 with the heavyweights taking center stage. Following the opening round at Bellator 52, the bracket was hit with a medical suspension and an injury that forced two semifinalists out of the tournament.
The season 5 Bellator heavyweight tournament appears to have lost its second semifinalist this weekend, resulting in a completely new semifinal bout at Bellator 56. Following Thiago Santos stepping in for Mike Hayes after he was not medically cleared to fight, former finalist Neil Grove appears to be stepping back into the Bellator heavyweight tournament.
What’s that, four heavyweight fights and not one “zombie” walks from any of the eight fighters. What fans did get were two very competitive bouts that would go the distance pared with two one-sided bouts that would end early.
It’s finally the heavyweights turn to kick off their season 5 tournament tomorrow’s Bellator 52 from the L’Auberge du Lac Casino Resort in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Eight “big” men will enter the Bellator cage, each vying for a shot the heavyweight champion Cole Konrad.
Heavyweight fighter Ron “The Monster” Sparks came into Saturdays Bellator 45 lacking the household name recognition of an up and coming prospect. Opening his career at smaller shows in the state of Kentucky, Sparks now 7-0 made his Bellator debut last August at Bellator 30.
