Bellator Featherweight Semifinals Set for April 16 in Arizona
Mike Whitman Mar 24, 2011
The featherweight tournament rolls on for the four men who advanced
through the quarterfinals on March 19, as the semifinal bouts are
now set to go down April 16 at
Bellator 41 at the Cocopah Resort and Casino in Yuma, Ariz.
Patricio “Pitbull” Freire (Pictured) will square off with fellow Brazilian Wilson Reis, while Team Bombsquad product Kenny Foster meets Team Vision representative Daniel Straus.
Freire tweeted news of his semifinal matchup on Thursday, and
Sherdog.com confirmed the pairings and location through multiple
sources soon after. The promotion has yet to officially announce
either of the matchups.
Freire comes off a hard-fought victory over Georgi Karakhanyan in the quarterfinal. Though his opponent was game, the Brazilian was able to control the fight with superior wrestling before unleashing a beautiful left hook that dropped Karakhanyan to the mat. Freire pounced on his fallen foe, forcing the referee to stop the contest.
Foster was equally impressive in his victory over Eric Larkin, as the Team Bombsquad fighter quickly submitted the decorated wrestler with a guillotine choke in the first round. “The Tooth Fairy” has won eight of his last nine, including back-to-back wins inside the circular Bellator cage.
In a gutsy performance, Straus went toe-to-toe with undefeated Argentine Nazareno Malegarie, earning a unanimous decision after three rounds of back-and-forth action. The victory marks Straus' 11th straight win. The featherweight holds nine of his 15 career victories by decision.
The winner of Bellator's featherweight tournament will receive $100,000 in total pay and a shot at the promotion's 145-pound champion, Joe Warren. This Saturday, the promotion again airs live on MTV2 as the light heavyweight quarterfinals are contested at Bellator 38 on March 26.
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Patricio “Pitbull” Freire (Pictured) will square off with fellow Brazilian Wilson Reis, while Team Bombsquad product Kenny Foster meets Team Vision representative Daniel Straus.
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Freire comes off a hard-fought victory over Georgi Karakhanyan in the quarterfinal. Though his opponent was game, the Brazilian was able to control the fight with superior wrestling before unleashing a beautiful left hook that dropped Karakhanyan to the mat. Freire pounced on his fallen foe, forcing the referee to stop the contest.
Reis wasted no time in dispatching Zac George in
their Bellator 37 contest, as the former EliteXC bantamweight king
crumpled his opponent with a looping hook before finishing the job
with a smooth rear-naked choke at just 2:09 of the opening
round.
Foster was equally impressive in his victory over Eric Larkin, as the Team Bombsquad fighter quickly submitted the decorated wrestler with a guillotine choke in the first round. “The Tooth Fairy” has won eight of his last nine, including back-to-back wins inside the circular Bellator cage.
In a gutsy performance, Straus went toe-to-toe with undefeated Argentine Nazareno Malegarie, earning a unanimous decision after three rounds of back-and-forth action. The victory marks Straus' 11th straight win. The featherweight holds nine of his 15 career victories by decision.
The winner of Bellator's featherweight tournament will receive $100,000 in total pay and a shot at the promotion's 145-pound champion, Joe Warren. This Saturday, the promotion again airs live on MTV2 as the light heavyweight quarterfinals are contested at Bellator 38 on March 26.
Reader comments are active below. Chime in with an opinion or thought by signing in with your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Yahoo! account.
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