Johnson will lock horns with Linton Vassell, while Fortune will face Steve Mowry in newly-booked heavyweight bouts at Bellator 277. The California-based promotion confirmed the pairings following an initial report from MMAjunkie.com. Johnson defeated Fortune via first-round knockout at Bellator 239.
Bellator 277 takes place at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., and is headlined by a featherweight title rematch between A.J. McKee and Patricio Freire. In the co-main event, Vadim Nemkov will defend his light heavyweight crown against Corey Anderson in the finals of the 205-pound grand prix.
Johnson has lost his last two promotional appearances, falling to Valentin Moldavsky in an interim heavyweight title bout at Bellator 261 before suffering a first-round KO defeat against Fedor Emelianenko at Bellator 269.
A former light heavyweight title challenger, Vassell is 3-1 since moving to the heavyweight division. His current three-fight winning streak includes wins over the likes of Sergei Kharitonov, Ronny Markes and Fortune.
After winning his first eight professional appearances — all under the Bellator banner — Fortune has won just three of his last six outings, with losses to Johnson and Fortune along with a no contest against Jack May on his ledger. The defeat to Vassell in his most recent fight at Bellator 271 halted a three-bout winning streak.
Mowry has emerged as a prospect to watch with victories in his first 10 professional bouts — including six under the Bellator banner. All of his career triumphs have come inside the distance, including a first-round tapout of Rakim Cleveland in his last outing at Bellator 271.