Irish Prospect Paul Hughes to Face Bobby King in Bellator Dublin Co-Main Event

BELLATOR DEBUT! 👀

🇮🇪 Paul Hughes 🆚 Bobby King 🇺🇸

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Paul Hughes makes his Bellator debut in front of his home crowd on June 22nd, as he welcomes Bobby King to the 3Arena! 🔥@paulhughesmma will be looking to add to his eight finishes and send a message to the Bellator… pic.twitter.com/s4tRmKAWGN

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) April 29, 2024

While he plans to compete in the 2025 Professional Fighters League season, Paul Hughes’ first major promotional foray with come with Bellator.

The organization announced on Monday that Hughes will lock horns with Bobby King in the lightweight co-main event at Bellator Champions Series Dublin on June 22. A coveted free agent, King recently signed with PFL, which purchased Bellator in 2023. Bellator Champions Series Dublin takes place at 3Arena and is headlined by a welterweight title tilt pitting Jason Jackson against Ramazan Kuramagomedov. The card will air on Max in the United States.

Hughes was a Cage Warriorsp featherweight title holder before transitioning to 155 pounds. He began his lightweight tenure with first-round stoppages of Jan Quaeyhaegens and Fabiano Silva under the Cage Warriors banner. “Big News” has been victorious in 11 of his 12 professional outings overall, with eight of those triumphs coming inside the distance.

The 40-year-old King has competed for Bellator since 2021. He is coming off back-to-back decision losses to Gadzhi Rabadanov and Aalon Cruz and will be fighting for the first time since April 2023. King has compiled a 12-6 mark since beginning his professional tenure in 2016.