Bellator Fighting Championships Teams up with Madison Square Garden Sports
Jul 8, 2010
(PRESS RELEASE) -- Bellator Fighting Championships announced today
that the nationally televised Mixed Martial Arts promotion will
return to the Windy City for a Season 3 event at the historic
Chicago Theatre on August 19. Bellator 25 will mark the Chicago
landmark’s second-ever mixed martial arts event - the first being
Bellator 14 which took place on April 15, 2010. The Bellator 25
card will feature two quarterfinal fights in both the Season 3
Heavyweight and Women’s World Championship Tournaments.
Headlining the Fox Sports Network event will be undefeated heavyweight sensation Damian “The Polish Pitbull” Grabowski who will make his U.S. debut in a quarterfinal heavyweight world championship tournament fight against knock-out artist Scott Barrett. Grabowski who is considered one of the top heavyweight free agents in the world, boasts a perfect 13-0 pro record, The Polish Pitbull has not only finished each of his opponents by TKO or submission, but not one of his opponents has yet to see the third round of a fight. The Polish National’s spectacular tenacity was on full display in April 2009, when he competed in a one-night, 16-man heavyweight tournament under an Austrian promotion that featured no-time-limit bouts. Grabowski dismantled each of his four opponents, winning the tournament with his longest fight lasting only 3:48 into the second frame. In his most recent fight (June, 2010) Grabowski TKO’d very highly regarded heavyweight Michal Kita in the first round.
Barrett, who owns a four-fight win streak coming into the
tournament, fought earlier this year at Bellator 19 where he
knocked-out formerly undefeated Ty Lee just 2:25 into the first
round.
Bellator 25 will also feature an opening round World Championship women’s tournament fight between Zoila “The Warrior Princess” Frausto and undefeated world’s No. 6-ranked flyweight Jessica Pene. Frausto was added to the tournament after she shocked the MMA world recently at Bellator 23 with her stunning KO of the world's top-ranked and heavily favored Rosi Sexton. Sexton was subsequently forced out of the tournament due to a 60-day medical suspension from the Kentucky Boxing and Wrestling Authority. Pene debuted for Bellator in May 2009 with a first round TKO against Tammie Schneider at Bellator 5. Her unblemished record also features a submission victory over fellow tournament participant and No. 8 world ranked 115 pounder, Angela Magana.
The Bellator Season 3 Heavyweight and Women’s Tournament begins on Aug. 12 and will once again be televised LIVE in primetime every Thursday night on FOX Sports Net and during special weekend highlight shows on NBC, Telemundo and the cable network mun2.
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator. Tickets are priced at $100, $75, $50, and $35, and go on sale via www.Ticketmaster.com beginning Saturday, July 10 at 12:00pm.
About Bellator Fighting Championships:
Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company based in Chicago. Bellator’s CEO & Chairman, Bjorn Rebney, is an experienced fighting sports and entertainment professional with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes. Bellator Fighting Championships’ executive team is comprised of top industry professionals in the areas of live event production, television production, fighter relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations.
About MSG Sports:
MSG Sports owns and operates several premier sports franchises, including the NBA’s New York Knicks, NHL’s New York Rangers, WNBA’s New York Liberty, and the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL). As well as promotes, produces and/or partners on a broad array of world class live sporting events, including world championship boxing, college and high school basketball, track and field, mixed martial arts, gymnastics, tennis, professional bull riding and others. Madison Square Garden is a fully-integrated sports, entertainment and media business. The company is comprised of three business segments: MSG Sports, MSG Entertainment and MSG Media, which are strategically aligned to work together to drive its overall business, and built on a foundation of iconic venues and compelling content that MSG creates, produces, presents and/or distributes through its programming networks and other media assets. MSG Sports consists of the New York Knicks (NBA), the New York Rangers (NHL), the New York Liberty (WNBA), and the Hartford Wolf Pack (American Hockey League). MSG Entertainment is a leader in managing and creating concerts and events at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, the Beacon Theatre, the legendary Chicago Theatre, the Wang Theatre in Boston, and produces the Radio City Christmas Spectacular featuring the Radio City Rockettes. MSG Media is comprised of leading television networks MSG, MSG Plus, MSG HD and MSG Plus HD, as well as MSG Interactive, which oversees all company wireless and online initiatives, and Fuse and Fuse HD, the national television network dedicated exclusively to music. The company owns and operates the Madison Square Garden arena complex located in the heart of the New York metropolitan area. More information is available at www.thegarden.com.
About The Chicago Theatre
The Chicago Theatre, a 3,600-seat venue located on State Street in the North Loop Theatre District of Chicago, was built in 1921 and designed in the French Baroque style by architects Cornelius W. Rapp and George L. Rapp. It is the oldest surviving example of this architectural style in Chicago today. Built as a flagship in a series of opulent motion picture houses, it quickly became known as “The Wonder Theatre of the World.” The illustrious “C-H-I-C-A-G-O” marquee, at nearly six stories high, is one of the few such signs in existence today. Designated a Chicago Landmark building in 1983 by the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council, The Chicago Theatre has become a destination for unforgettable concerts and events. Most notable for presenting some of the biggest names in music, the theatre has hosted such musicians as Frank Sinatra, Neil Young, Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Harry Conick, JR., Prince, Diana Ross and Christina Aguilera. The Chicago Theatre has also served host to some of the biggest movie premieres including Kinsey with Liam Neeson, The Kite Runner with Marc Forster, and Dr. T and His Women with Richard Gere. Broadway tours hosted at the venue include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Dreamgirls.
Headlining the Fox Sports Network event will be undefeated heavyweight sensation Damian “The Polish Pitbull” Grabowski who will make his U.S. debut in a quarterfinal heavyweight world championship tournament fight against knock-out artist Scott Barrett. Grabowski who is considered one of the top heavyweight free agents in the world, boasts a perfect 13-0 pro record, The Polish Pitbull has not only finished each of his opponents by TKO or submission, but not one of his opponents has yet to see the third round of a fight. The Polish National’s spectacular tenacity was on full display in April 2009, when he competed in a one-night, 16-man heavyweight tournament under an Austrian promotion that featured no-time-limit bouts. Grabowski dismantled each of his four opponents, winning the tournament with his longest fight lasting only 3:48 into the second frame. In his most recent fight (June, 2010) Grabowski TKO’d very highly regarded heavyweight Michal Kita in the first round.
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Bellator 25 will also feature an opening round World Championship women’s tournament fight between Zoila “The Warrior Princess” Frausto and undefeated world’s No. 6-ranked flyweight Jessica Pene. Frausto was added to the tournament after she shocked the MMA world recently at Bellator 23 with her stunning KO of the world's top-ranked and heavily favored Rosi Sexton. Sexton was subsequently forced out of the tournament due to a 60-day medical suspension from the Kentucky Boxing and Wrestling Authority. Pene debuted for Bellator in May 2009 with a first round TKO against Tammie Schneider at Bellator 5. Her unblemished record also features a submission victory over fellow tournament participant and No. 8 world ranked 115 pounder, Angela Magana.
Aisling Daly, the best female mixed martial artist in Ireland and
the world's No. 3-ranked 125 lbs. female fighter, will drop down to
115 lbs. to face 13-5 submission ace and No. 3-ranked flyweight
Lisa Ward in a quarterfinal World Championship women’s tournament
fight. The 22-year-old Daly will make her MMA debut in the U.S.
backed by a pristine 9-0 record, while Ward enters the fight with
one win already coming under the Bellator banner. Just two weeks
ago at Bellator 22, she dismantled Stephanie Frausto with a slick
rear naked choke 2:01 into the first round.
The Bellator Season 3 Heavyweight and Women’s Tournament begins on Aug. 12 and will once again be televised LIVE in primetime every Thursday night on FOX Sports Net and during special weekend highlight shows on NBC, Telemundo and the cable network mun2.
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator. Tickets are priced at $100, $75, $50, and $35, and go on sale via www.Ticketmaster.com beginning Saturday, July 10 at 12:00pm.
About Bellator Fighting Championships:
Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company based in Chicago. Bellator’s CEO & Chairman, Bjorn Rebney, is an experienced fighting sports and entertainment professional with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes. Bellator Fighting Championships’ executive team is comprised of top industry professionals in the areas of live event production, television production, fighter relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations.
About MSG Sports:
MSG Sports owns and operates several premier sports franchises, including the NBA’s New York Knicks, NHL’s New York Rangers, WNBA’s New York Liberty, and the Hartford Wolf Pack of the American Hockey League (AHL). As well as promotes, produces and/or partners on a broad array of world class live sporting events, including world championship boxing, college and high school basketball, track and field, mixed martial arts, gymnastics, tennis, professional bull riding and others. Madison Square Garden is a fully-integrated sports, entertainment and media business. The company is comprised of three business segments: MSG Sports, MSG Entertainment and MSG Media, which are strategically aligned to work together to drive its overall business, and built on a foundation of iconic venues and compelling content that MSG creates, produces, presents and/or distributes through its programming networks and other media assets. MSG Sports consists of the New York Knicks (NBA), the New York Rangers (NHL), the New York Liberty (WNBA), and the Hartford Wolf Pack (American Hockey League). MSG Entertainment is a leader in managing and creating concerts and events at Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, The Theater at Madison Square Garden, the Beacon Theatre, the legendary Chicago Theatre, the Wang Theatre in Boston, and produces the Radio City Christmas Spectacular featuring the Radio City Rockettes. MSG Media is comprised of leading television networks MSG, MSG Plus, MSG HD and MSG Plus HD, as well as MSG Interactive, which oversees all company wireless and online initiatives, and Fuse and Fuse HD, the national television network dedicated exclusively to music. The company owns and operates the Madison Square Garden arena complex located in the heart of the New York metropolitan area. More information is available at www.thegarden.com.
About The Chicago Theatre
The Chicago Theatre, a 3,600-seat venue located on State Street in the North Loop Theatre District of Chicago, was built in 1921 and designed in the French Baroque style by architects Cornelius W. Rapp and George L. Rapp. It is the oldest surviving example of this architectural style in Chicago today. Built as a flagship in a series of opulent motion picture houses, it quickly became known as “The Wonder Theatre of the World.” The illustrious “C-H-I-C-A-G-O” marquee, at nearly six stories high, is one of the few such signs in existence today. Designated a Chicago Landmark building in 1983 by the Mayor of Chicago and the Chicago City Council, The Chicago Theatre has become a destination for unforgettable concerts and events. Most notable for presenting some of the biggest names in music, the theatre has hosted such musicians as Frank Sinatra, Neil Young, Bing Crosby, Ella Fitzgerald, Harry Conick, JR., Prince, Diana Ross and Christina Aguilera. The Chicago Theatre has also served host to some of the biggest movie premieres including Kinsey with Liam Neeson, The Kite Runner with Marc Forster, and Dr. T and His Women with Richard Gere. Broadway tours hosted at the venue include Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Dreamgirls.
