Aaron Jeffery Steps In Against Austin Vanderford at Bellator 284 on Aug. 12

#Bellator284 Card Update:

Canada's @aajmma (12-3) has stepped in on short notice to face #2-ranked 185lb contender @austinv170mma (11-1) on the 8/12 @SHOSports main card.

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Jeffery will look keep up the mullet magic after a debut KO at #Bellator282. pic.twitter.com/xkiWV4qWLW

— Bellator Public Relations (@BellatorPR) August 4, 2022

Bellator MMA will be rocking the mullet on Aug. 12.

At Bellator 284, Austin Vanderford (11-1) plans on coming back from his first career defeat, and he was expecting to face Anthony Adams. For currently unclosed reasons, Adams is out of their middleweight contest, and Bellator has already acquired and announced the replacement on Thursday: Aaron Jeffery (12-3). The two will square off inside the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. on Aug. 12, and they will be competing on the main card.

In his last time out, Vanderford put his undefeated record on the line as he vied for the middleweight strap, only to be staved off in 85 seconds by champ Gegard Mousasi. The setback, a quick first-round knockout, put an end to an 11-fight run that started with his pro debut in March 2017. Along the way, “The Gentleman” had prevailed on the 2018 season of Dana White's Contender Series, and although he did not get signed by the Ultimate Fighting Championship, he moved on to Bellator one win later. Vanderford debuted with the California-based league in 2019, stringing together five wins over names like Fabian Edwards and Vinicius de Jesus before getting a title shot.

The mullet-sporting Canadian Jeffery made a splash in his Bellator debut by pounding out Fabio Aguiar with a knee and follow-up punches in June. The two-time DWCS participant – unsuccessful in both attempts in 2019 and 2021 – only suffered loss in that company’s banner, with nine wins dating back to 2016 to earn a callup from Bellator. With a finish rate of exactly 75%, and stoppages in six of his last eight victories, Jeffery will be stepping in against a ranked middleweight on just over a week’s notice.

Bellator 284 will go down on Aug. 12 at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. The main event will see Neiman Gracie tangle with Goiti Yamauchi in a battle of welterweight grappling supremacy. The co-headliner brings ex-interim champ Valentin Moldavsky back to the Bellator cage against undefeated wrestler Steve Mowry. A rare amateur bout is slated as the event opener, with Brett Bye taking on Mattia Ioi at a pre-planned 175-pound catchweight.