Italian Lightweight Danilo Belluardo Signs Four-Fight Deal with UFC

Italian fighter Danilo Belluardo (12-3) has joined the major leagues, as the time to prove himself in the Ultimate Fighting Championship has arrived.

According to Sherdog.com’s own sources, the up-and-coming fighter has just signed a four-bout contract with the Nevada-based promotion. The former Bellator MMA contender arrives in the UFC riding a six-fight win streak.

Fighting out of Milan, Italy, in his last bout, “Caterpillar” defeated Brazilian Denilson Neves de Oliveira to capture the Venator lightweight belt. Prior to that, he submitted Elia Madau at Venator “Inside 1” and defeated Dragoljub Stanojevic via first-round TKO in the main event of The Golden Cage 2.

The majority of the victories on Belluardo’s record have come inside the distance, with six knockouts and three submissions. Meanwhile, all three of his career defeats have come via KO or TKO, including a setback to hot prospect A.J. McKee at Bellator 152. That fight, however, marks the only occasion that Belluardo has competed at 145 pounds.

The Italian fighter is currently doing a training camp at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, Calif. There is no word regarding his debut date yet.