Bellator MMA announces move to Showtime, reveals eight-man light heavyweight tournament bracket

Bellator MMA announced that it will be moving to Showtime, and the promotion revealed multiple fights for its upcoming schedule.

Bellator MMA will return to action on Friday nights in April and it will do so on a new network as the promotion will now air exclusively on Showtime, with president Stephen Espinoza confirming the news in a press conference. That’s the same network Bellator president Scott Coker had plenty of success with back in the day when he ran Strikeforce. The hope is that this move takes the MMA organization to the next level. Watch the official announcement below.

BREAKING: Bellator has a new home on Showtime starting April 2nd! @BellatorMMA | @SHOsports pic.twitter.com/tsmuEfvSek

— CBS Sports HQ (@CBSSportsHQ) February 9, 2021

Together, Showtime and Bellator MMA announced a number of great fights during its big announcement on Tuesday afternoon. They are listed below:

• On April 2, the promotion returns with Bellator 255, headlined by the Bellator World Featherweight Grand Prix semifinal bout between Patricio Pitbull and Emmanuel Sanchez. These two previously met in 2018, with Pitbull winning a competitive decision. The winner of this fight will face AJ McKee in June.
• On April 9, the first set of four quarterfinal bouts in the World Light Heavyweight Grand Prix will take place. Corey Anderson takes on promotional newcomer Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov while Ryan Bader takes on Lyoto Machida in a rematch between former UFC rivals.
• On April 16, the second set of the four quarterfinal bouts in the World Light Heavyweight Grand Prix will take place. Yoel Romero takes on Anthony Johnson in one of the fights. The other bout sees Bellator light heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov take on Phil Davis in another rematch.
• On May 7, bantamweight champion Juan Archuleta will put his title on the line when he takes on former UFC fighter, Sergio Pettis. Archuleta won the title in his last fight when he defeated Patchy Mix, while Pettis has won both of his fights under the Bellator banner since leaving the UFC.