Bellator will return to the WinStar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma tonight for Bellator 151 and the fight card will be headlined by a key bantamweight bout as former Bellator champion Joe Warren returns from suspension to meet undefeated prospect Darrion Caldwell.
The fight card will begin at 6:45 p.m. ET/3:45 p.m. PT with the online preliminary card and the four fight main card will start at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on Spike TV.
Check out a breakdown of the four fights that will be on the main card broadcast on Spike TV.
Joe Warren (12-4, 1NC) vs. Darrion Caldwell (8-0)
This will be the first fight for Warren since coming off suspension from the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation for his failed drug test following Bellator 143 last year. On that night, he scored a decision victory over L.C. Davis, but tested positive for marijuana in his post fight drug test which caused the fight to be overturned to a no-contest.
- 5th most cage time in Bellator history (2:58:46).
- Only fighter in Bellator history to win a title in two weight classes.
- Tied with Rick Hawn, Daniel Straus and Patricky Pitbull for the 3rd most fights in Bellator history.
Caldwell made his Bellator debut in 2014 and he has gone 5-0 in the promotion. He started in the promotion as a featherweight, but dropped down to the bantamweight division last year and has scored victories over Rafael Silva and Shawn Bunch in the Bellator 135 pound division.
- Holds the fastest submission win in Bellator featherweight division history (:50 vs. Lance Surma at Bellator 112).
- Three of his five wins in Bellator have come by submission in the first round.
- Tied with multiple fighters for the 4th most submission wins in Bellator history.
Fernando Gonzalez (24-13) vs. Gilbert Smith (12-4)
Gonzalez enters tonight’s Bellator card with four straight mixed martial arts victories and this will be his first fight since losing a decision to Paul Daley in a kickboxing bout at Bellator 142. His last mixed martial arts fight came in May of last year as he submitted Curtis Millender at Bellator 137.
- 4-0 in Bellator welterweight division.
- His submission win over Millender was his first submission victory since 2009.
- Three of his four fights in Bellator have made it to the third round.
Smith stepped up on short notice to take this fight following Michael Page pulling out of the event. This will be the Bellator debut of Smith as he enters the promotion after being the RFA welterweight champion.
- 4-1 in his last five and three of those wins have come by stoppage.
- Seven of his twelve wins have come by submission.
- Ultimate Fighter 17 alum (Team Jones).
Bubba Jenkins (10-2) vs. Goiti Yamauchi (19-2)
Jenkins will be looking for his third straight win tonight when he meets Yamauchi in a featherweight bout. His most recent win came in November as he defeated Jordan Parsons by split decision at Bellator 146.
- 4-1 since dropping down to the featherweight division.
- Four of his seven wins in Bellator have come by TKO/KO.
- Undefeated when the fight goes the distance (3-0).
Yamauchi enters tonight’s fight card with three straight wins and his last two wins have come by rear-naked choke submission. The most recent win came in October as he defeated Isao Kobayashi at Bellator 144 and he is 5-1 inside the Bellator cage.
- Tied with multiple fighters for the most submission wins in Bellator featherweight division history.
- Season Ten featherweight tournament quarterfinalist.
- Fifteen career victories by submission.
Joe Taimanglo (21-6-1) vs. Sirwan Kakai (12-3)
Taimanglo has been in Bellator since early 2013 and has gone 4-2 in the promotion. He is currently on a two fight winning streak and he is coming off a knockout win at Bellator 137 against Antonio Duarte.
- Sixteen wins by stoppage (5 TKO/KO, 11 Submissions).
- Both of his defeats in Bellator have come by decision.
- Knockout win over Duarte was his first TKO/KO win since 2012.
Kakai is making his Bellator debut tonight after going 1-1 in the UFC. After winning his debut in the UFC against Danny Martinez, he lost a split decision against Frankie Saenz at UFC Fight Night 73.
- Ten of his twelve wins have come by finish (4 TKO/KO, 6 Submissions).
- All of his defeats have come by decision.
- Holds a submission win over recent WSOF bantamweight title challenger Joseph Barajas.
The Bellator 151: Warren vs. Caldwell fight card is below.
Main Card: (Spike – 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT)
Joe Warren (12-4, 1NC) vs. Darrion Caldwell (8-0)
Fernando Gonzalez (24-13) vs. Gilbert Smith (12-4)
Bubba Jenkins (10-2) vs. Goiti Yamauchi (19-2)
Joe Taimanglo (21-6) vs. Sirwan Kakai (12-3)
Preliminary Card: (Spike.com – 6:45 p.m. ET/3:45 p.m. PT)
Treston Thomison (8-4) vs. Aaron Roberson (5-3)
Derek Palmer (0-0) vs. Jermayne Barnes (0-1)
Roger Carroll (16-13) vs. Neiman Gracie (3-0)
Steve Garcia (6-0) vs. Ricky Turcios (5-0)
Justin Patterson (6-1) vs. Chance Rencountre (8-1)
Chris Jones (10-3) vs. Ray Wood (5-1)