The eleventh season will begin on September 5th and the debut fight card of the season will be on September 5th as Bellator 123 comes from the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Bellator officials announced the event today in a press release and the card will feature season nine tournament winner Brennan Ward facing James Irvin in a middleweight bout.
Also on the fight card will be the opening round of the season eleven middleweight tournament. At this time, the main event is unknown for this event and will be announced by Bellator in the coming weeks.
“It’s going to be another incredible night at Mohegan Sun on September 5th,” Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney said. “Mohegan Sun has hosted some of the most memorable moments in Bellator history and I couldn’t think of a better venue to kick off what will be a huge Season 11 for Bellator. I can’t wait to get Brennan back in the cage, our Middleweight Tournament will be stacked, and we are going to open our Season 11 in a huge way on Friday, September 5th.”
Ward (9-2) entered Bellator in late 2012 and won two of his three fights in Bellator before being a late replacement into the season nine middleweight tournament. He would go on to finish all of his fights in the tournament to secure his title shot against Alexander Shlemenko. He would get his title shot in March and was defeated by submission in the second round.
“It’s my time and he had his,” Ward proclaimed. “I’ve been putting in the work and this guy is just in my way to getting back to where I need to be. The Sandman is going to get planked in the fourth minute of the first round, I’m already calling my shot!”
Irvin (17-10, 2NC) will be making his Bellator debut against Ward and this will be his first fight since 2012. After winning back to back fights, he was defeated in his last fight on April 29, 2012 against Scott Rosa and he plans to make a statement against Ward with a knockout victory.
“The Sandman is back,” Irvin said. “This is where the road turns for me. I’m back, and fighting under the bright lights again for a huge promotion like Bellator, and have a tough test ahead of me in a guy like Brennan Ward. I know he likes to run his mouth and he’s a young guy, but I’m knocking this kid out on my way back to the top.”
Tickets for Bellator 123 go on sale on Friday June 6th at 10:00 a.m. ET and can be purchased on Ticketmaster.com, Bellator.com or by visiting the Mohegan Sun Box Office. More information on this fight card, including the main event will be announced shortly by Bellator.