BRENNAN WARD FIGHTS FOR THE WORLD TITLE!

Newport Beach, Calif. (March 25, 2013) – The weigh-in and pre-fight press conference for Bellator MMA will take place Thursday at 5:00 p.m. MST from the Fairborn Ballroom at the Embassy Suites (3524 S Market St, West Valley City, UT 84119).

Bellator MMA will take place from the Maverik Center on Friday, March 28th with the first fight taking place at 5 p.m. MST and streaming LIVE on Spike.com. The televised portion of the night will begin at 7 p.m. MST and will air LIVE on Spike TV.All participants from Friday night’s event will be on hand, as well as Bellator CEO & Chairman Bjorn Rebney.

The event will be emceed by Bellator cage announcer Michael C. Williams and Bellator color commentator Jimmy Smith.As always the weigh-in is open to both the public and media.

MAIN CARD:

Bellator Middleweight World Title Fight:

Brennan Ward (9-1) vs. Alexander Shlemenko (49-7)

Brenan “The Irish Bad Boy” enters this Bellator MMA world title fight with a four fight winning streak and a Bellator MMA tournament winning $100,000 check. Ward who is a Johnston and Wales national wrestling alumni All-American champion under Coach Lonnie Morris is coming into this fight looking to dethrone Bellator MMA Champion Alexander “The Storm” Shlemenko. Shlemenko comes into the Bellator cage with his title and an impressive twelve fight winning streak.

“The Irish Bad Boy” is a regional competitor who was born and raised in Waterford, Connecticut. Brennan Ward lived in Providence RI while he attended Johnson and Wales University. He is looking to accomplish something very special this Friday night. Brennan can join the ranks of famous local fighters from the Northeast: Vinnie Paz, Peter Manfredo Jr., Mickey Ward, Marvin Hagler, John Ruiz, and Rocky Marciano by becoming the next fighter to win a world title. However, with this win Brennan Ward will become the first MMA fighter to ever win a World Title from the Northeast region. This is the biggest fight of Brenan Wards career to date.

In order to prepare for this fight Brenan Ward has trained at the top gyms in the northeast. These gyms include: Whaling City Boxing, Tim Burrill Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, SityodTong Boston, Rivera MMA, TRI FORCE MMA, NE COMBAT, and JWU Wrestling.

After speaking with his manager Jay Jodoin who serves on the Regional Fight Sports board he left us with this message:

“Ok, he has done his work and has taken this opportunity for everything it is worth. "I want to say that no matter how TV has tried to present Brennan as a Bad Boy he is truly honored, as a martial artist and an All-American wrestler, to be representing the USA as he fights for the World Title!

Regional Fight Sports wishes Brennan “The Irish Bad Boy” Ward the best this coming Friday night. Brennan will not only have the Northeast region cheering for him but he will have the whole United States of America in his corner as he takes on the Russian MMA Champion.THIS IS A CANT MISS EVENT!!!!

Bellator Featherweight Tournament Semifinal:

Desmond Green (10-2) vs. Will Martinez (9-2-1)

Bellator Featherweight Tournament Semifinal:

Daniel Weichel (32-8) vs. Matt Bessette (13-4)

Bellator Middleweight Tournament Semifinal:

Kendall Grove (19-13) vs. Brett Cooper (19-9)

PRELIMINARY CARD:

Featherweight Feature Fight:

Rad Martinez (14-3) vs. Edson Berto (17-11-1)

Lightweight Feature Fight:

Justin Wilcox (13-6) vs. Jason Fischer (6-2)

Lightweight Feature Fight:

Bubba Jenkins (6-1) vs. Sean Powers (8-4)

Light Heavyweight Feature Fight:

Linton Vassell (12-3) vs. Trevor Carlson (7-1)

Welterweight Feature Fight:

Gavin Sterritt (5-1) vs. Mike Estus (5-1)

Middleweight Feature Fight:

Jose Rodriguez (2-2) vs. Eric Wahlin (5-2)

For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, follow Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney @BjornRebney and check out Bellator on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BellatorMMA