Bellator 163: "McGeary vs. Davis" comes to Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., on Nov. 4, 2016, featuring a highly anticipated Light Heavyweight showdown between champion Liam McGeary and No. 1 contender "Mr. Wonderful" Phil Davis in the Spike TV-televised main event of the evening.
The now-completed card will also feature two debuts from fighters Bellator has labelled "blue chip" prospects. Indeed, the promotion certainly lauded Ed Ruth when he signed last year, but he was unable to fight in Bellator until now as he was pursuing a spot on the Olympic wrestling team for the Rio de Janeiro games. While his dream of Olympic gold didn't materialize, his dream of Bellator gold can start now with a Middleweight bout against Mark Mangiardi, who will also be making his professional debut. Mangiardi has already had four amateur bouts and now fights outside of Pennsylvania for the first time.
Another debut delayed for Olympic pursuits was "One Tough Cookie" Tyrell Fortune. He's a training partner of Ruth's who has also spent time in Florida with the Blackzilians, and he'll put those skills to the test in Cody Miskell's pro debut. Miskell racked up a 5-2 record as an amateur.
Check out the complete and finalized Bellator 163 card (barring injuries or withdrawals) below:
Bellator 163 "McGeary vs. Davis" Main Card (Spike TV):
Light Heavyweight: Liam McGeary (11-0) vs. Phil Davis (16-3)
Welterweight: Saad Awad (19-8) vs. Brennan Ward (13-4)
Welterweight: Paul Daley (38-14-2) vs. Derek Anderson (14-2)
Heavyweight: Sergei Kharitonov (23-5) vs. Javy Ayala (9-5)
Featherweight: Marloes Coenen (23-7) vs. Talita Nogueira (6-0)
Bellator 163 "Prelims" Card (Bellator.com):
Middleweight: Ed Ruth (Debut) vs. Mark Mangiardi (Debut)
Heavyweight: Tyrell Fortune (Debut) vs. Cody Miskell (Debut)
Catchweight: Neiman Gracie (4-0) vs. Rudy Bears (16-14)
Heavyweight: Josh Diekmann (15-7, 1 NC) vs. Tyler King (11-4)
Featherweight: Blair Tugman (8-6) vs. Walter Smith-Cotito (4-4, 1 NC)
Middleweight: Michael Zichelle (8-4) vs. Tim Caron (5-0)
Welterweight: Ilya Kotau (1-1) vs. Carlos Corriea (1-0)
Flyweight: Sarah Payant (1-3) vs. Hannah Regina (Debut)
Welterweight: Keenan Raymond (3-3) vs. Kastroit Xhema (Debut)
Featherweight: Thomas English (6-6) vs. Christopher Foster (9-4)
Welterweight: James Boran (6-0) vs. Vinicius De Jesus (4-1)
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