On April 9, 2011, Ronnie Mann was supposed to battle Josh Arocho and make his Bellator debut. But due to some visa related problems, that never happened. Mann is yet to get the proper permission for entering United States and most probably it will take around 2-3 more weeks before he makes is in-ring debut for Bellator. Mann is definitely one of the fastest rising featherweight stars in independent circuit and had a very successful career in Sengoku. Though nothing has been officially confirmed yet, if rumors are true then Mann may debut for Bellator on 23^rd April, provided visa issues get sorted out by then.

How many of you have dreamt of being an MMA fighter? Now Bellator Fighting Championship brings you an opportunity of a lifetime. They are hitting the roads again to find out the next big MMA talent! This promotion is relatively new in the block but has drawn some serious attention with their selection of roaster, high quality matches and innovative ideas. This Chicago based promotion has now decided to arrange an open tryout in Boston on May 4, 2010. This effort is to secure new talents for their third season showdown that will take place at the end of 2010.

This open tryout invites fighters of all weight classes and both male and female participants are welcome to attend the event. It is scheduled to start at 1 p.m. ET at the famous Sityodtong Academy in Somerville, Massachusetts. The fighters are requested to register at least one hour prior to the session and they should also bring their gloves, protective gear and Federal MMA ID.  This open tryout is scheduled only a couple of days prior to the promotion’s latest event, Bellator 17 at Boston’s Wang Theatre. The Bellator officials will pick one winner from here who will earn the opportunity to fight a local featured fight during Bellator Season 3 taking place in August, September or October.

Bellator founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney said their last two tryouts in South Florida and Kansas City helped them discover some great talents like Tyler Stinson and Bryan Goldsby; he believes this one will also prove to be a rewarding one. In fact, Stinson, the winner of such a tryout slot earlier this year, had earned himself an opportunity to enter the Welterweight tournament bout in Bellator 15 as the pre-scheduled competitor Sean Pierson was forced to withdraw from the event.

Bellator 35 which is scheduled for 5^th March may see Zoila Frausto, the 115 pound champion squaring it off against Karina Hallinan. The fight is most likely to be a non-title one and verbal agreements are already in place. However, the bout agreements are yet to be signed officially.

2010 has been a wonderful year for Frausto. She was the victorious in the women’s tournament of Bellator and hence became the first ever woman champion in history of the organization. Apart from Bellator, Frausto has also competed under Strikeforce banner.  Unfortunately, she experienced her first career defeat on the hands of Miesha Tate while competing for the same.

If the match indeed takes place, then it will be a rematch of Frausto’s pro-fight debut. Early 2009, she debuted into pro-fight and scored a split-decision victory over Hallinan. Bellator 35 event which marks the start of fourth season of Bellator Fighting Championship will be held at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in California.

The third season of ‘Bellator Fighting Championship’ is only three weeks away and the company officials have announced Jose Vega as the fifth fighter of the projected eight-man bantamweight bout. Vega secured his place in this tournament after an impressive 39 second victory over Jarrod Card in a non-tournament bout last June.

Jose Vega was born in Miami and had been a fan of MMA since his childhood. In a recent interview, Vega said how is father encouraged him and his eight other siblings to learn the art of fighting. Vega gathered some first-hand experience in fighting during his one year tenure of collegiate wrestling and made his professional MMA debut in 2002. Vega’s recent performance has not been much impressive as he lost 3 of his last 5 bouts and won only 2. In spite of this average performance, Vega believes he is at the top of his game. “I’m more complete now than I’ve been ever before”, Vega stated in the recent release.  This 5’6” fighter has now joined the other confirmed participants Danny Tims, Travis Reddinger, Ulysses Gomez and Nik Mamalis. Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney said Vega has already showed what he is capable of and his inclusion in this tournament perfectly indicates the overall goal of Bellator.

In recent times, the lightweight division of UFC looks most cloudy amongst the organization’s seven weight classes. The issue is not with the quality of fighters they have; the title looks good in the hands of current champion Frankie Edgar. He is scheduled to meet Gray Maynard at UFC 130 for the championship. But the organization is not sure about who will be the next. A recent poll by a leading MMA website revealed that almost 77 percent of the voters want the winner of Clay Guida vs. Anthony Pettis at June’s Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale to be crowned the top challenger for the lightweight title.

“Hamill” – the feature film based on the life of UFC light heavyweight fighter Matt Hamill has earned considerable respect from the fans worldwide. The film picked up two significant awards in last few months. The first honor came when the movie won “Breakthrough Film” award at AFI Film Festival 2010 in Los Angeles. Recently, the film also captured the Audience Award for the Best Feature Film at Miami Film Festival. Shot on a “modest budget”, the film’s overwhelming response has encouraged the producer Eben Kostbar to release it theatrically this summer which may be followed by a nationwide release.

Bellator has managed to sign Blagoi Ivanov, a big name in the world of Mixed Martial Arts. Ivanov earned instant fame when he defeated Fedor Emelianenko in a combat sambo match. The fighter has signed a multi fight deal with the organization and will soon perform in the USA for the very first time.  Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney is ecstatic about this new signing and thinks Bellator will shine even more with this incredible fighter in their roaster.  This 24 year old fighter is currently training with Shawn Tompkins at Las Vegas TapouT gym.