Dave Herman, Eddie Sanchez Among Bellator's Heavyweight Additions

I just received a press release from the Bellator Fighting Championships people announcing their fourth show (which will be in Colorado Springs, CO, on Friday, April 24th) and I have to say that I didn't expect to see some of the names I'm seeing on it. The show will play host to the semi-finals of Bellator's Lightweight Tournament, but also features the debut of the promotion's only non-tournament weightclass with five heavyweight bouts on the undercard. Check the matchups:

Non-Tournament Bouts:
Heavyweight – Dave Herman (13-1) vs. Josh Barnes (5-1)
Heavyweight – Rauol Romero (3-1) vs. Dave Evensen (10-4)
Heavyweight – Eddie Sanchez (11-3) vs. Jay White (4-5)
Heavyweight – Tyler East (pro debut)) vs. Amedio Viola (0-1)
Heavyweight – Joey Beltran (5-2) vs. Sherman Pendergarst (11-12)
130 lbs. – Molly Helsel (7-7) vs. Angela Hayes (1-5)
 
Special Lightweight World Championship Semi-Final Tournament Match-Up
Based on the outcome of Bellator I, II & III

Things didn't go exactly as expected for Dave Herman - aka "Pee Wee," aka "Blueberry Muffin" - with Sengoku in the wake of the EliteXC fallout (Herman was TKO'd by Choi Mu Bae at WVR's New Years show), but to see him signing on with Bellator when Strikeforce is getting ready to roll is somewhat surprising. Likewise for Eddie Sanchez, a decent fighter who earned a bad rep in the UFC as a boring heavyweight at a time when the division was pretty stagnant. And Sherman Pendergarst... did you know he's had four fights in the year since YAMMA? I sure didn't. But I'm not mad at seeing him here, and all told, I don't think Bellator has done badly at all with selecting their big men. And a little extra dap for bringing in Molly Helsel, whose record doesn't reflect what a fun fighter she is to watch.

Full press release in the extended entry.

BELLATOR FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIPS’ TOURNAMENT & HEAVYWEIGHT EXPLOSION COMES TO COLORADO SPRINGS’ WORLD ARENA APRIL 24^TH

‘The Night of Heavyweights’ to Feature Thrilling Competition on April 24

Los Angeles, Calif. – March 27, 2009 – Bellator Fighting Championships announced today that Bellator IV, the fourth event of the highly anticipated 12-week tournament series airing on ESPN Deportes, will be held in Colorado Springs, Colorado on April 24, 2009.  The event will take place at the World Arena in Colorado Springs, which rests just south of Denver in the shadow of the neighboring Rocky Mountains, a natural metaphor for Bellator’s combined feature events, “A Night of Heavyweights & the Semi-Final Round of the World Championship Lightweight Tournament.”

The commanding roster of heavyweight fighters will anchor an action filled evening of competition featuring some of the best fighters this weight class has to offer. This Bellator special event will also feature a Lightweight semi-final tournament match-up, with the resulting winner advancing as a finalist for Bellator’s $175,000 Lightweight World Championship Fight.

“The fight card is packed with great Heavyweight match-ups and what promises to be a compelling Lightweight World Championship tournament Semi-Final,” said Bellator Fighting Championships CEO Bjorn Rebney.  “Colorado MMA fans and our worldwide television audience should expect to see a night of powerful strikes, tactical submissions and crowd pleasing knockouts.”
 
Bellator IV will feature a collection of highly-competitive, action-packed Heavyweight bouts, a World Championship Semi-Final as well as a collection of spectacular special feature fights. The evening will also feature a bout between two top form female fighters, Molly Helsel versus Angela Hayes. The non-tournament Heavyweight bouts on show are detailed below:
 
Non-Tournament Bouts:
Heavyweight – Dave Herman (13-1) vs. Josh Barnes (5-1)
Heavyweight – Rauol Romero (3-1) vs. Dave Evensen (10-4)
Heavyweight – Eddie Sanchez (11-3) vs. Jay White (4-5)
Heavyweight – Tyler East (pro debut)) vs. Amedio Viola (0-1)
Heavyweight – Joey Beltran (5-2) vs. Sherman Pendergarst (11-12)
130 lbs. – Molly Helsel (7-7) vs. Angela Hayes (1-5)
 
Special Lightweight World Championship Semi-Final Tournament Match-Up
Based on the outcome of Bellator I, II & III
 
Bellator Fighting Championships’ premiere season consists of 12 two-hour events to be broadcast weekly in primetime on Saturday nights.  The nationally televised events will feature a combination of tournament and non-tournament special feature bouts. There will be four simultaneous tournaments taking place in season #1 over a three month period: one in each of the Featherweight (145 lb.), Lightweight (155 lb.), Welterweight (170 lb.) and Middleweight (185 lb.) divisions.
 
Tickets will go on sale at 12:00 pm MT Friday, March 27, 2009 and can be purchased at the ­­World Arena box office and through TicketsWest.
 
For more information on Bellator Fighting Championships, visit www.Bellator.com.  For the Spanish language version of the website, visit www.Espanol.Bellator.com.

About Bellator Fighting Championships
Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company with offices in Los Angeles and Chicago. Bellator’s founders, Bjorn Rebney and Brad Epstein, are experienced fighting sports and entertainment professionals with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes.  Bellator Fighting Championships’ executive team is comprised of top industry professionals in the areas of live event production (including Rob Beiner, winner of 12 Emmy awards for sports programming), fighter relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations.