Frausto Confirmed for Bellator Season 4 Debut

Zoila Frausto (left) | Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Bellator 115-pound women’s champion Zoila Frausto will return to the cage March 5 as she competes at Bellator 35 from the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino in Lemoore, Calif.

Sherdog.com previously reported Frausto's speculated involvement in the event, and Thursday the fighter confirmed the report by announcing the news over Facebook. It is currently unknown whether Frausto will defend her title, and her opponent has not yet been named.

A Strikeforce veteran, Frausto rides a five-fight winning streak heading into the bout. The only blemish on the career of “The Warrior Princess” came last March when she was submitted by 135-pound contender Miesha Tate at Strikeforce “Challengers 7.”

Frausto made her Bellator debut in June, knocking out Rosi Sexton in the first round of their 121-pound catchweight affair at Bellator 23. Frausto then rattled off three straight victories to become Bellator's first-ever 115-pound queen. The 27-year-old outpointed Jessica Pene, Jessica Aguilar and the previously unbeaten Megumi Fujii en route to claiming the tournament crown.

Though no bouts have been officially announced for the March 5 event, the promotion's third welterweight tournament is expected to begin. Also expected are appearances by Waachiim Spiritwolf and Poppies Martinez against to-be-named opponents.

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Karakhanyan Joins Bellator’s Season 4 Featherweight Draw

Bellator Fighting Championships on Thursday announced the inclusion of Georgi Karakhanyan in its forthcoming Season 4 featherweight tournament.

Karakhanyan (Pictured), a Season 2 semi-finalist, joins Eric Larkin, Kenny Foster and Zac George as confirmed participants in the eight-man draw, the winner of which will receive a title shot against reigning Bellator featherweight champion Joe Warren.

A Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt, Karakhanyan last appeared at Bellator 28 in September, when he earned a unanimous decision over World Extreme Cagefighting veteran Anthony Leone at the Mahalia Jackson Theater for the Performing Arts in New Orleans. The 25-year-old operates out of the Millennia Mixed Martial Arts Training Center in Rancho Cucamonga, Calif., and has rattled off 10 wins in his past 11 outings. Karakhanyan’s lone setback in that span came in a controversial unanimous decision to Warren at Bellator 18.

“I need to take this tournament one fight at a time. I’m trying not to focus on Joe Warren right now. Whoever they put in front of me, that’s who I’m going to focus in on,” Karakhanyan said in a release. “I never underestimate anyone. There are going to be some really dangerous fighters in this tournament, so I’m just going to take things one fight at a time, focus on that person and then go from there.”

Born in Moscow to Armenian parents, Karakhanyan played professional soccer before his current incarnation as a mixed martial artist. He owns notable victories against EliteXC veteran Bao Quach and Affliction alum Albert Rios. His loss to Warren still stings.

“I hate losing. Losing to Joe Warren was a horrible feeling,” Karakhanyan said. “To be able to come back from that and beat three guys on my way to getting revenge against him would be an amazing feeling. That’s my main goal right now.”

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Season 2 Finalist ‘Pitbull’ Returns to Bellator 145-Pound Draw

Once-beaten Brazilian Patricio “Pitbull” Freire will take part in the Bellator Fighting Championships Season 4 featherweight tournament, the promotion announced on Monday.

Freire joins countryman Wilson Reis, Kenny Foster, Zac George, Eric Larkin, Georgi Karakhanyan and Daniel Straus on the list of confirmed participants for the eight-man field. Undefeated Bellator newcomer Nazareno Malegarie is expected to fill the tournament’s final slot.

A member of Team Nogueira, Freire reached the final of the second-season 145-pound tournament and nearly knocked out current Bellator champion Joe Warren in the opening round. Warren stormed back, however, and the gritty wrestler handed Freire the first loss of his career via split decision. Winning the upcoming tournament would earn Freire not only a check for $100,000 but also a rematch with the “Baddest Man on the Planet” -- something which the Pitbull is solely focused on improving for.

“I have no interest besides fighting as a professional,” Freire said in a release. “It’s the only thing I really want to do. Every day in my life, I am looking to overcome myself and evolve into a better fighter. I never believe that I am good enough. It’s all about improvement, every single day.”

Freire reached the Season 2 final by heel-hooking the previously unbeaten William Romero and taking a decision over Reis. The 23-year-old earned 14 consecutive wins before running into Warren, 11 of which came via some form of stoppage. His older brother, Patricky “Pitbull” Freire, is expected to compete in Bellator’s Season 4 lightweight tournament.

While no start date has been announced for Bellator’s MTV2-broadcast fourth season, it is expected to kick off on March 5 at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino in Lemoore, Calif.

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Lesnar, Dos Santos to Coach Season 13 of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’

Ending months of speculation, UFC President Dana White today revealed that former UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar and top prospect Junior dos Santos will coach the upcoming 13th season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” after which they will square off to determine the heavyweight division’s No. 1 contender.

“These two will coach, and then they’ll fight, and the winner will fight [UFC heavyweight champion] Cain Velasquez when he’s healthy,” White said during a media conference call to promote the UFC’s Jan. 22 UFC “Fight for the Troops 2” event.

In late December, it was reported that Velasquez would be sidelined for six to eight months with a torn right rotator cuff which required surgery. White said that the UFC’s original plan was to match Velasquez against dos Santos at UFC 129 on April 30 in Toronto, but that the “TUF” idea simply fell into place after learning of Velasquez’s injury.

“It made all the sense in the world once we knew how long Cain was gonna be out,” said White, who stressed that no interim title would be created in the champion’s absence.

“I literally hadn’t made any phone calls yet and we hadn’t contacted anybody about coaching... I was driving to work one morning and I thought, ‘You know what? That makes sense. Let’s see if we can do this.’”

Filming for the series is set to begin in the last week of January, with the season premiering March 30 on Spike TV. The latest iteration of the UFC’s long-running reality television series will feature a cast comprised solely of 170-pound competitors. Welterweights have previously been featured in the show’s second, fourth, sixth and ninth seasons, which yielded current UFC fighters Joe Stevenson, Matt Serra, Mac Danzig and James Wilks, respectively.

The season’s tournament winner will be crowned at the “TUF 13” live finale, which MMAJunkie.com reports will take place on June 4 at The Pearl at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas.

No date was announced for the bout between the heavyweight coaches, but White said that Lesnar and dos Santos would “definitely, 100 percent” meet at a June UFC pay-per-view event. UFC 131 is rumored to take place on June 11 -- one week after after the finale -- at Rogers Arena in Vancouver.

Lesnar was handed the second loss of his nascent MMA career by Velasquez in October, when he had his belt taken in a brutal first-round TKO loss at UFC 121. Prior to that match, the former pro-wrestling star had rattled off four straight wins, including stoppages of such UFC luminaries as Randy Couture and Frank Mir.

One of the heavyweight divisions brightest prospects, dos Santos is undefeated in his six Octagon outings. After bursting onto the scene with a knockout of Fabricio Werdum in his UFC debut, the 26-year-old “Cigano” tore through Stefan Struve, Mirko Filipovic, Gilbert Yvel and Gabriel Gonzaga, stopping all four with punches. Dos Santos went the distance for the first time in his career last August, when he took a unanimous decision over Roy Nelson to become the No. 1 heavyweight contender.

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Wallhead Joins Bellator’s Season 4 Welterweight Cast

Team Rough House representative “Judo” Jim Wallhead on Friday became the latest entrant into Bellator Fighting Championships Season 4 welterweight tournament, which will air live on MTV2 beginning in March.

Wallhead (Pictured) joins former Bellator champion Lyman Good, Season 3 finalist Dan Hornbuckle, unbeaten Olympic judoka Rick Hawn, undefeated prospect Chris Lozano and the surging Brent Weedman in the draw. Only two spots remain unfilled. The winner will receive a crack at reigning Bellator titleholder Ben Askren.

“I guarantee people are looking past me heading into this tournament,” Wallhead said in a release. “I’m prepared to surprise all doubters everywhere. I will 100 percent give every guy in this tournament a war, so bring it.”

A well-rounded finisher and one of the top welterweights in Europe, the 25-year-old Englishman has won eight consecutive bouts. Wallhead made his promotional debut at Bellator 32 in October, as he secured a unanimous decision against UFC veteran Ryan Thomas at the Kansas City Power and Light District in Kansas City, Mo. A judo national champion and longtime black belt, Wallhead teams with world-ranked welterweights Dan Hardy and Paul Daley.

“I feel pumped getting ready to enter a tournament as stacked as this one,” Wallhead said. “There are some great fighters in the mix, and it’s wide open for everyone to make a name for themselves. It would be a dream come true to be the last man standing out of these eight talented fighters. What an achievement.”

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Bellator Signs Hieron for Season 4 Tournament

Jay Hieron: Terry Goodlad | Sherdog.com

Former International Fight League welterweight champion Jay Hieron has agreed to an exclusive contract with Bellator Fighting Championships and will take part in the promotion’s Season 4 welterweight tournament. Terms of the deal, announced on Monday, were not disclosed.

Anchored at Xtreme Couture Mixed Martial Arts in Las Vegas, Hieron has rattled off seven consecutive victories. The 34-year-old last appeared under the Strikeforce banner in January, when he defeated fellow UFC veteran Joe Riggs by unanimous decision at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla.

“Jay is a fantastic signing for us at 170 pounds,” Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney said in a release. “Jay is a world-class fighter with serious talent. I can’t wait to see him back on national television competing against other top fighters where he belongs. He is a spectacular addition to our upcoming Season 4 welterweight tournament.”

A well-rounded competitor, Hieron owns notable victories against “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 7 semi-finalist Jesse Taylor, 2009 Dream welterweight grand prix finalist Jason High, former Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion Delson Heleno and UFC veteran Jake Ellenberger. He joins Sengoku vet Dan Hornbuckle, unbeaten Olympic judoka Rick Hawn, unbeaten prospect Chris Lozano, “Judo” Jim Wallhead, Steve Carl and the fast-rising Brent Weedman in Bellator’s Season 4 welterweight draw.

“It’s just a great fit for me,” Hieron said. “At this point in my career, I want to stay as active as possible, and the tournament format allows me to do that. It’s a great organization, and it’s just the perfect fit.”

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