· Tournament Finals, Lombard vs. Vitale At Bellator 44 In N.J.

Just as Bellator Fighting Championships’ season four comes to a close, the promotion will make its first foray into the Garden State. Bellator 44 is announced for May 14, 2011 from Caesars Casino Hotel in Atlantic City, N.J. The event, broadcast live on MTV2, will include one set of tournament finals and a headlining non-title bout between Middleweight Champion Hector Lombard and UFC veteran Falaniko "Niko" Vitale.

“This is a great partnership for us. Atlantic City is a classic fight town and New Jersey is a hotbed for mixed martial arts—so it was a natural fit,” stated Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “And, Hector vs. Falaniko should be a great fight.”

Former Olympic judoka, Lombard (27-2-1, 1 NC) holds middleweight belts in both Bellator and Cage Fighting Championship. He is scheduled to defend the latter title at “CFC 16: Lombard vs. Doerksen” on March 25 in Australia. Should Lombard prevail, the American Top Team fighter will extend his win streak to 17 straight, and less than two months later he faces another formidable challenge in an equally experienced Vitale (29-9).

Lombard last defended the Bellator strap at Bellator 34 in October of 2010 where he faced a game competitor in middleweight tournament winner Alexander Shlemenko. Though Lombard picked up the unanimous decision, Shlemenko’s durability presented some problems for the champion in the later rounds.

Making his Bellator promotional debut, Vitale intends to produce a strong impression. Though the tilt with Lombard is a non-title affair, a successful performance could warrant a rematch for the belt.

Vitale is on a three-fight win streak and has been the victor in eight of his last 10 bouts. The Hawaiian fighter last fought at “X-1 Events - Champions III” on March 12 where he knocked out Dylan Clay at 3:04 of the first round. He holds notable victories over Matt Lindland, Yushin Okami, and Dave Menne.

With multiple tournaments proceeding concurrently, the weight class for the finals showcased at Bellator 44 has not yet been confirmed.

Tickets for Bellator 44 will go on sale on March 23, 2011 on Ticketmaster.com.