· Brazilian Heavyweight Thiago Santos Makes U.S. Debut At Bellator 45

Bellator Fighting Championships announced another solid matchup in their heavyweight division with the Brazilian Thiago “Big Monster” Santos set to take on Derrick "The Black Beast" Lewis. The two meet in a tournament qualifying tilt on May 21 at Bellator 45, live from L’Auberge du Lac Casino Resort Event Center in Lake Charles, La.

Santos (8-1), a jiu-jitsu black belt, started his professional career with six consecutive wins. With two knockouts and three submission victories since, the Brazilain has proven comfortable wherever the fight takes place. In his last bout in August of 2010, his opponent Ubiratan Marinho Lima was disqualified for illegal strikes. Just three months prior to that, Santos defeated Geronimo dos Santos by knockout in the first round at Amazon Fight 3.

“The footage I’ve seen of Thiago looks dominant, so getting him in the Bellator cage will be a great way to close out what has already been a tremendous season, while potentially giving fans a glimpse of what's to come,” Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney stated. “Fans in Lake Charles, and those watching on MTV2 should be in for a show with ‘Big Monster.’”

Though Lewis (4-1) brings less experience into the match, his heavy hands could very well spoil Santos’ debut. Fighting out of Silverback MMA in Houston, Tex., Lewis last competed at International Xtreme Fight Association in February where he earned a technical knockout victory over Taylor Herbert in round one. His four wins consist of three technical knockouts and one submission.

In their heavyweight tournament qualifier, Santos and Lewis vie for the chance to compete alongside current Bellator big men Neil “Goliath” Grove, Blagoi Ivanov, and Ron “The Monster” Sparks in the upcoming season five heavyweight tournament.

Bellator Heavyweight Champion Cole “The Polar Bear” Konrad lies at the end of the road, and Santos, for his part, is intent on reaching that goal.

“The message I want to send in this fight with Derrick Lewis is that I want to be the Bellator heavyweight world champion,” said Santos. “I respect everyone I fight, but I want the title. My intention is to finish Derrick by knockout or submission to let everyone know that I'm coming for the belt.”

Bellator 45 also boasts the finales of both the featherweight and light heavyweight tournaments. Featherweights Patricio "Pitbull" Freire (16-1) and Daniel Straus (16-3) face off, and Rich “Rare Breed” Hale (17-3-1) meets the hard-hitting Christian “Tonton” M’Pumbu (17-3-1) to determine the first-ever Bellator light heavyweight champion.