· Bellator Summer Series Begins June 25 At Florida’s Seminole Hard Rock Casino

The details for Bellator Fighting Championships' summer series featherweight tournament have been announced with the opening round scheduled for Bellator 46 on June 25 from the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida. Four featherweight bouts make up the main card, set for broadcast live on MTV2.

Dropping to his natural weight class of 145 pounds, 23-year-old Pat Curran (13-4) returns from a successful run in Bellator’s lightweight division that saw the Illinois fighter win the tournament title, only to fall short in a championship tilt against Eddie Alvarez. Losing the five round fight via unanimous decision, he exhibited a grit and tenacity which Curran will undoubtedly carry into his quarterfinals matchup with Luis "Baboon" Palomino.

"I've fought at featherweight for most of my career, so I'm really excited to get back to a weight class where I can really do some damage," Curran stated. "I had some great results as a lightweight, but I'm really going to make some noise in this summer featherweight tournament."

The older and slightly more experienced Palomino (16-6) is a five-time Bellator veteran himself and rides a three fight win streak into the match with Curran. With three knockouts and four submissions among his victories, “Baboon” holds notable wins over “The Ultimate Fighter” alum Marc Stevens, Strikeforce and Bellator veteran Jorge Masvidal, and current M-1 featherweight champion, Jose Figueroa.

The evening will also see Nova União Jiu-Jitsu fighter Marlon Sandro challenge fellow Brazilian Genair "Junior PQD" da Silva for the opportunity to advance to the semifinals. Sandor (17-2) has never been finished in 19 fights and holds a knockout percentage of 41 percent, with seven knockouts and three submissions on his record.

“I am coming to the United States to become a world champion,” said Sandro. “I see Bellator as the place to really make a name for myself here in the U.S. I'm here to put on great fights, entertain the fans, and fight my way to the Bellator featherweight world championship.”

Da Silva brings five consecutive wins into the match with Sandro, with three of those coming by way of technical knockout. He has six knockouts in his career, comprising 60 percent of his victories. Da Silva last fought at Capital Fight 3 in November, taking the split decision over Adriano Goncalves.

“Bellator 46’s stacked featherweight tournament continues to build on our tremendous 145 pound division.” Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney remarked. “And, the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino has been a fantastic host for us in the past, and I can’t wait to make the trip down to Hollywood this June.”

In another tournament fight, the English submission phenom Ronnie "Kid Ninja" Mann meets Adam Schindler as both combatants return to the Bellator cage for the second time.

Mann (19-2-1) made his initial appearance at Bellator 42, one month ago, where he overcame Josh Arocho by unanimous decision. He has submitted 11 of his opponents.

“Trying to capture the Bellator Featherweight World Championship is absolutely my main goal,” Mann confirmed. “I don't care how long it takes, that's what I'm here to do.”

Schindler (9-1), with under half as many fights as Mann, has one lone loss on his record thus far. That loss came seven bouts ago, and he has had six triumphant performances since—with three favorable decisions and three submission wins in that span.

Schindler secured a win in his promotional debut at Bellator 20 in May 2010 where he defeated Brian Melancon via unanimous decision. He last competed for the International Xtreme Fight Association in December where he earned the split decision nod over Marc Ramirez in a five round fight.

"I'm just ready to get in that cage and win," an eager Schindler commented. "This is the time where I take the step from everyone around me knowing how good I am, to everyone seeing how good I am all across the country. This is my chance to shine."

Completing the featherweight quarterfinal brackets, Brazilian submission fighter Nazareno "Naza" Malegarie makes his second Bellator entrance, this time against Arizona native Jacob Devree.

Malegarie (19-1) suffered his first and only loss by a unanimous decision in his Bellator debut against Daniel Straus at Bellator 37. Aside from falling to the future season four featherweight finalist, “Naza” has gone to decision only twice, otherwise adding 12 submission finishes and five technical knockouts/knockouts to his credit.

Devree (10-1) is steadily making his name known in the division, carrying seven straight wins into his meeting with Malegarie. He most recently fought at Rage in the Cage 151, where he bested Eric Regan by unanimous decision. Four of his last seven victories have come by way of a rear-naked choke submission.

With the undercard still needing to be finalized, some familiar names are already expected to be involved, including middleweights Josh Samman (8-1) and Mike “El Gringo Diablo” Bernhard (9-2), heavyweight Tony Johnson, Jr. (5-1), and women fighters Jessica “Jag” Aguilar (10-4) and Carla Esparza (5-1).