· Bellator 47 Set For The Great White North

· Article author: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Posted on 06/07 at 07:52 PM

Bellator Fighting Championships announced today the details for their second summer series event. Bellator 47 is scheduled for July 23 at the Casino Rama in Rama, Ontario as the promotion arrives in Canada, making their first venture outside of the United States. The main event features the featherweight championship bout as current title-holder Joe Warren meets season four tournament winner Patricio "Pitbull" Freire in a five round affair. Bellator 47 airs live on MTV2.

“Our fans have been asking us to come to Canada since our first season,” Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney stated. “Casino Rama is an unbelievable venue and should make for a magical night of fights at Bellator 47.”

Freire (17-1) challenges Warren (7-1) in an effort to avenge his only loss, suffered at Bellator 23 in June 2010, when Warren bested the Brazilian via split decision winning the season two tournament championship and eventually capturing the featherweight belt.

The match with Freire will be Warren’s first title defense since defeating the former champion Joe Soto at Bellator 27 last September.

The evening will also showcase the semifinals for the featherweight summer series tournament. The eight-man bracket is comprised of the following confirmed participants: Pat Curran (13-4), Luis "Baboon" Palomino (16-6), Marlon Sandro (17-2), Genair "Junior PQD" da Silva (10-3), Ronnie "Kid Ninja" Mann (19-2-1), Adam Schindler (9-1), Nazareno "Naza" Malegarie (19-2), and Jacob Devree (10-1).

UFC veteran Ben "Killa B" Saunders (10-3-2) is also expected on the card.

The foray into the Great White North looks to be the first of many for the organization as the venue reiterated their support for the burgeoning sport.

“MMA is the hottest sport in Ontario right now and we’re thrilled to be able to partner with this world leader to bring Ontario fans their first taste of Bellator action,” said Jeff Craik, vice president of marketing for Casino Rama. “This is going to be one of the hottest tickets of the summer and fans can bet on seeing exactly this caliber of MMA event from Casino Rama several times a year.”