Bellator Adds Jared Downing to Featherweight Ranks, Set to Face Patricio Pitbull July 31st Live on Spike

Newport Beach, CA. (July 12, 2013) – A labrum injury has forced Rob “The Saint” Emerson off of the July 31^st fight card, where he was originally scheduled to face longtime Bellator veteran Patricio Pitbull. That won’t stop Pitbull from stepping in the cage, as Jared Downing will now battle the explosive Brazilian striker live on Spike TV.  The night will also feature a Bellator Lightweight World Title fight as defending Bellator Champion Michael Chandler puts his title on the line against David “The Caveman” Rickels, while Bellator Welterweight Champion Ben Askren will defend his title against Russian phenom Andrey Koreskov.

“This is a great opportunity for me, one I couldn’t pass up,” Downing said. “I’m happy to be back with Bellator and really start a new chapter. I thought Patricio won his last fight against Curran, so I know I’m going to be getting one of the best featherweights in the world, and that’s why I signed with Bellator. I want to get this win, make my way into a tournament and become a Bellator World Champion.”

Only 24, Downing joins Bellator at 9-2, including a 2010 Bellator victory over Danny Tims.

“It takes a ton of heart to accept a fight less than 20 days out, especially when you have to step in the cage with one of the most dangerous men in the world in Pitbull,” Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney said. “Jared is a guy we’ve had our eye on for a while and win or lose, he’ll make a great addition to our featherweight ranks.”

The full fight card for July 31^st is below:

Bellator Lightweight World Title Fight: Michael Chandler (11-0) vs. David Rickels (14-1)

Bellator Welterweight World Title Fight: Ben Askren (11-0) vs. Andrey Koreschkov (13-0)

Bellator Light Heavyweight Tournament Final: King Mo (10-2) vs. Jacob Noe (12-2)

Bellator Heavyweight Tournament Final: Ryan Martinez (10-2) vs. Vitaly Minakov (11-0)

Featherweight Feature Fight: Jared Downing (9-2) vs. Patricio Pitbull (17-2)

Lightweight Feature Fight: Cris Leyva (9-5) vs. Will Brooks (9-1)

Bantamweight Tournament Semifinals: Rafael Silva (19-3) vs. Rodrigo Lima (11-1)

Bantamweight Tournament Semifinals: Anthony Leone (12-5) vs. Frank Baca (16-2)

Lightweight Feature Fight: Mike Barreras (5-6) vs. Bubba Jenkins (3-0)

Bantamweight Feature Fight: Javier Palacios (1-0) vs. Richard Jacques (1-0)

Middleweight Feature Fight: Jeremy Kimball (9-3) vs. Keith Berry (15-10)

Bantamweight Feature Fight: Adrian Cruz (4-0) vs. Felipe Chavez (5-3)

Bantamweight Feature Fight: Steve Garcia (1-0) vs. Shawn Bunch (1-0)

Featherweight Feature Fight: Cliff Wright Jr. (7-4) vs. Donald Sanchez (28-13)

For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, follow Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney @BjornRebney and check out Bellator on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BellatorMMA           

Bellator MMA is the world’s largest tournament based Mixed Martial Arts organization. Televised to nearly 500 Million homes worldwide in over 115 countries, Bellator’s majority owner is entertainment giant Viacom.  In the United States, Bellator can be seen on Spike TV, the MMA television leader. With over 150 world-class athletes under contract, Bellator is home to many of the sport’s top mixed martial artists. Bellator’s founder & CEO, Bjorn Rebney, is an experienced fighting sports and entertainment executive with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes.  Bellator’s core philosophy is that title shots should be earned, not given. This belief gave rise to Bellator’s real sport, tournament-based format, which gives Bellator’s tournaments a true playoff feel that keeps the sport true and distances itself from the subjective side of fighting sports found in organizations that utilize a matchmaking/casting formula.  Bellator MMA is comprised of an executive team that includes top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations.  Bellator is based in Newport Beach, California.

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