Bellator FC 35 - Information, Weigh-Ins & Results

[keithlewis]

Bellator Fighting Championships' highly anticipated fourth season will premiere this Saturday, March 5, live on MTV2 beginning at 9pm ET/PT from the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, Calif. Bellator 35 will feature the quarterfinal pairings in the Season 4 Welterweight Tournament, including: Rick Hawn vs. Jim Wallhead, Jay Hieron vs. Anthony Lapsley, Chris Lozano vs. Lyman Good and Brent Weedman vs. Dan Hornbuckle. A Spanish-language telecast will air on MTV Tr3s on Sunday, March 6, at 8pm ET/PT. MTV2's live event telecasts will feature returning duo Sean Wheelock as the play-by-play announcer and Jimmy Smith as the analyst and the Tr3s: MTV, Música y Más telecast will include George X and Manny Rodriguez as the on-air announce team.

"We're thrilled to have both our English and Spanish language broadcast teams back in place for the coming years," said Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney. "With their wealth of experience, knowledge of the game and excitement for MMA - I truly believe that we have the best broadcast team in the sport"

Sean Wheelock has called Bellator fights since Season 2 and is familiar to MMA fans around the globe thanks to his experience as the play-by-play announcer for PRIDE, Affliction and M-1 Global events. Wheelock has also been a columnist for the websites of Fox Sports, the BBC and Major League Soccer, along with being the co-founder and a principal of Eudora Productions, LLC, which focuses on soccer and MMA remote productions and live broadcasts.

Also returning for his third Bellator season is Jimmy Smith, the color commentator. Smith is a professional MMA fighter with a record of 5-1 (4 Submissions) and notable victories over UFC veteran James Wilks and Jason Chambers. As a broadcaster, he has teamed with Wheelock to provide color commentary for M1-Global and was the host of the Discovery Channel's very popular "Fight Quest."

George X is one of Mexico's best-known Spanish language announcers, having announced events such as the NBA finals, the Winter Olympics and Super Bowl XXXV. Extreme sports fans, will know George X as the face and voice of ESPN's Spanish-language coverage of the X Games. He is an MMA expert and has been a writer for the leading Latino MMA publication, Extreme Fighting. George has been calling the action in Spanish language for Bellator since the organizations premiere in 2009.

Manny Rodriguez, the former King of the Cage Heavyweight Champion, has handled a wide collection of on-air broadcast duties for numerous Mexican MMA events and has been calling the action in Spanish language for Bellator since the organizations premiere in 2009.

[keithlewis]

On the eve of Bellator Fighting Championships' much anticipated Season 4 debut, the fighters competing in tomorrow's event participated in an official weigh-in this evening.

Bellator 35 will be broadcast LIVE on Saturday, March 5th exclusively on MTV2.

The official results of the weigh-in are as follows:


MAIN CARD:

Chris Lozano (170.6 lbs.) vs. Lyman Good (170.8 lbs.) @ 170 lbs.
Anthony Lapsley (170.8 lbs.) vs. Jay Hieron (170.8 lbs.) @ 170 lbs.
Jim Wallhead (170 lbs.) vs. Rick Hawn (170.6 lbs.) @ 170 lbs.
Brent Weedman (169.4 lbs.) vs. Dan Hornbuckle (170 lbs.) @ 170 lbs.



UNDERCARD:

Waachiim Spirtwolf (173.4 lbs.) vs. Jaime Jara (174.4 lbs.) @ 175 lbs.
Josh Herrick (145.2 lbs.) vs. Brandon Bender (146.4 lbs.) @ 145 lbs.
Karina Hallinan (124 lbs.) vs. Zoila Frausto (125.6 lbs.) @ 125 lbs.
Jesus Castro (135 lbs.) vs. Paul Ruiz (134.8 lbs.) @ 135 lbs.

[keithlewis]

Bellator 35 Debuts on MTV2 as Good, Hieron, Hawn, and Weedman advance to Welterweight Semifinals


Bellator Fighting Championships made its highly anticipated season 4 debut on MTV2, and the action certainly didn't disappoint. The night saw Bellator's Welterweight Tournament field get cut in half, with Brent Weedman, Rick Hawn, Jay Hieron, and Lyman Good moving onto the Bellator Welterweight Semifinals later this season.

"Weedman Nation" was on full display at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino, and the Bellator veteran didn't disappoint his fans, collecting a unanimous decision victory (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) over Dan "The Handler" Hornbuckle in a surprising upset victory.

The action rolled on as former Judoka Olympian Rick Hawk entered the cage against the UK's own "Judo" Jim Wallhead. While fans expected a judo heavy fight, it was anything but as Hawn showed off his improved striking game, eventually earning him a Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27) victory over Wallhead.

In what was the most controversial fight of the night, former UFC and Strikeforce veteran Jay Hieron locked horns with submission specialist Anthony Lapsley. The two welterweights traded blows early, but near the end of the first round, Hieron locked Lapsley up in what seemed like a tight rear naked choke. After limited movement by Lapsley on the ground, the cage referee declared Lapsley had been put to sleep, and awarded Hieron a technical submission victory. A wide awake Lapsley was stunned by the decision, but Hieron was awarded victory and will move onto the Bellator welterweight semifinals.

The night's final fight saw former Bellator World Welterweight Champion Lyman "Cyborg" Good take on Chris "The Assassin" Lozano in the final welterweight quarterfinal matchup. Both fighters exchanged solid strikes early, with Good landing a hard hook to the left eye of Lozano that left "The Assassin" with a large mouse under his eye. While Lozano continued to battle, Good seemed to get stronger as the fight went on, and the judges agreed, awarding Good a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) victory.

"We expected very close fights and that's exactly what we got at a sold out Tachi Palace live on MTV2," said Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney.

Official Main Card Results:

* Brent Weedman def. Dan Hornbuckle by Unanimous Decision [29-28, 29-28, 29-28]
* Rick Hawn def. Jim Wallhead by Unanimous Decision [29-28, 29-28, 30-27]
* Jay Hieron def. Anthony Lapsely by Rear Naked Choke [3:39, Round 1]
* Lyman Good defeats Chris Lozano by unanimous decision [30-27, 30-27, 29-28]