Austin
Vanderford will square off against Chris
Curtis in a middleweight bout on the
Bellator 251 main card.
Sherdog.com confirmed the pairing with a promotion official
following an initial report from ESPN.
UFC 251 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville,
Connecticut, on Nov. 4 and is headlined by a light heavyweight
showdown between Corey
Anderson and Melvin
Manhoef. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network at 7 p.m.
ET/4 p.m. PT.
Vanderford, the husband of former UFC star Paige
VanZant, was supposed to face Daniel
Madrid at Bellator 246 on Sept. 12 before a positive COVID-19
test forced him off the card. The Gracie Barra Portland
representative is 9-0 as a professional and 3-0 in Bellator. He
also earned a victory over Angelo
Trevino on Season 2 of Dana White’s Contender Series.
After losing three consecutive bouts under the Professional
Fighters League banner to close out 2019, Curtis returned to the
win column with a stoppage of Darren Smith
Jr. in a title bout on the regional circuit on Jan. 25. The
33-year-old is 22-8 over the course of a professional tenure that
includes appearances on the Contender Series and with CES MMA.