Timothy
Johnson and Tyrell
Fortune were supposed to have a rematch at
Bellator 277. Instead, the two heavyweights will face different
opponents at the April 15 event.
Johnson will lock horns with Linton
Vassell, while Fortune will face Steve Mowry
in newly-booked heavyweight bouts at Bellator 277. The
California-based promotion confirmed the pairings following an
initial report from
MMAjunkie.com. Johnson defeated Fortune via first-round
knockout at Bellator 239.
Bellator 277 takes place at the SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., and
is headlined by a featherweight title rematch between A.J. McKee and
Patricio
Freire. In the co-main event, Vadim
Nemkov will defend his light heavyweight crown against Corey
Anderson in the finals of the 205-pound grand prix.
Johnson has lost his last two promotional appearances, falling to
Valentin
Moldavsky in an interim heavyweight title bout at Bellator 261
before suffering a first-round KO defeat against Fedor
Emelianenko at Bellator 269.
A former light heavyweight title challenger, Vassell is 3-1 since
moving to the heavyweight division. His current three-fight winning
streak includes wins over the likes of Sergei
Kharitonov, Ronny
Markes and Fortune.
After winning his first eight professional appearances — all under
the Bellator banner — Fortune has won just three of his last six
outings, with losses to Johnson and Fortune along with a no contest
against Jack May on his
ledger. The defeat to Vassell in his most recent fight at Bellator
271 halted a three-bout winning streak.
Mowry has emerged as a prospect to watch with victories in his
first 10 professional bouts — including six under the Bellator
banner. All of his career triumphs have come inside the distance,
including a first-round tapout of Rakim
Cleveland in his last outing at Bellator 271.