Douglas
Lima will defend his welterweight crown against Yaroslav
Amosov in the main event of Bellator 260 on June 11.
The California-based promotion announced the pairing on Friday.
Bellator 260 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.,
and will also see Tywan
Claxton face Justin
Gonzales at featherweight and Nick Newell
meet Bobby King at
lightweight. The main card will air on Showtime at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m.
PT, while the prelims stream on the Bellator MMA YouTube channel,
Showtime Sports YouTube channel and Pluto TV.
After defeating Rory
MacDonald in a five-round decision to regain the 170-pound belt
in the finals of the welterweight grand prix at Bellator 232, Lima
attempted to become a two-division champion last year. His move to
middleweight didn’t go so well, as he dropped a five-round verdict
to champion Gegard
Mousasi at Bellator 250 this past October.
“I’m pumped to get back in the cage and show everyone why I’m the
most-feared welterweight in the game,” said Lima. “Amosov is a game
opponent, who has climbed the rankings against top competition.
He’s more than deserving of this title shot, but this is still my
division and that isn’t changing any time soon.”
The 27-year-old Amosov has yet to taste defeat in 25 professional
outings. He is 6-0 in under the Bellator banner and is coming off a
split-decision triumph against Logan
Storley at Bellator 252 last November.
“It is an honor to challenge Douglas Lima for the Bellator
welterweight title,” Amosov said. “I have dreamed of becoming a
champion since I have chose this path of MMA. Here I am, undefeated
and on the verge of earning the gold.”