The Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix Opening Round will kick off on Saturday, September 7 and Saturday, September 28.
Bellator MMA President Scott Coker appeared on Ariel Helwani?s MMA Show today and announced all sixteen fighters participating in the grand prix.
A tweet would also be sent out by the promotion announcing the opening round pairings:
First round bouts taking place on the September 7 card include UFC veteran Sam Sicilia vs. Pedro Carvalho, former Bellator Featherweight Champion Daniel Straus vs. Derek Campos, former Bellator Featherweight Champion Pat Curran vs. Adam Borics and Emmanuel Sanchez vs. Tywan Claxton.
Opening round fights taking place on the September 28 card will see Bellator Featherweight Champion Patricio Pitbull vs. Juan Archuleta, AJ McKee vs. former WSOF Featherweight Champion Georgi Karakhanyan, former Bellator Bantamweight Champion Darrion Caldwell vs. Henry Corrales and Daniel Weichel vs. Saul Rogers.
Once the opening round is complete, a drawing will take place for the second round bouts, with that drawing airing live at a date to be determined. The tournament finals is expected to take place in September of 2020, but nothing has been made official at this time.