A championship bout has been removed from Bellator 214 as middleweight title holder Gegard Mousasi has suffered a back injury and has been pulled from the event.
Ariel Helwani of ESPN first reported the news and it is unknown at this time as to how long Mousasi is expected to be out of action for. It is unknown if Rafael Lovato Jr., who was expected to face Mousasi, will remain on the card against a yet to be announced late replacement opponent.
Lovato Jr. (9-0-0) is still undefeated as a professional MMA fighter and that streak has lasted over four years. Lovato Jr. has competed a total of nine times as a professional MMA fighter and just one of those bouts have gone the distance. Lovato Jr. would’ve been competing for a title for the second time in his professional MMA career, which has lasted four-plus years. Lovato Jr. is a former Legacy Fighting Championships Middleweight Champion, defeating Marcelo Nunes by second round TKO at Legacy FC 54 to claim the gold.
Bellator 214 takes place on Saturday, January 26 from The Forum in Inglewood, California with Ryan Bader and Fedor Emelianenko headlining. Fightful is providing live coverage of the event, which airs live on the Paramount Network.
