Melvin Manhoef vs. Joe Schilling added to Bellator 131

A middleweight matchup between a pair of kickboxing standouts in Melvin Manhoef  and Joe Schilling has officially been added to Bellator 131 in San Diego.

Schilling (1-3 MMA, 17-7 Kickboxing), currently the number one ranked middleweight in the world by GLORY, has not competed in MMA since suffering a first round submission loss to Damion Douglas back in 2008. Since then, the man known as ‘Stitch ‘Em Up’ has torn through the world of kickboxing, winning the 2013 Glory Middleweight World Championship Tournament Championship in the process.

“My name is Joe Schilling. You might not know it today, but you will very soon,” stated Schilling in a press release. “I’m one if the best strikers on the planet, and if you want to see people got laid the hell out, just watch me fight on November 15th.”

Manhoef (29-11 MMA, 37-12 Kickboxing), currently the number seven ranked middleweight in the world by GLORY, is coming off a violent first round knockout win in his Bellator debut against Doug Marshal at Bellator 125 in September. He will enter this bout with an astounding 27 career knockout victories.

Tickets for the event are on sale now and can be purchased on Bellator.com, AXS.com, as well as the Valley View Casino Center.

Bellator 131 is currently set to take place on November 15 at the Valley View Casino Center in San Diego. A grudge match between MMA icons Tito “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Ortiz and the “The American Psycho” Stephan Bonnar will serve as the night’s main event. A lightweight title fight between Michael Chandler and interim champion Will Brooks will meet in the co-main event.

“I’ve said since the day I began my career in combat sports that styles make fights,” stated Bellator President Scott Coker. “I came to Bellator to create the most compelling fights possible, and Manhoef vs. Schilling has the chance to be fight of the night on November 15th. When you put together guys like Manhoef and Schilling, records sort of go out the window. You know when that cage door shuts, these two guys are going to stand up and engage in what should be an insanely entertaining fight. We’ve just added this fight to a card that already features Tito and Bonnar, Chandler and Brooks, and Mo and DeBlass. November 15th is going to be a very fun night, and we’ve got more coming.”

Here is how the rest of the card is shaping up:

• Tito Ortiz (17-11) vs. Stephan Bonnar (15-8)
• Bellator Lightweight interim champ Will Brooks (14-1) vs. Michael Chandler (12-2)
• ‘King Mo’ Muhammed Lawal (13-4) vs. Tom DeBlass (9-2)
• Melvin Manhoef (29-11 MMA, 37-12 Kickboxing) vs. Joe Schilling (1-3 MMA, 17-7 Kickboxing)