In the Cage – Bellator Signs Matyushenko, ONE FC 9 Adds Bantamweight Final, Kedzie-de Randamie Set For Fox 8

Each day, The MMA Corner will provide a recap of results, event announcements, fight match-ups, and injuries/cancellations from throughout the world of MMA.

Longtime MMA veteran Vladimir Matyushenko is no longer a free agent as he has signed with Bellator.  The light heavyweight has been fighting professionally since 1997, and has spent time in both the International Fight League and Ultimate Fighting Championship.  During his tenure in the IFL, Matyushenko was the promotions first and only 205-pound champion.

Although he currently does not have an opponent, the Belarusian will not jump into a tournament as he will fight in a non-tournament fight to start his career inside the Bellator cage.

ONE FC’s bantamweight grand prix will wrap up at next months event as Masakatsu Ueda battles Kevin Belingon.  Both fighters were victorious earlier this month at ONE FC 8, as they both finished their fight in the second round.

Also, two additional fights have been announced for the event, as Phil Baroni takes on Nobutatsu Suzuki at welterweight, and Eduard Folayang meets Kamal Shalorus in a lightweight bout.

ONE FC 9 takes place on May 31 in Pasay City, Philippines.

A women’s bantamweight fight has been added to UFC on Fox 8 as Strikeforce veterans Julie Kedzie takes on Germaine de Randamie.  Considering how new the division is to the promotion, the fight will have an important impact on who will be ranked where based on the outcome.

UFC on Fox 8 takes place on July 27 in Seattle.

The first ever Cage Warriors Fighting Championship flyweight champion will be either Neil Seery or Mikael Silander.  The fighters will clash at Cage Warriors 55 for the right to be the first fighter in the promotions history to wear the flyweight championship belt around their waist.

The Irish and Finnish fighters will fight in Dublin, Ireland on Saturday, June 1.

Kickboxing lightweights Yoshihiro Sato and Sung Hyun Lee will square off at GLORY 8.  Sato boasts a record of 50-20 and two Muay Thai championships, while Lee is only 22-years-old and holds a record of 42-5-1.

Also at the event, and eight man, one night, single elimination tournament in the featherweight division will take place.  The participants in the tournament are Mosab Amrani, Marcus Vinicius, Liam Harrison, Masaaki Noiri, Abdallah Ezbiri, Gabriel Varga, Yuta Kubo, and Lim Chi Bin.

Additional action will pin heavyweights Jerome Le Banner and Koichi, heavyweights Peter Aerts taking on Jamal Been Saddik, and a lightweight fight between Andy Ristie and Albert Kraus.

GLORY 8 takes place on Friday, May 3 in Tokyo, Japan.