Joe Warren vs. Sirwan Kakai Set for Bellator 161 Co-Main Event

A bantamweight clash pitting Joe Warren against Sirwan Kakai has been booked for the Bellator 161 co-headliner.

Sherdog.com confirmed the matchup with a promotion official on Tuesday following an initial report from FloCombat.com. Bellator 161 takes place at the HEB Center in Cedar Park, Texas on Sept. 16 and is headlined by a heavyweight duel between Cheick Kongo and Tony Johnson.

A former Bellator champion at both 145 and 135 pounds, Warren is coming off a lopsided first-round submission loss to Darrion Caldwell on March 4. The 39-year-old is 11-4 with the California-based promotion, including triumphs over Eduardo Dantas, Marcos Galvao, Joe Soto, Patricio Freire and Georgi Karakhanyan.

Kakai, meanwhile, dropped a unanimous verdict against Joe Taimanglo in his promotional debut at Bellator 151. The two-time UFC veteran owns a 12-4 career mark, with 10 of his triumphs coming inside the distance.