Mann-Arocho Targeted for Bellator 40
Mike Whitman Mar 2, 2011
Recent
Bellator acquisition Ronnie Mann
will likely make his promotional debut at
Bellator 40, as the British featherweight is in talks to meet
Josh
Arocho on April 9.
While no paperwork has been signed, Sherdog.com confirmed the validity of the potential matchup with a source close to the negotiations after MMAJunkie.com first reported the bout on Wednesday morning.
Bellator 40 will emanate from First Council Casino in Newkirk,
Okla., and will feature a non-title welterweight affair between
champion Ben Askren
and UFC veteran Nick
Thompson.
Mann (Pictured) is the reigning Shark Fights featherweight champion, besting Doug Evans in a split decision at Shark Fights 13 in September to earn the strap. The Team Trojan representative has won seven of his last eight contests. Mann's lone loss in the last three years came at the hands of current Sengoku featherweight champion Hatsu Hioki in 2009. The 24-year-old is also a veteran the defunct Cage Rage promotion, losing a bid for the British featherweight title to Robbie Olivier in 2007. Mann has submitted 11 of his 18 career victims and has never been knocked out.
Arocho has had his ups and downs fighting on the local circuit over the last five years. The journeyman lost his first three fights as a pro, with two of those losses coming to notables Clay French and Alvin Robinson. He suffered first-round submission defeats to both the Pride Fighting Championships and the UFC veteran, succumbing to a rear-naked choke against French and a triangle choke against Robinson.
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While no paperwork has been signed, Sherdog.com confirmed the validity of the potential matchup with a source close to the negotiations after MMAJunkie.com first reported the bout on Wednesday morning.
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Mann (Pictured) is the reigning Shark Fights featherweight champion, besting Doug Evans in a split decision at Shark Fights 13 in September to earn the strap. The Team Trojan representative has won seven of his last eight contests. Mann's lone loss in the last three years came at the hands of current Sengoku featherweight champion Hatsu Hioki in 2009. The 24-year-old is also a veteran the defunct Cage Rage promotion, losing a bid for the British featherweight title to Robbie Olivier in 2007. Mann has submitted 11 of his 18 career victims and has never been knocked out.
Arocho has had his ups and downs fighting on the local circuit over the last five years. The journeyman lost his first three fights as a pro, with two of those losses coming to notables Clay French and Alvin Robinson. He suffered first-round submission defeats to both the Pride Fighting Championships and the UFC veteran, succumbing to a rear-naked choke against French and a triangle choke against Robinson.
Reader comments are active below. Chime in with an opinion or thought by signing in with your Facebook, Twitter, Google or Yahoo! account.
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