Newkirk, OK. (May 5th, 2011) —The weigh-in and pre-fight press conference for Bellator Fighting Championships’ Saturday evening event at the First Council Casino will take place FRIDAY at 5:00 p.m. CST inside the First Council Casino & Hotel, 12875 North Highway 77, Newkirk, OK 74647.
Headlining will be former Judoka Olympian Rick Hawn vs. former UFC and Strikeforce veteran Jay Hieron as they compete in the Welterweight Tournament Finals. The victor will be crowned winner of Season 4’s Welterweight Division and earn a spot against Bellator’s current 170 pound champion Ben Askren.
Also on the card will be UFC and Strikeforce veteran Joe Riggs making his Bellator debut against WEC veteran Bryan Baker, former WEC Champion Chase Beebe squaring off against Bellator’s Season 3 Bantamweight Semifinalist Jose Vega, and heavyweights Ron Sparks taking on Vince Lucero.
The event will be emceed by Bellator cage announcer Michael C. Williams and Bellator color commentator Jimmy Smith.
If you are not able to attend the official weigh-in/pre-fight conference for Bellator Fighting Championship’s Saturday event, you can catch all the action LIVE at www.Bellator.com. The entire weigh-in/pre-fight press conference for Bellator 43 will be streaming LIVE at 5:00 p.m. CST.
The full fight card for Bellator 43 is below:
MAIN CARD:
Welterweight Final Fight: Rick Hawn (11-0) vs. Jay Hieron (21-4)
Middleweight Feature Fight: Joe Riggs (34-11) vs. Bryan Baker (14-2)
Bantamweight Feature Fight: Jose Vega (9-4) vs. Chase Beebe (17-7)
Heavyweight Feature Fight: Vince Lucero (20-18) vs. Ron Sparks (6-0)
UNDERCARD:
Local Main Event: Mike Schatz (3-3) vs. Michael Osborn (2-3)
Local Feature Fight: George Burton (1-0) vs. John Bryant (5-4)
Local Feature Fight: Rich Bouphanouvong (1-3) vs. David Rickles (5-0)
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator
