2 Tournament Competitors Going Head to Head
Cosmo premieres & Electric featherweights Bryan Goldsby and Genair da Silva square off
CHICAGO, Ill. (September 28, 2011) — The fans in Lake Charles, Louisiana need to get to their seats early – and the fans at home around the world need to get to Spike.com as the Bellator fighters continue to produce memorable fights each week. Bellator 52, which takes place THIS Saturday, Oct. 1 from L’Auberge du Lac Casino Resort, features a stacked Season 5 Heavyweight Tournament, plus the highly-anticipated debut of devastating striker and champion kickboxer Cosmo “Good Boy” Alexander against Lake Charles native Josh Quayhagen and a fantastic featherweight battle between Bellator tournament veterans Bryan Goldsby and Genair da Silva. These two instant classics can be seen LIVE around the world on Spike.com at 7 p.m. ET.
The Season 5 heavyweight tournament will feature an eight-man field that boasts a dominating 73-15-2 record along with 41 combined knockouts and goes LIVE on MTV2 and in commercial-free HD on EPIX starting at 9 p.m. ET.
The 29-year-old Alexander will be making his MMA debut against Quayhagen, who is a local fighter getting his pro start as well. Alexander enters Bellator with an incredible resume in Muay Thai, as the accomplished striker has over 50 professional kickboxing fights under his belt, along with several of the sport’s most notable championship titles. The Miami resident is one of the most highly-coveted prospects in all of MMA and looks to put on a show for Bellator fans. To see video of Cosmo’s devastating striking in competition, please click HERE.
The prelims will also feature two former featherweight tournament participants vying for another run in a Bellator tournament. Season 3 participant Bryan Goldsby is eager to get back into the Bellator cage, and will have his hands full with Brazilian knockout artist Genair da Silva. Goldsby has studied da Silva, and is ready for anything the budding star will throw at him.
“I really feel good right now,” said a confident Goldsby. “I’ve put on some muscle, and improved my game across the board. I’m still expecting a stand up war, but if he wants to take it to the ground, I’ll be ready. Either way, it’s going to be explosive.”
Obtaining a tough draw against Top 10 featherweight Marlon Sandro in Bellator’s Summer Series Tournament, da Silva suffered his first loss in over two years with a close split-decision result. After watching the tournament unfold, da Silva was quick to accept the invitation to step back into the Bellator cage.
“I’m just ready to fight and show the world what I can do,” said da Silva. “I wasn’t happy with the decision in my last fight, and I am not going to leave it in the hands of the judges this time. My goal is to become the next Bellator Featherweight Champion and this is the first step.”
Undefeated light heavyweight Matt Van Buren joins Bellator looking for victory over Alexandria, La. resident Nick Nichols. At 25 years old, the Virginia based Van Buren will look to impress Bellator brass with a dominating win.
There are also two intriguing non-tournament heavyweight fights on the ledger as Josh Burns battles former The Ultimate Fighter competitor Zak Jensen, and Liron Wilson takes on the undefeated Justin Frazier, who will put his 4-0 record on the line.
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator
