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LONDON – U.K. fans who’ve missed out on live Bellator action will soon get their very own fight series.
Next year, the Viacom-owned promotion will hold six to eight events in the U.K. and other Western European countries that will air live on U.K. network Channel 5, Bellator President Scott Coker said.
The shows will feature Bellator veterans while also developing new talent for the promotion’s 22 events per year.
“It’s really to look for the next fighter, and these guys need more fights,” Coker said following Bellator 200, which took place at The SSE Arena in London and aired Stateside via same-day delay on Paramount. “So we’re going to provide more fights, and it will be like almost a Western Europe circuit.
“It’s something we can provide the local fan base a live experience with local talent, and not come here once or twice a year like we’ve been coming.”
Coker said Bellator will continue to promote tentpole events such as this past Friday’s show, at which Gegard Mousasi (44-6-2 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) captured the middleweight title from Raphael Carvalho (15-2 MMA, 6-1 BMMA) in the headliner. But the new series will give U.K. fans more live MMA.
“The great thing is, Viacom is committed,” Coker said. “And when you have a big media mogul like that committed, it only means there will be great things ahead.”
Bellator 200 aired live in the U.K. on 5Spike, a Viacom-owned cable network. The promotion’s previous events this year have aired via tape delay.
As far as broadcasting stateside events in Britain and beyond, Coker said the challenge to airing live events remains the time difference across the pond. He said Bellator events air in 140 countries, and convincing all of the promotion’s TV partners around the world to air live events and a rebroadcast “is a task.”
A workaround, he said, is to simply create a whole new fight circuit.
“We’re still working on that piece, but when we have the fights here locally, you’re not going to have to worry about that,” he said.
Full story here:
Bellator to build Western Europe-focused MMA series in 2019