Bellator: Manhoef vs. Shlemenko Heads to California's Save Mart Center Friday, Feb. 13
Dec 11, 2014 Comments
(PRESS RELEASE) -- SANTA MONICA, California - A thrilling
middleweight matchup between two of the most dangerous strikers in
all of mixed martial arts will headline a newly-announced Bellator
MMA event, as knockout artist Melvin
Manhoef (29-12-1) meets fellow striker and former Bellator MMA
middleweight champ Alexander
Shlemenko (50-9).
"Bellator: Manhoef vs. Shlemenko," which takes place Feb. 13 at Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif.
Bellator MMA President Scott Coker announced the new matchup on
Friday's edition of AXS TV's "Inside MMA."
Tickets for "Bellator: Manhoef vs. Shlemenko" go on sale next Friday, Dec. 12 and can be purchased at The Save Mart Center box office, Ticketmaster.com, or Bellator.com.
Surinamese-Dutch striker Manhoef has been one of the most feared strikers in MMA for nearly two decades. A former world champion kickboxer, 27 of Manheof's 29 career victories have come by way of knockout, a stunning 93 percent rate.
Manhoef made his Bellator MMA debut in September, scoring a first-round knockout of slugger Doug "The Rhino" Marshall before suffering a disappointing loss to fast-rising striker Joe Schilling. Now Manhoef looks to rebound and flash the kind of power that has seem him earn career wins over the likes of Mark Hunt, Kazushi Sakuraba, Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos, Denis Kang, Kazuo Misaki and Ian Freeman, to name just a few.
Meanwhile, the Russian-born Shlemenko has spent the past four years fighting under the Bellator MMA banner, already appearing in 14 contests for the organization. The 30-year-old Shlemenko picked up two previous Bellator MMA tournament titles and claimed the promotion's middleweight world championship with a February 2013 win over Maiquel Falcao. He would go on to defend the belt successfully three times before losing the title to current champ Brandon Halsey this past September.
Shlemenko is a 10-year veteran of the sport whose devastating striking, complete with crushing knees and highlight-reel spinning strikes, has already registered 50 career wins, 29 of which have come by knockout.
Additional bouts and details for "Bellator: Manhoef vs. Shlemenko" will be announced shortly.
About Bellator MMA
Bellator MMA is a leading Mixed Martial Arts organization featuring many of the best fighters in the world. Under the direction of veteran fight promoter Scott Coker, Bellator is available to nearly 500 million homes worldwide in over 140 countries. In the United States, Bellator can be seen on Spike TV, the MMA television leader. Bellator MMA is comprised of an executive team that includes top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations. Bellator is based in Santa Monica, California and owned by entertainment giant Viacom, home to the world's premier entertainment brands that connect with audiences through compelling content across television, motion picture, online and mobile platforms.
About Spike TV:
Spike TV is available in 98.7 million homes and is a division of Viacom Media Networks. A unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), Viacom Media Networks is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. Spike TV's Internet address is www.spike.com and for up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs, visit Spike TV's press site at http://www.spike.com/press. Follow us on Twitter @spiketvpr for the latest in breaking news updates, behind-the-scenes information and photos.
"Bellator: Manhoef vs. Shlemenko," which takes place Feb. 13 at Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif.
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Tickets for "Bellator: Manhoef vs. Shlemenko" go on sale next Friday, Dec. 12 and can be purchased at The Save Mart Center box office, Ticketmaster.com, or Bellator.com.
"You take Melvin
Manhoef and Alexander
Shlemenko, two fighters with a combined 56 knockout victories
between them, and put them in a cage, and you know exactly what
you're going to get," Coker said. "These two fighters have both
been known to stand in the pocket and trade bombs. This will be an
absolute firefight, and we've got a number of other great fights
planned for the card that we'll be announcing very soon."
Surinamese-Dutch striker Manhoef has been one of the most feared strikers in MMA for nearly two decades. A former world champion kickboxer, 27 of Manheof's 29 career victories have come by way of knockout, a stunning 93 percent rate.
Manhoef made his Bellator MMA debut in September, scoring a first-round knockout of slugger Doug "The Rhino" Marshall before suffering a disappointing loss to fast-rising striker Joe Schilling. Now Manhoef looks to rebound and flash the kind of power that has seem him earn career wins over the likes of Mark Hunt, Kazushi Sakuraba, Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos, Denis Kang, Kazuo Misaki and Ian Freeman, to name just a few.
Meanwhile, the Russian-born Shlemenko has spent the past four years fighting under the Bellator MMA banner, already appearing in 14 contests for the organization. The 30-year-old Shlemenko picked up two previous Bellator MMA tournament titles and claimed the promotion's middleweight world championship with a February 2013 win over Maiquel Falcao. He would go on to defend the belt successfully three times before losing the title to current champ Brandon Halsey this past September.
Shlemenko is a 10-year veteran of the sport whose devastating striking, complete with crushing knees and highlight-reel spinning strikes, has already registered 50 career wins, 29 of which have come by knockout.
Additional bouts and details for "Bellator: Manhoef vs. Shlemenko" will be announced shortly.
About Bellator MMA
Bellator MMA is a leading Mixed Martial Arts organization featuring many of the best fighters in the world. Under the direction of veteran fight promoter Scott Coker, Bellator is available to nearly 500 million homes worldwide in over 140 countries. In the United States, Bellator can be seen on Spike TV, the MMA television leader. Bellator MMA is comprised of an executive team that includes top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations. Bellator is based in Santa Monica, California and owned by entertainment giant Viacom, home to the world's premier entertainment brands that connect with audiences through compelling content across television, motion picture, online and mobile platforms.
About Spike TV:
Spike TV is available in 98.7 million homes and is a division of Viacom Media Networks. A unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), Viacom Media Networks is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. Spike TV's Internet address is www.spike.com and for up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs, visit Spike TV's press site at http://www.spike.com/press. Follow us on Twitter @spiketvpr for the latest in breaking news updates, behind-the-scenes information and photos.
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