Press Conference Alert
1:30pm, Friday, April 9, 2010 at Monroe City Hall,
400 Lee Joyner Expressway

Bellator Fighting Championships returns to Monroe for Bellator 18 on May 13.

Mayor Jamie Mayo and the Monroe City Council are pleased to announce a formal press conference will be held 1:30 p.m. Friday, April 9th to announce the Monroe Civic Center in Monroe, La., will play host to Bellator Fighting Championships again this spring when the promotion returns to Northern Louisiana for Bellator 18 on May 13. Tickets for the event went on sale Thursday, April 1 at Ticketmaster.com and at the Monroe Civic Center box office. This year's battle will be televised LIVE on Fox Sports Net, and replayed on NBC and Telemundo -- reaching over 256 million viewers. Previews of the tournament are airing now on Fox Sports Network.

“We are thrilled to be returning to Monroe for our May 13th event,” said Bellator founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “The Monroe Civic Center, the City of Monroe, Mayor Mayo and Keep Punching Entertainment were tremendous partners for us in Season 1 and we’re looking forward to putting on another exceptional show to a packed house in one of the loudest, most exciting venues we visited last year.”

Mayor Jamie Mayo comments, "The 2009 Bellator event received a tremendous crowd response in less than two weeks. This time, we want to sell out the civic center arena to show the national television audience of more than 256 million that Monroe is a great place for entertainment. We are looking forward to having a enthusiastic crowd and action-packed matches on May 13."

The Main Event for the May 13th Monroe show will be a “Super Fight” match-up between reigning Bellator Middleweight Champion Hector Lombard and 19-1 former WEC Middleweight Champion Paulo Filho who, as recently as 14 months ago, was the No. 2-ranked middleweight in the world.

“When it comes to kicking the MMA business into high gear, Bjorn Rebney of Bellator has the right formula,” said Kerry Daigle of Keep Punching Entertainment. “Adding to that is the City of Monroe and the way they have wrapped their arms around this event to give this fair city exposure to more than 256 million viewers through FOX Sports Net, NBC, and Telemundo.

“The team of Keep Punching Entertainment, Bellator Fighting Championships, and the City of Monroe are a rare combination of talented and creative businesspeople who tap that indefinable trigger that will make this promotion a fun and memorable one.”

During Bellator’s highly successful first season, Bellator hosted one of its most well-received events at the Monroe Civic Center, drawing a near sell-out crowd to watch top fighters including eventual Lombard, featherweight Shad Lierley and middleweight Jared Hess.

The fight card for the May 13th event — which will be broadcast nationwide on FOX Sports Net and in highlight shows on NBC and Telemundo — will also include two semifinal matches in Bellator’s world championship tournaments as well as four local feature fights. The local feature fights on the undercard will include MMA fighters from Monroe, Shreveport, Baton Rouge and Lafayette.

For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at Facebook.com/Bellator.

Additional information can be found at www.keeppunching.com.

About Bellator Fighting Championships:
Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company with offices in Los Angeles and Chicago. Bellator’s founder/CEO, Bjorn Rebney, is an experienced fighting sports and entertainment professional with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes. Bellator Fighting Championships’ executive team is comprised of top industry professionals in the areas of live event production, television production, fighter relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations. Mayor Jamie Mayo and the Monroe City Council are pleased to announce a formal press conference will be held 1:30 p.m. Friday, April 9th in the Monroe City Council Chamber to announce this incredible opportunity for Monroe to be featured on three networks nationwide, Fox Sports Net, NBC, and Telemundo to 250 million + households.

CREDENTIAL APPROVAL FOR SHOW TO BE GIVEN AT PRESS CONFERENCE