Keeppunching Entertainment CEO Kerry Daigle and Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney announced at last Tuesday’s press conference that any military personnel who arrive in uniform and/or present a Military ID will be admitted free and be seated in their own designated section of the arena.

Military Personnel in Uniform Admitted Free to MMA Event

Military personnel, active, reserve, National Guard and veteran will be welcomed to the Bellator Championship Semifinals at the Monroe Civic Center next Friday evening without charge. Keeppunching Entertainment CEO Kerry Daigle and Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney announced at last Tuesday’s press conference that any military person who arrives in uniform or presents a Military ID will be admitted free and be seated in their own designated section of the arena.

“We are honoring our people in the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, honoring National Guard and veterans, as well as our semi-finalist, Damien Stelly, by making this special offer,” says Daigle. Stelly, an All-American wrestler, is also a World FIAS Champion, Georgia Golden Gloves champion, 2002 Amateur Athletic Union Freestyle Wrestling national champion and a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.  In addition to being an extremely well-rounded and dangerous fighter, Damien “The Omen” Stelly is also a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Army and has completed three tours in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army Rangers.

Stelly joined the Army immediately after graduating high school.  Initially, his goal in joining the Army was to wrestle in the world-class All Army team, but it wasn’t long after boot camp that he became hooked on life in the military.  On September 11, 2001, he and his friends at Fort Benning, Georgia, were the first to courageously deploy in Operation Enduring Freedom.

Now a veteran, Stelly serves as an instructor at the U.S. Army Combatives School, where he teaches a new generation of soldiers high-level hand-to-hand combat.  It was here that his love of fighting and competition was rekindled.  With the support of his fellow soldiers, he has been able to take a leave of absence to compete in MMA fights.  He has proudly represented the Army while building his strong 8-2 record as a Light Heavyweight.  Of his eight victories, all have come by way of TKO or submission, with only one going beyond the first round.  Stelly, after having dropped weight, will be competing against Hector Lombard in the Middleweight bout for a $50,000 reward.

Daigle says, “We’ve also made our ticket prices very affordable with general admission priced at just $15 a seat, side risers are $25, and ring-side seating for this world class televised event is only $40.”

Bellator IX Mixed Martial Arts Championship Semi-finals is scheduled in the Monroe Civic Center Arena, Friday, May 29^th beginning at 8:00pm, and will be televised nationwide on ESPN Deportes.