As expected Bellator Fighting Championships will be the first major organization to hold a show under Wisconsin's new MMA regulation when it hosts Bellator 29 at the Rave-Eagles Ballroom in Milwaukee.

MMAjunkie.com first reported the Sept. 16 destination earlier this month, and Bellator executives recently made it official.

The FOX Sports Net-televised main card features the semifinal round of the organization's heavyweight tournament: Neil Grove vs. Alexey Oleinik and Damian Grabowski vs. Cole Konrad.

On a night full of decisions, Cole Konrad, Damian Grabowski and Zoila
Frausto all punched their tournament semifinal tickets with unanimous
nods at Bellator 25.

All three contests were featured on the evening's FOX Sports
Net-televised main card - though it was non-tournament action between
Dan Hornbuckle and Brad Blackburn provided the night's only real
fireworks.

Bellator 25 took place Thursday night at the Chicago Theatre in Chicago.

CHICAGO, Ill. (August 12, 2010) – Bellator Fighting Championships officially announced today that Russian heavyweight Alexey Oleinik is the latest and final addition to the Bellator Season 3 World Heavyweight Tournament. The Judo black belt is not only one of the most respected fighters in Russia, but also one of the most dangerous heavyweight submission specialists in the sport. Oleinik brings a phenomenal 27-5-1 record to the tournament with 23 of those 27 victories coming via submission.

“Alexey Oleinik is a great final addition to this stacked heavyweight tournament,” said Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “He’s one of the most threatening and versatile heavyweights in the sport with extremely dangerous submission skills, which makes him a legitimate threat to anyone he faces in the heavyweight division.”

The 33 year old was born in Kharkiv, Ukraine but currently fights out of Moscow. He trains out of Red Devil Sports Club and is a Master of Sports in Sambo. Oleinik is known and feared for the rare Ezekiel Choke finish which he has used successfully on six of his previous opponents.

Oleinik met fellow heavyweight tournament participant Rogent Lloret last August where the two fought to a draw, setting up a potentially interesting rematch opportunity in Bellator Season 3. Oleinik holds impressive victories over the likes of Jessie Gibbs and Thiago “Big Monster” Santos.

Oleinik is the eight confirmed participant in the forthcoming Season 3 Heavyweight World Tournament along with undefeated European sensation Damian “The Polish Pitbull” Grabowski, Seattle-area knockout artist Mike “300″ Hayes, Georgia-based ground and pound specialist Scott Barrett, British-based power-puncher Neil Grove, Spanish submission ace Rogent Lloret, two-time NCAA wrestling champion Cole Konrad, and heavy handed Alexey UFC veteran Eddie Sanchez

The Bellator Season 3 Heavyweight Tournament kicks off on Aug. 12th and can be viewed LIVE on Fox Sports Net.

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

About Bellator Fighting Championships

Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company headquartered in 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.

PRESS RELEASE / CHICAGO, Ill. (August 12, 2010) — Bellator Fighting Championships officially announced today that Russian heavyweight Alexey Oleinik is the latest and final addition to the Bellator Season 3 World Heavyweight Tournament. The Judo black belt is not only one of the most respected fighters in Russia, but also one of the most dangerous heavyweight submission specialists in the sport. Oleinik brings a phenomenal 27-5-1 record to the tournament with 23 of those 27 victories coming via submission.

“Alexey Oleinik is a great final addition to this stacked heavyweight tournament,” said Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “He’s one of the most threatening and versatile heavyweights in the sport with extremely dangerous submission skills, which makes him a legitimate threat to anyone he faces in the heavyweight division.”

The 33-year old was born in Kharkiv, Ukraine but currently fights out of Moscow. He trains out of Red Devil Sports Club and is a Master of Sports in Sambo. Oleinik is known and feared for the rare Ezekiel Choke finish which he has used successfully on six of his previous opponents.

Oleinik met fellow heavyweight tournament participant Rogent Lloret last August where the two fought to a draw, setting up a potentially interesting rematch opportunity in Bellator Season 3. Oleinik holds impressive victories over the likes of Jessie Gibbs and Thiago “Big Monster” Santos.

Oleinik is the eight confirmed participant in the forthcoming Season 3 Heavyweight World Tournament along with undefeated European sensation Damian “The Polish Pitbull” Grabowski, Seattle-area knockout artist Mike “300″ Hayes, Georgia-based ground and pound specialist Scott Barrett, Spanish submission ace Lloret, two-time NCAA wrestling champion Cole Konrad, and British-based slugger Neil Grove (who eliminated heavy-handed UFC veteran Eddie Sanchez via TKO Thursday night at Bellator 24).

CHICAGO, Ill. (July 27, 2010) — Two-time NCAA wrestling champion Cole Konrad and highly-touted European submission ace Rogent Lloret will face of in an opening-round contest in Bellator’s Season 3 Heavyweight Tournament at the historic Chicago Theatre on Aug. 19th.

Konrad and Lloret join a stacked Bellator 25 card that also features the U.S. debut of undefeated heavyweight sensation Damian “The Polish Pitbull” Grabowski in another opening-round Heavyweight Tournament fight with massive Georgia-based ground-and-pound specialist Scott Barrett, and an opening-round fight in Bellator’s Women’s World Championship Tournament between Zoila “The Warrior Princess” Frausto and the world’s No. 6-ranked flyweight, Jessica Pene, as well as five other fights.

Tickets for the event — which will also be broadcast LIVE nationwide on FOX Sports Net — are on sale now at ticketmaster.com.

“Cole is on one of the best heavyweight wrestlers in the world and Rogent’s jiu-jitsu is at a similar level, so this should be a very intriguing fight,” said Bellator founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “Add this fight to a card that already includes the U.S. debut of Damian Grabowski and a highly anticipated Women’s Tournament fight between Zoila Frausto and Jessica Pene and you have the makings of a great fight night in Chicago.”

Konrad, a protégé and training partner of reigning UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, will enter the Lloret fight looking to improve on the unblemished 4-0 record he has compiled since making his pro debut in January. Dubbed “The Polar Bear” by Lesnar due to his freakish strength during sparring sessions, the 6-foot, 5-inch Konrad’s two most recent wins came during special “Feature Fights” at Bellator 17 and Bellator 22 in May and June. Previously, he won the NCAA Division I wrestling title at 285 lbs. in 2006 and 2007 while competing at the University of Minnesota and won a gold medal at the 2005 Pan-American Games.

“I think Lloret is going to be the toughest test I’ve faced in MMA up to this point in my fighting career,” Konrad said. “I’m going to be looking to finish him as soon as possible. The goal for this tournament is to get in and get out. I’m looking to finish all of these fights as quickly as possible and get out of there.”

Lloret, a Gracie Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and M-1 Global veteran has not lost a fight in more than three years and enters the tournament with a 9-1-1 overall pro record. He is known for his smothering ground game — submitting six of his nine victims, including four by arm triangle choke — but also displayed his striking prowess when he KO’d Serbian MMA veteran Miodrag Petkovic with a devastating high head kick this past April.

“I know that he is a good wrestler and he must be super strong too because he weighs way more than me — 22 pounds or more,” Lloret said of Konrad. “The only thing I hope is that my background and my speed are a little on top and that I can keep the fight standing. We are both going to give the best we have and it will be a war.”

Also competing in the Heavyweight Tournament alongside Konrad, Lloret, Barrett and Grabowski are Seattle-area knockout artist Mike “300” Hayes, heavy-handed UFC veteran Eddie Sanchez, power-punching British behemoth Neil “Goliath” Grove and one yet-to-be named fighter.

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

About Bellator Fighting Championships
Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company headquartered in 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.

CHICAGO, Ill. (July 27, 2010) — Two-time NCAA wrestling champion Cole Konrad and highly-touted European submission ace Rogent Lloret will face of in an opening-round contest in Bellator’s Season 3 Heavyweight Tournament at the historic Chicago Theatre on Aug. 19th.

Konrad and Lloret join a stacked Bellator 25 card that also features the U.S. debut of undefeated heavyweight sensation Damian “The Polish Pitbull” Grabowski in another opening-round Heavyweight Tournament fight with massive Georgia-based ground-and-pound specialist Scott Barrett, and an opening-round fight in Bellator’s Women’s World Championship Tournament between Zoila “The Warrior Princess” Frausto and the world’s No. 6-ranked flyweight, Jessica Pene, as well as five other fights.

Tickets for the event — which will also be broadcast LIVE nationwide on FOX Sports Net — are on sale now at ticketmaster.com.

“Cole is on one of the best heavyweight wrestlers in the world and Rogent’s jiu-jitsu is at a similar level, so this should be a very intriguing fight,” said Bellator founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “Add this fight to a card that already includes the U.S. debut of Damian Grabowski and a highly anticipated Women’s Tournament fight between Zoila Frausto and Jessica Pene and you have the makings of a great fight night in Chicago.”

Konrad, a protégé and training partner of reigning UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, will enter the Lloret fight looking to improve on the unblemished 4-0 record he has compiled since making his pro debut in January. Dubbed “The Polar Bear” by Lesnar due to his freakish strength during sparring sessions, the 6-foot, 5-inch Konrad’s two most recent wins came during special “Feature Fights” at Bellator 17 and Bellator 22 in May and June.

Previously, he won the NCAA Division I wrestling title at 285 lbs. in 2006 and 2007 while competing at the University of Minnesota and won a gold medal at the 2005 Pan-American Games.

“I think Lloret is going to be the toughest test I’ve faced in MMA up to this point in my fighting career,” Konrad said. “I’m going to be looking to finish him as soon as possible. The goal for this tournament is to get in and get out. I’m looking to finish all of these fights as quickly as possible and get out of there.”

Lloret, a Gracie Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and M-1 Global veteran has not lost a fight in more than three years and enters the tournament with a 9-1-1 overall pro record. He is known for his smothering ground game — submitting six of his nine victims, including four by arm triangle choke — but also displayed his striking prowess when he KO’d Serbian MMA veteran Miodrag Petkovic with a devastating high head kick this past April.

“I know that he is a good wrestler and he must be super strong too because he weighs way more than me — 22 pounds or more,” Lloret said of Konrad. “The only thing I hope is that my background and my speed are a little on top and that I can keep the fight standing. We are both going to give the best we have and it will be a war.”

Also competing in the Heavyweight Tournament alongside Konrad, Lloret, Barrett and Grabowski are Seattle-area knockout artist Mike “300” Hayes, heavy-handed UFC veteran Eddie Sanchez, power-punching British behemoth Neil “Goliath” Grove and one yet-to-be named fighter.

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

An opening-round heavyweight tournament bout between two-time NCAA Division I national wrestling champion Cole Konrad and submission specialist Rogent Lloret is set for Bellator 25.

Bellator officials today announced the fight.

Bellator 25, which features other season-three tourney fights, takes place Aug. 19 at the Chicago Theatre in Illinois.

Two-time NCAA wrestling champion Kole Conrad is the
seventh official addition to Bellator Fighting Championship's upcoming
heavyweight tournament.

Bellator officials today announced Konrad's participation in the
eight-man field.

Konrad has already fought twice under the Bellator banner in
non-tournament bouts. "King" earned a pair of unanimous decisions wins
in his previous two outings.

Pat Bennett - Photo courtesy of M-1 Global and Zack Lynch

Eight of the twelve total bouts scheduled for last evening’s M-1 Selection Americas in Atlantic City, New Jersey ended via knockout, while only one bout made it to the judges scorecards.

Team Bomb Squad trained heavyweight prospect Pat Bennett made a successful return from a recent hard fought unanimous decision defeat at the hands of Brock Lesnar training partner Cole Konrad under the Bellator banner with a brutal first round knockout of Ryan Smiley that came just 37 seconds into the contest. Bennett, who went 3-0 as an amateur, improved his professional record to 2-1 with both wins coming via knockout with the victory.

Also in action was The Ultimate Fighter veteran Shane Primm, who notched a consecutive guillotine choke submission victory last evening with an impressive second round stoppage of a game but outclassed Wesley Welch.

A full list of results from the event are below:

Tom Gallicchio def. Regino Pena via Split Decision

Pat Bennett def. Ryan Smiley via KO – Round 1, 0:37

Shane Primm def. Wesley Welch via submission (guillotine) – Round 2, 0:37

Josh Bacallao vs. Josh Key ruled a no contest

Kenny Garner def. Matt Hopkins via KO – Round 1, 1:56

Anderi Kapylou def. Edmund Carpenter via guillotine – Round 1, 1:04

Tyson Jeffries def. Mike Johnson via TKO – Round 3, 1:59

Aaron Meisner def. Vagner Fernandez via TKO – Round 1, 0:25

Byron Byrd def. Mike Shekenberg via KO – Round 1, 0:10

Mehdi Hassan def. Robert Leonard via KO – Round 1, 3:14

Daniel Vizcaya def. Ariel Sepulvida via TKO – Round 1, 4:40

Robert Rodriguez def. Antoine Mitchell via TKO – Round 3, 4:29

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (June 17, 2010) – Bellator Fighting Championships crowned its second Season 2 champion Thursday night as former NCAA wrestling superstar and U.S. Olympian Ben Askren put on a grappling clinic to neutralize knockout artist and rising MMA star Dan Hornbuckle in a dominating and well-rounded performance.

The 25-year-old University of Missouri product drew from the vocal support of an adoring crowd at the Kansas City Power & Light District to win a unanimous decision victory and complete the metamorphosis from highly touted prospect to full-fledged MMA star that many experts had predicted.

With his new wife Amy watching cageside, Askren (6-0) controlled the fight from the start, taking the veteran Hornbuckle to the mat early on in all three rounds and holding him at bay with his world-class wrestling skills. Hornbuckle tried to stop the momentum a few times, attempting a triangle choke mid-way through Round 2 and a kimura mid-way through Round 3, but Askren was able to escape both submissions.

“This is exactly the kind of performance we had hoped Ben would put on when we signed him six months ago,” Bellator founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney said. “He showed some great talent in his first two Bellator fights but saved the best performance for last. It was a tremenously impressive night for Ben all the way around.  As an MMA fan, I cannot wait to see his World Title fight against Lyman Good this fall. ”

Afterward, Askren told Bellator color commentator Jimmy Smith that he has already shifted his sights to reigning Bellator Welterweight Champion Lyman Good, who he’ll face in a title fight later this year.

“Lyman, keep my belt warm,” he said as his hometown crowd egged him on. “Shine it up once a week and enjoy it while you can because it’s mine, baby.”

Joining Askren in the winner’s circle was Lisa Ward, the 27-year-old Seattle-based submission artist who improved her pro record to 13-3 and gave fans a sneak preview of what they’ll see when she enters the cage as part of Bellator’s upcoming Season 3 Women’s Tournament beginning in August.

Ward wasted no time locking 19-year-old MMA up-and-comer Stephanie Frausto (2-2) into a tight rear-naked choke, putting her to sleep and ending the fight via technical submission just 2:01 into Round 1. Ward said after the fight that she is hoping for tournament matchup with Megumi Fujii, the world’s No. 1 pound-for-pound female fighter, who handed Ward one of her three losses during a 2007 showdown in Canada.

“I would love another shot at Megumi,” Ward said. “We definitely have some unfinished business.”

Earlier, 24-year-old Missouri native Jose Vega delivered yet another Bellator “YouTube moment” with a highlight-reel knockout of North Carolina-based jiu-jitsu specialist Jarrod “The Wild Card” Card just 39.8 seconds into the first round of their “Bantamweight Feature Fight.”

After setting it up with a pair of stiff leg kicks, Vega (8-3) connected with a left hook to Card’s jaw, knocking him unconscious and dropping him to the canvas, bringing Vega’s many hometown fans to their feet.

“I’m lost for words,” an emotional Vega said afterward. “I’ve never had a KO before, but my hands have improved – [former Bellator fighters] Brian Davidson, James Krause and Tyler Stinson have been helping me with that. I saw the opening and I just went for it.”

In the first televised fight of the night, IFL and M1 veteran Raphael Davis improved his record to 9-1 by dominating Arena Football League veteran and one-time Nebraska state high school wrestling champion Demetrius Richards (5-3). Davis took the fight to the ground early on and quickly took Richards’ back, wearing him down with hammer fists and a flurry of knees to the body before Richards submitted to punches just 2:51 into Round 1.

The event also played host to five Local Feature Fights:

-       Tyler Stinson def. Leonardo Pecanha via rear-naked choke (1:42)

-       Rudy Bears def. Brian Green via rear-naked choke (3:49)

-       Cole Konrad def. John Orr via unanimous decision

-       Jared Downing def. Chad Vandenberg via rear-naked choke (11:35)

Fans who missed Thursday night’s action can watch all the best moments this weekend during special highlight shows on NBC, Telemundo and the cable network mun2. Check your local listings for exact dates and times.

Bellator returns to action next Thursday night from the Fourth Street Live entertainment district in downtown Louisville, Ky., where Bellator will conclude its second season with the championship rounds of its Middleweight and Featherweight Tournaments.

The two championship fights and the rest of the Bellator 23 featured card will again be televised live on FOX Sports Net.