The pairings are set for Bellator Fighting Championships' first-ever light-heavyweight tournament quarterfinals.Bellator brass announced late Saturday night that next week's Bellator 38 event features Tim Carpenter vs. Daniel Gracie, Raphael Davis vs. D.J. Linderman, Nik Fekete vs. Richard Hale, and Chris Davis vs. Chrisitian M'Pumbu.
Bellator 38 takes place March 16 at Harrah's Tunica Hotel & Casino in Tunica Resorts, Miss., and airs on MTV2.
The winner of Bellator's inaugural 205-pound tournament earns $100,000 in total pay and becomes the organization's first-ever 205-pound champion.
Carpenter (6-0 MMA, 1-0 BFC), who signed an exclusive deal with Bellator, picked up a split-decision victory over IFL veteran Jamal Patterson at Bellator 33 in October. Carpenter currently trains at Philadelphia's Balance Studios. He turned pro in 2005 but sat out late 2007 to early 2010. His first three pro bouts all ended via submission.
Gracie (5-2-1 MMA, 0-0 BFC) made his MMA debut in 2002 but recently took a four-year hiatus from the sport to heal a nagging elbow injury. A fourth-degree jiu-jitsu black belt, four of Gracie's MMA wins have come via submission. Gracie currently trains with his cousin, Renzo Gracie, and he's confident in his chances to claim Bellator's first-ever 205-pound belt.
A California resident, Raphael Davis (10-1 MMA, 2-0 BFC) has fought professionally since 2006. His lone career loss came in his second professional bout, in which he lost a unanimous decision to Brent Beauparlant under the IFL banner. He since has earned nine consecutive wins, and eight of the results have come via stoppage, including seven submissions.
Linderman (8-1 MMA, 0-0 BFC), a California-based fighter, has competed for organizations such as SportFight and Art of Fighting. Previous wins, which have included five stoppages, came over the likes of IFL/Strikeforce vet Devin Cole, one-time EliteXC fighter Mario Rinaldi and Bellator vet Mike Hayes. His lone career loss came to Cole via decision in a rematch.
Fekete (4-0 MMA, 0-0 BFC) moved to 4-0 with a December TKO win over Chris Bostick at Tachi Palace Fights 7. After wrestling at Michigan State and rooming with top UFC lightweight contender Gray Maynard, the All-American went to Beijing as a training partner for the 2008 U.S. Olympic team.
The 6-foot-4 Hale (15-3-1 MMA, 0-0 BFC) has held Rage in the Cage titles in three different divisions – light heavyweight, heavyweight and super heavyweight – but the Ohio native said he feels the 205-pound division is the best fit for him.
Chris Davis (10-2 MMA, 0-0 BFC), a veteran of the Southeast fight circuit, brings a 5-1 streak to the tournament. Among his 10 wins are 10 stoppage victories, the past nine in the first round. The Alabama native's only losses came to notables Jeremy Horn and Vinny Magalhaes.
French light heavyweight M'Pumbu (15-3-1 MMA, 0-0 BFC) comes to Bellator on the heels of an April 2010 loss to Yoshiyuki Nakanishi under the DEEP banner. However, prior to the defeat, M'Pumbu had embarked on a six-fight unbeaten streak. Fighting professionally since 2004, M'Pumbu has fought mostly in regional-level shows.
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