Bellator 25 Preview

While the UFC mulls over scheduling another Chicago event in the first few months of 2011, the Chicago-based Bellator promotion comes to the Chicago Theater tomorrow night. Scheduled for the evening are opening-round bouts in both the heavyweight and women’s 115lb tournaments, as well as fights featuring some recognizable figures to area fight fans.

Among the highlights:

UFC and WEC veteran Shonie Carter makes his return to the Chicago area as he takes on Torrance Taylor. Both fighters enter the fight on a losing streak. Carter has dropped three consecutive fights and is just 2-6 in his last eight contests. His overall record stands at 49-22, and he holds notable wins over Jason Macdonald, Jess Liaudin, Matt Serra and Chris Lytle. None of those wins have come since 2005, and at 38 years old, he’s a long way from even being competitive in today’s MMA. Taylor has dropped 3 of his last four fights, and holds a less than impressive 8-7 career record. He has a win over former UFC fighter Jason Dent, but Taylor has done little to impress over his five-year career. Carter is basically just being brought in to sell a few tickets and create a little buzz, but hopefully he has a little left in the tank to get a win in his hometown.

Also on the undercard is area native John Kolosci, who will take on the undefeated Kenny Robertson. Kolosci, a member of the cast for the 6th season of The Ultimate Fighter, recently finished UFC veteran Luigi Fiorvanti under a minute into their fight at Hoosier FC 4. The win was the biggest in Kolosci’s career, and likely helped himto earn the fight on this card. Robertson is 9-0 in his young career, with 6 of those wins coming via submission. His biggest win to-date was against fellow Bellator fighter Herbert “Whisper” Goodman back in 2008. Kolosci badly needs a win here to follow-up on the win over Fiorvanti, but he’ll have a tough fight on his hands with Robertson.

Also on the undercard is a fight between the tough Dan Hornbuckle and UFC castoff Brad Blackburn. Hornbuckle last fought at Bellator 22, where he was dominated by Ben Askren for three rounds. He hung in there tough against the top prospect though, and is an impressive 21-3 in his career. He had victories over Nick Thompson and Akihiro Gono while he fought World Victory Road in Japan, and is a very solid welterweight. Blackburn won his first three fights in the UFC, but dropped his last two fights to Amir Sadollah and DaMarques Johnson before getting cut by the promotion. His overall record is a less than impressive 15-11, but he’s won five of his past eight bouts. At 33 years old, Blackburn is a long-shot to make a return to the UFC, but a win over Hornbuckle here would definitely help his cause. I think Hornbuckle will be too much for the former IFL standout however.

In the opening-round of the heavyweight tournament, Damian Grabowski will take on Scott Barrett, and Cole Konrad will take on Rogent Lloret. Grabowski is 12-0 in his career, with all of his fights taking place in Europe. Grabowski will likely be a decent draw with the Polish community in Chicago, which is probably part of the reason he was scheduled to fight in Chicago. He’s a decently regarded heavyweight, and a possible dark horse candidate in the tournament. Barrett is 10-1 in his career, last fighting at Bellator 19 in May, where he won via TKO over Ty Lee in the first round.

Konrad is one of the favorites in the tournament, largely due to his wrestling background. Konrad won the NCAA title in both 2006 and 2007 at the University of Minnesota, and won a gold medal in the Pan-Am games in 2005 as well. He trains with UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar at the Minnesota Martial Arts Academy, and at only 26 years old, Konrad has a bright future ahead of him. He’s 4-0 in his MMA career so far, and is 2-0 in Bellator. He’ll have to be aware of the ground skills of Lloret, a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Lloret is 9-1 in his career, with his lone loss coming to UFC light heavyweight Jared Hamman. In my opinion, though Konrad still has a lot to learn in MMA, he is the favorite to win the tournament. He should impress tomorrow night.

The Bellator 115lb women’s tournament will also begin tomorrow night, as Jessica Pene will face Zoila Frausto in opening-round action. Frausto is one of the top-ranked women at 125 lbs, and she’s making the cut to 115 to participate in this tournament. She’s 7-1 in her MMA career, with the lone loss coming to Strikeforce’s Meisha Tate. Pene is 7-0 in her MMA career, and has a win over Tammie Schneider at Bellator 5 on her resume.

Tickets are still available for this great event, and you can also catch all the action on tape delay on Comcast Sports Net her in Chicago. Check your local listings for times in your area.

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Filed Under: Event Previews

Tags: Bellator 25 • Brad Blackburn • Cole Konrad • Dan Hornbuckle • John Kolosci • Shonie Carter