Japanese welterweight Kiichi Kunimoto has a date and an opponent set for his Bellator debut. The UFC veteran is set to face Ed Ruth in Oklahoma on July 12th.
Kunimoto (20-7-2-1) win two fights out of two for Rizin before being released, presumably due to the lock of welterweights on the promotion’s roster. He will go in search of his third straight win at Bellator 223.
The 38 year old is a former Heat 170lbs champion. He won his first three UFC fights, picking up a ‘Performance of the Night’ bonus in the process, but was cut after suffering back to back defeats.
Ruth (6-1) was a three time NCAA Division 1 champion before transitioning to MMA. He won his first six fights but was submitted by Neiman Gracie at Bellator 213.
This will be Ruth’s seventh fight for Bellator while Kunimoto makes his promotional debut. The card is headlined by a featherweight title bout between Julia Budd and Olga Rubin.
Two Rizin fighters are set to compete on next week’s Bellator 222 card. Kyoju Horiguchi challenges Darrion Caldwell for the 135lbs title while Rena Kubota faces Lindsey VanZandt in a strawweight fight.
Bellator 223, Oklahoma, July 12th
Julia Budd (c) vs. Olga Rubin (For Featherweight Title)
Juliana Velasquez vs. Kristina Williams (Flyweight)
Rafael Carvalho vs. Chidi Njokuani (Middleweight)
Leslie Smith vs. Sinead Kavanagh (Featherweight)
AJ Agazarm vs. Jacob Landin (Lightweight)
Bruna Ellen vs. Elina Kallionidou (Flyweight)
Ed Ruth vs. Kiichi Kunimoto (Welterweight)
