Alexander Shlemenko (photo via Bellator MMA)

By FCF Staff

Bellator has announced that former middleweight champ Alexander Shlemenko, will take on fellow, noted striker, Melvin Manhoef next.

The bout will headline Bellator 133, which will take place February 13th at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California.

“You take Melvin Manhoef and Alexander Shlemenko, two fighters with a combined 56 knockout victories between them, and put them in a cage, and you know exactly what you’re going to get,” Bellator President Scott Coker was quoted saying in the official announcement. “These two fighters have both been known to stand in the pocket and trade bombs. This will be an absolute firefight, and we’ve got a number of other great fights planned for the card that we’ll be announcing very soon.”

Shlemenko (50-9) is looking to get back on track, as the Russian fighter is coming off consecutive, submission losses to Tito Ortiz and Brandon Halsey. The loss to Halsey ended Shlemenko’s lengthy reign as Bellator’s middleweight champ.

Prior to the defeats Shlemenko had won 13 straight bouts.

Manhoef (29-12-1) was brutally, knocked out by Joe Schilling in his last outing, which followed “No Mercy’s” highlight reel, KO win over Doug Marshall in September. Manhoef is 2-3 in his last 5 fights.

The main card for Bellator 133 will be broadcast on Spike TV.