Matyushenko

By FCF Staff

UFC and IFL veteran Vladimir Matyushenko has found a new employer, as Bellator has announced that it has signed the accomplished, 42 year-old-fighter. Matyushenko recently exited from the UFC, following back-to-back defeats to noted light-heavyweights Ryan Bader and Alexander Gustafsson. Although terms of the deal were not included, Matyushenko will make his Bellator debut in a non-tourney bout, which will be announced soon.

“Vladimir is a fighter I’ve watched for years.  He’s an exciting fighter with an incredible wrestling background and a great pedigree in our sport.  When the opportunity presented itself and we had the chance to have him join the Bellator family it was a very easy decision to make,” Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney said. “With our Champion Attila Vegh sitting at the top of the mountain right now, and with guys like Emanuel Newton, Mikhail Zayats and King Mo coming on strong, the light heavyweight division for Bellator continues to evolve and Vladimir should fit in perfectly to that mix.”

“Bellator is one of the biggest promotions in the world, and to be associated with them is an honor,” Matyushenko said. “I am optimistic and excited to work with Bellator. The amount of respect and honor I felt from Bjorn and the entire Bellator team was tremendous, and getting into the Bellator cage and cementing my legacy as a Bellator World Champion is the only thing on my mind.”

Prior to the recent losses, Matyushenko had recorded stoppage wins over Jason Brilz and Alexandre Ferreira, which came after the decorated wrestler was defeated by Jon Jones.

The Belarus native has gone 6-4 in his last 10 bouts and has been competing in MMA since 1997.