Bobby Lashley has been something of a journeyman over the course of his life. His accomplishments are all over the map – amateur wrestler for Missouri Valley College, United States Army Ranger, former ECW World Champion (WWE cover variant). But this September, he’s revisiting mixed martial arts under the banner of Bellator. Here’s the quote from his current employer, TNA Impact Wrestling.
We are excited to announce that TNA World Heavyweight Champion LASHLEY has signed a deal with Bellator MMA and is set to make his debut on September 5th at Bellator 123. Lashley (10-2) will face Josh Burns (8-7) in a heavyweight clash.
The Bellator 123 card will be headlined by a Featherweight Title fight between Pat Curran and Patricio Pitbull. TNA and Bellator superstar King Mo will also compete on the card, making this a can’t miss event for any TNA or MMA fan!
Bellator 123 takes place at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut on September 5th and will be broadcast LIVE and FREE on Spike TV!
I was unaware of several things:
1. Bobby Lashley being TNA’s World Heavyweight Champion, because I don’t really keep up with TNA
2. Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal still technically being employed by TNA, because I don’t really keep up with TNA
3. The existence of these other Bellator people
For those of you unfamiliar with it, Bellator is a mixed martial arts promotion. It is NOT a King of Trios team featuring the Bella Twins and Tor Johnson, which would be infinitely more awesome. I’m a big fan of UFC, so I attempt to keep myself up to speed on news from all around the MMA community, but Bellator feels like this weird Phantom Zone where nothing really has consequence. I respect their tournament format, though.
Lashley’s 10-2 record is pretty impressive, especially considering that half of those victories are by submission. He hasn’t had an MMA fight since November of last year, but that’s not a terribly unusual span between fights. The unusual thing here, of course, is TNA putting their current heavyweight champion in a mixed martial arts fight in a different company. To me, that says Lashley will almost certainly be losing the title between now and September. Who knows, maybe he drops the title tomorrow night in New York City, when he faces Jeff “Willow” Hardy, a man who is UNDEFEATED (0-0-0) in MMA competition.
