Danis to face Kyle Walker in MMA debut at Bellator 198
Dillon Danis has his first MMA dance partner.
The Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace will square off with Kyle Walker in his maiden voyage to the cage at a catchweight of 175 pounds to open Bellator 198's main card, the promotion announced Thursday. The event will be held April 28 at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill.
Danis cut his grappling teeth under lauded BJJ guru Marcelo Garcia, and signed with the promotion last year after making waves in summer 2016 as a training partner of Conor McGregor's ahead of the Irishman's UFC 202 rematch with Nate Diaz. He'll spend his first training camp at SBG Ireland, McGregor's longtime gym.
Walker, an Illinois native, makes his first walk to the Bellator cage on a three-fight skid, with two of those losses coming by submission. His professional record sits at 2-4.
Heavyweight luminaries Fedor Emelianenko and Frank Mir will meet in the third quarterfinal of Bellator's eight-man grand prix to close out the April bill.