Keri Melendez vs. Emilee King added to Bellator 242 lineup in San Jose

A women’s strawweight fight has been added to the lineup for Bellator’s return to its regular Northern California home base.

Longtime Bay Area resident Keri Melendez (4-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) is set to take on Emilee King (4-3 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) at Bellator 242. MMA Junkie confirmed the booking with a Bellator official following an initial report from Sherdog.com.

Bellator 242 takes place May 9 at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. The main card airs on Paramount and streams on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.

The 35-year-old Melendez, wife of former Strikeforce champion Gilbert Melendez, lives in nearby San Francisco. She fought just once in 2019 – a unanimous decision win over Mandy Polk at Bellator 229 to stay unbeaten in her brief pro career. It was her second straight decision win after first-round stoppage victories in her first two pro fights.

King has made a big career turnaround after starting 0-3 as a pro, including a loss under the Invicta FC banner. Since that rough start out of the gate, the 27-year-old Tennessee-based fighter is a perfect 4-0, including three submission wins. In her promotional debut at Bellator 238 in January, she submitted Ava Knight with a first-round rear-naked choke.

With the addition, the Bellator 242 lineup now includes:

• Champ Ryan Bader vs. Vadim Nemkov – for light heavyweight title
• Gegard Mousasi vs. Douglas Lima – for vacant middleweight title
• Sidney Outlaw vs. Adam Piccolotti
• Joaquin Lopez vs. James Terry
• Jonathan Adams vs. Edwin De Los Santos
• Mikey Gonzalez vs. Arturo Hernandez
• Emilee King vs. Keri Melendez