Budd vs. Miele, Moldavsky vs. Nelson, five prelims added to Bellator 244 lineup

The lineup for Bellator 244 later this month got a big boost with the addition of a pair of fights to the main card and another handful for the prelims.

Of note, former women’s featherweight champion Julia Budd (13-3 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) is set to take on Jessy Miele (9-3 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) and Roy Nelson (23-18 MMA, 1-4 BMMA) will meet Valentin Moldavsky (9-1 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) at heavyweight.

Bellator 244 takes place Aug. 22 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on Paramount and streams on DAZNN following prelims on MMA Junkie. Dual champion Ryan Bader defends his light heavyweight title against Vadim Nemkov in the main event.

Budd will try to get back on track after she lost her 145-pound title to Cris Cyborg in January at Bellator 238. That loss snapped an 11-fight winning streak, including her first seven for Bellator. She won four straight title fights and defended the belt three times before her loss to Cyborg, which was her first since she was submitted by Ronda Rousey in Strikeforce in 2011.

Miele made her promotional debut in October 2019 with a split decision over Talita Nogueira at Bellator 231. That was her fourth straight win and third straight after returning in January 2019 after a two-year layoff.

Nelson won his promotional debut against Javy Ayala at Bellator 183 in September 2017 after a lengthy run in the UFC. But since then, he has dropped four straight to Matt Mitrione, Sergei Kharitonov, Mirko Cro Cop and Frank Mir.

Moldavsky picked up his fourth straight win since signing with Bellator. He dropped the first fight of his career in Rizin in December 2016. But with Bellator, he has wins over Carl Seumanutafa, Ernest James, Linton Vassell and Ayala.

The Bellator 244 lineup now includes:

MAIN CARD (Paramount, DAZN, 10 p.m. ET)

• Champ Ryan Bader vs. Vadim Nemkov – for light heavyweight title
• Julia Budd vs. Jessy Miele
• Valentin Moldavsky vs. Roy Nelson

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie)

• Andrew Kapel vs. John Salter
• Sidney Outlaw vs. Adam Piccolotti
• Josh Hill vs. Erik Perez
• Lucas Brennan vs. Will Smith
• Chris Gonzalez vs. Vladimir Tokov
• Lance Gibson Jr. vs. Shane Kruchten