Mousasi-Edwards, Outlaw-Barnaoui Headline Bellator Paris

Bellator MMA is headed back to Paris, France on May 12, 2023, inside Accor Arena, and they are bringing an action-packed card along for the ride. The main event will be a Middleweight title eliminator fight between former division champion, Gegard Mousasi and rising contender, Fabian Edwards.

Mousasi is eying a shot at reclaiming the title he lost to Johnny Eblen at Bellator 282 in June 2022 (highlights). For five rounds, Eblen pretty much dominated the affair, snapping “The Dreamcatcher’s” four-fight win streak and handing him just his second loss under the Bellator banner.

Edwards, meanwhile, is currently occupying the No. 2 spot on the official Bellator rankings and has won back-to-back fights against Lyoto Machida and Charlie Ward. Edwards — who is the younger brother of current UFC Welterweight king, Leon Edwards — is hoping to earn his first-ever shot at the title against the winner of Johnny Eblen and Anatoly Tokov, which is set to go down at Bellator 290 on Feb. 4, 2022.

In the co-main event, Sidney Outlaw and Mansour Barnaoui will collide in a quarterfinal matchup of the Lightweight World Grand Prix on their quest to land a title fight and shot at the $1 million prize.

Barnoui — who fights out of Paris — made a successful debut at Bellator 287 by defeating top contender, Adam Picolotti, via a rear-naked choke. He looks to make some noise in the tournament as the only unranked fighter competing in it. He is currently on an eight-fight win streak.

As for Outlaw, he was last seen losing to Tofiq Musayev at Bellator 283 via first-round knockout. With a record of 3-2, the No. 5 ranked 155-pound standout will look to get back into the win column in impressive fashion.

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