Nearly 10 months since his last fight and after a four-month delay in their first scheduled matchup, Alexandr Shabliy will finally get his chance at Bellator MMA lightweight gold when he challenges the undefeated Usman Nurmagomedov for the 155-pound title in the Bellator Champions Series 4 main event on Saturday at Pechanga Arena in San Diego.
On a nine-fight winning streak that has seen him put up a 5-0 record in Bellator, Shabliy has already posted victories over two former champions in Patricky Freire and Brent Primus. An injury to Nurmagomedov resulted in their initial date being postponed but did nothing to cool the competitive fire of the man who now opposes him.