CBS Sports Joins DAZN in Airing Bellator’s Featherweight Tourney

Bellator MMA is resuming its Featherweight World Grand Prix tournament with a pair of quarterfinal matches on Thursday night. These matches had been originally scheduled for March 13 but were canceled mere hours before their start as the coronavirus pandemic struck the U.S.

This tournament had been planned as an exclusive for DAZN as part of its nine-figure rights deal signed in 2018; it will instead be simulcast on CBS Sports Network and DAZN. Bellator reached a new broadcast contract in September, making CBS Sports Network the primary carrier of live fights. (ViacomCBS owns a majority stake in Bellator.)

Bellator 252 will be hosted by the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., and pit reigning champion Patricio “Pitbull” Friere against Pedro Carvahlo in the 145-pound division. On the undercar, Daniel Weichel and Emmanuel Sanchez will square off in the other quarterfinal.