2009 in Bellator MMA was the first installment of the Bellator Fighting Championships (Bellator FC)-produced series. It started broadcasting April 3, 2009, through an exclusive television agreement with

ESPN Deportes ESPN Deportes (, ''ESPN Sports'') is an American multinational Spanish-language pay television sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company (which owns a controlling 80% stake) and Hearst Communications (wh ...

. The episodes had a one-day tape delay.

Bellator 1

''Bellator 1'' was a

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on strike (attack), striking, grappling and ground f ...

event by Bellator Fighting Championships. The event took place on Friday, April 3, 2009 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in

Hollywood, Florida Hollywood is a city in southern Broward County, Florida, United States, located between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. As of July 1, 2019, Hollywood had a population of 154,817. Founded in 1925, the city grew rapidly in the 1950s and 1960s, and is no ...

. It was broadcast nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, April 4, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. The event featured quarter-final tournament bouts of the 2009 Featherweight (145 lb) and Lightweight (155 lb) Tournaments, along with a number of non-tournament bouts to be held in the organization's other weight divisions. All bouts were contested under the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. Results

Bellator 2

''Bellator 2'' was a

event by the promotion Bellator Fighting Championships. The event took place on Friday, April 10, 2009 at the

Mohegan Sun Mohegan Sun is an American casino, owned and operated by the Mohegan Tribe on of their reservation, along the banks of the Thames River in Uncasville, Connecticut. It has of gambling space. It is in the foothills of southeastern Connecticut, ...

Uncasville, Connecticut Uncasville is an area in the town of Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is a village in southeastern Montville, at the mouth of the Oxoboxo River where it flows into the Thames River. The name is now applied more generally to all of the ...

. It was then broadcast nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, April 11, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. Background The event featured the final quarter-final bouts of the 2009 Featherweight (145 lb) and Lightweight (155 lb) Tournaments, as well as, the quarter-final round of the Welterweight (170 lb) Tournament. A number of non-tournament bouts to be held in the organization's other weight divisions also took place. The evening's main event saw undefeated former EliteXC Featherweight Champion Henry Martinez square off against rising star

Wilson Reis Wilson Reis Monte Alto Gonçalves (born January 6, 1985, in Januária) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Flyweight division. Reis is the former EliteXC Bantamweight Champion and has also competed for UFC, Bellator, ShoXC ...

. All bouts were contested under the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. Results

Bellator 3

''Bellator 3'' and ''Bellator IV'' were two episodes of the

promotion, Bellator Fighting Championships, created from a single event. The event took place on Friday, April 17, 2009 at the

Lloyd Noble Center The Lloyd Noble Center is a 10,967-seat multi-purpose arena located in Norman, Oklahoma, some south of downtown Oklahoma City. It opened in 1975 and is home to the University of Oklahoma men's and women's basketball teams. History Before the co ...

Norman, Oklahoma Norman () is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Oklahoma, with a population of 128,097 as of 2021. It is the largest city and the county seat of Cleveland County, Oklahoma, Cleveland County, and the second-largest city in the Oklahoma C ...

. Background ''Bellator IV'' was originally scheduled for

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

, however regulatory issues prevented the event from being held there. Each episode featured half of the bouts from the third Bellator event. ''Bellator III'' aired nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, April 18, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. ''Bellator IV'' aired on Saturday, April 25, 2009. Results

Bellator 4

Results

Bellator 5

''Bellator 5'' took place on Friday, May 1, 2009 in

Dayton, Ohio Dayton () is the sixth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County. A small part of the city extends into Greene County. The 2020 U.S. census estimate put the city population at 137,644, while Greater ...

. It was broadcast nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, May 2, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. Background The event featured the semi-finals of the Lightweight Tournament. Debuting for the promotion were heavyweight prospect Dave Herman and former UFC fighter Dan Evensen. All bouts were contested under the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. Results

Bellator 6

''Bellator 6'' was an event of the

promotion, Bellator Fighting Championships. The event took place on Friday, May 8, 2009 in Robstown, Texas. It was broadcast nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, May 9, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. Background The event featured the semi-finals of the Featherweight Tournament. All bouts were contested under the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. Results

Bellator 7/8

''Bellator 7/8'' was an event of the

promotion, Bellator Fighting Championships. The events took place on Friday, May 15, 2009 in

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. It was broadcast nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, May 16, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. Background The events featured the semi-finals of the Welterweight Tournament. The card also featured the debut of former UFC heavyweight

Eddie Sanchez Eduardo Arturo Sanchez (born November 4, 1982) is an American professional mixed martial artist who last competed in the Heavyweight division. A professional since 2004, he has competed for the UFC, Bellator, Titan FC, Final Fight Championship ...

. All bouts were contested under the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. Results

Bellator 8

There were no fights scheduled for week 8. Instead, Bellator ran a "Road to the Championship" special highlighting tournament fights. This highlight show was considered Bellator 8.

Bellator 9

''Bellator 9'' was a

event promoted by Bellator Fighting Championships. The event took place on Friday, May 29, 2009 in

Monroe, Louisiana Monroe (historically french: Poste-du-Ouachita) is the eighth-largest city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and parish seat of Ouachita Parish. With a 2020 census-tabulated population of 47,702, it is the principal city of the Monroe metropol ...

. It was broadcast nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, May 30, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. Results

Bellator 10

''Bellator 10'' was a

event promoted by Bellator Fighting Championships. The event took place on Friday, June 5, 2009 in

Ontario, California Ontario is a city in southwestern San Bernardino County in the U.S. state of California, east of downtown Los Angeles and west of downtown San Bernardino, the county seat. Located in the western part of the Inland Empire metropolitan are ...

at the Citizens Business Bank Arena. It was broadcast nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, June 6, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. Background The show featured the finals of the Featherweight tournament. Results

Bellator 11

''Bellator 11'' was a

event promoted by Bellator Fighting Championships. The event took place on Friday, June 12, 2009 in

at the

Mohegan Sun Arena The Mohegan Sun Arena is a 10,000 seat multi-purpose arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, located inside the Mohegan Sun casino resort. The arena facility features of configurable exhibition space and a clear span. It was built by the Perini Buil ...

. It broadcast nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, June 13, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. Background This event featured the finals of the Bellator Welterweight Grand Prix. Results

Bellator 12

''Bellator 12'' was a

event by Bellator Fighting Championships. The event took place on Friday, June 19, 2009 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in

. It was broadcast nationally in the U.S. via tape-delay the following night on Saturday, June 20, 2009 through an exclusive television agreement with

. Background The event featured the final tournament bouts of the 2009 Season One Lightweight (155 lb) and Middleweight (185 lb) Tournaments, along with a number of non-tournament bouts held in the organization's other weight divisions. All bouts were contested under the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. Results

Tournaments

Middleweight Tournament Bracket

Welterweight Tournament Bracket

Lightweight Tournament Bracket

Featherweight Tournament Bracket

External links

BellatorNew Mixed Martial Arts League, Led by Industry VeteransBellator Fighting Championships signs top lightweight Eddie AlvarezNine reasons to be excited about MMA in 2009Schulte Announced by Bellator

References

{{Bellator Tournament Events 2009 American television seasons 2009 in mixed martial arts Bellator MMA events Mixed martial arts in the United States