Photo | Incredible Samurai poster revealed for Bellator vs. RIZIN New Year’s Eve event

Bellator and RIZIN are going all out for their New Year’s Eve event in Japan.

The two promotions have had a partnership since 2015. For the most part, that partnership has just led to fighters crossing over between promotions. For example, Bellator lent future champion, Patricky Pitbull, to RIZIN for their 2019 lightweight Grand Prix.

While that crossover didn’t go the way the Brazilian had hoped, it was just one in a series of collaborations the two sides have done. Earlier this week, they announced yet another collaboration, but one much different than previous offerings.

RIZIN 40, also known as RIZIN X Bellator, will feature multiple fights between competing promotions. Earlier today, the entire card was revealed for the event. Currently set for the card is a pair of former Bellator champions, A.J. McKee and Kyoji Horiguchi, against RIZIN stars Roberto de Souza and Hiromasa Ougikubo, respectively.

Also set for the event is Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull vs. RIZIN featherweight titleholder Kleber Koike Erbst. Lastly, former Bellator bantamweight champion Juan Archuleta is expected to face Soo Chul Kim. There is still a fifth major matchup expected to be added to the event but hasn’t been announced as of now.

See you soon, @rizin_PR 😏#BellatorVSRizin pic.twitter.com/hrNvIWRndn

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) October 26, 2022

Similar to previous big RIZIN cards, the event will take place on New Year’s Eve in Japan. The fight card is similar to a vintage PRIDE event, and it seems that the poster reflects that as well.

Like the fight card, the poster was also revealed earlier today. The poster shows two men dressed in Samurai attire, fitting for the event. While RIZIN and Bellator have had great and creative posters in the past, this one exceeds another level of uniqueness.

What do you think about the fight poster? Are you excited about the RIZIN X Bellator event in December? Sound off in the comment section below PENN Nation!