Corey Anderson vs. Karl Moore vacant title bout to headline Bellator’s 2024 return event

Corey Anderson and Karl Moore will fight for the vacant Bellator light-heavyweight title in March.

Bellator itself has had a strange last few months, to put it mildly. In November, the Scott Coker-led company was bought out by the PFL, but not to merge the two promotions. Instead, Donn Davis planned to run both companies as separate entities. But, allow for crossover between the two brands.

Vadim Nemkov appears to be one of the fighters taking advantage of that opportunity. Earlier this month, the teammate of Fedor Emelianenko signed a deal to compete in PFL vs. Bellator: Champions next month in Saudi Arabia. He will face Bruno Cappelozza, in his first bout up at heavyweight since 2016.

Lost in the news of that heavyweight move, was that Vadim Nemkov was no longer Bellator light-heavyweight champion. The Russian officially vacated the gold earlier this month, and Donn Davis has now booked a fight to crown a new champion. At Bellator 302 in March, Corey Anderson and Karl Moore will clash.

The news of the fight itself was broken by Ariel Helwani. His report also revealed that Corey Anderson and Karl Moore will headline Bellator 302, as that is the only title bout expected for the card. In keeping with Davis’ announcement about the brand late last year, this event will be going down in Belfast, Ireland.

When the deal was completed late last year, the promoter revealed plans to run Bellator almost exclusively overseas. With that in mind, the announcement doesn’t come as a big shock. As of now, Corey Anderson vs. Karl Moore is the only fight announced for the card. Although, that will likely change in the coming days.

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Corey Anderson in Bellator

Corey Anderson vs. Karl Moore vacant title bout to headline Bellator 302 in March

As far as the bout itself is concerned, both men are deserving of the title opportunity. For his part, Karl Moore is currently riding a four-fight winning streak, last defeating Alex Polizzi in June. Now, in March, he will look to defeat Corey Anderson on home soil and become Bellator light-heavyweight champion.

However, ‘No Time’ has had a lot of success himself in the Bellator cage. Since moving to the promotion in 2020, Corey Anderson has accumulated a 4-1 (1 NC) record in the company. Along the way, he’s secured dominant wins over the likes of Phil Davis, Yoel Romero, and more.

Now, he will get his third crack at getting Bellator light-heavyweight gold around his waist. In 2022, Corey Anderson famously came up short twice against former champion Vadim Nemkov. While their first bout ended after a controversial headbutt, the Russian won the rematch by a lopsided unanimous decision. For Anderson, he’s hoping that the third time is the charm.

What do you make of this Bellator fight announcement? Who do you have winning this vacant title bout set for March? Corey Anderson or Karl Moore?