Austin Vanderford has signed on for his first post-title fight assignment in Bellator.
At Bellator 284, Vanderford (11-1 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) will fight Anthony Adams (9-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) in a middleweight bout, a promotion official Monday informed MMA Junkie. The event takes place Aug. 12 at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. The main card airs on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.
Vanderford, 32, looks to rebound from a quick title fight loss to Gegard Mousasi. The bout lasted 85 seconds and Mousasi won by TKO. The loss was Vanderford’s first as a professional MMA fighter and came on the heels of a very bloody unanimous decision victory over Fabian Edwards.
Adams, meanwhile, will look to continue the momentum from his most recent outing, a unanimous decision upset over former UFC fighter Khalid Murtazaliev at Bellator 266 in September. The win came in Adams’ first fight in 13 months. He has not competed since, though did withdraw from a May booking against Lorenz Larkin.
With the addition, the Bellator 284 lineup includes:
- Neiman Gracie vs. Goiti Yamauchi
- Valentin Moldavksy vs. Steve Mowry
- Anthony Adams vs. Austin Vanderford
- Bruna Ellen vs. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane
- Weber Almeida vs. Ilias Bulaid
- Said Sowma vs. Gokhan Saricam
- DeAnna Bennett vs. Justine Kish
- Sarvazhon Khamidov vs. Jared Scoggins
- Mitchell McKee vs. Tony Ortega
- Mark Currier vs. Bailey Schoenfelder
