It gives Mousasi the chance to reclaim his old title
I was cageside in London when Mousasi lost his title to Lovato via majority decision at Bellator 223, and it’s fair to say he was livid after the fight. The usually understated Dutchman took aim at Lovato, accusing him of using performance-enhancing drugs, and vowed to “kill him” in a rematch, stating that if he didn’t knock out the American grappling ace, he wouldn’t count it as a victory.
A rematch between the pair seemed inevitable, but news of Lovato’s brain issues and subsequent hiatus put a hold on those plans. But Mousasi will still battle for the title in a bout that may well interest him more than the original matchup. Prior to losing the middleweight belt, Mousasi told me he was considering either moving up to challenge Bader for the light heavyweight title or moving down to challenge the winner of the welterweight tournament for the 170-pound strap.
Now Lima is moving up, and Mousasi will get one of the matchups he was mulling over prior to his title loss, with the added bonus of a likely “champ-champ” opportunity against the light heavyweight winner later in the year.
Speaking of which…