BELLATOR NEWS: Hieron vs. Carl, Wallhead vs. Hawn agreed upon for season four welterweight tourney quarterfinals

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Bellator's eight man welterweight tournament for their upcoming fourth season, set to begin in March, is set, but the tournament matchups have yet to be confirmed by the organization.

However, MMAWeekly.com reports that two of the bouts have been agreed upon, and they will pit Jay Hieron against Steve Carl and Jimmy Wallhead against Rick Hawn. There is no set date for either of the opening round tournament bouts as of yet.

Hieron returns to action for the first time since January of last year. Riding a seven-fight win streak into the tournament, the UFC and Strikeforce vet is the favorite to win the tournament. Carl is 2-1 in Bellator, losing only to eventual runner-up Dan Hornbuckle during the season two tournament.

Wallhead and Hawn have each appeared once for the organization, each winning fights on events during Bellator's third season. The upcoming season will air on MTV2.

Link to Original Source Article

Penick's Analysis: These are two solid fights for the opening round of this tournament. Wallhead and Hawn should be immensely competitive, and though Hieron will be a heavy favorite against Carl it will be a gigantic opportunity for Carl. This field is going to yield some extremely fun fights, and the opening round will just be the start of it.

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/Bellator/article_8299.shtml

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