Bellator MMA 265

Bellator MMA will make its second appearance in South Dakota on August 20 at the Sanford Pentagon with a card featuring South Dakota native and welterweight fighter Logan Storley.

The event is headlined by Bellator MMA’s No. 3 ranked heavyweight Cheick Kongo (30-11-2) facing Sergei Kharitonov (32-8). The card has also confirmed top featherweights No. 3 Adam Borics (17-1) and No. 4 Jay-Jay Wilson (8-0) will meet for the right to face the winner of the Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix Final between Patricio “Pitbull” (32-4) and AJ McKee (17-0), which takes place on Saturday, July 31.

Storley and Borics are both members of the Sanford MMA team.

The entire main card of Bellator MMA 265 – Kongo vs. Kharitonov will be televised live on Showtime at 8 p.m. CT. The preliminary card will begin at 5:00 p.m. and stream live on the Bellator MMA YouTube channel, Showtime Sports YouTube channel and Pluto TV. Preliminary bouts will be announced in the near future.

“Our first Bellator MMA card three years ago produced some incredible fights and was one of the most exciting events the Sanford Pentagon has ever hosted,” said Jesse Smith, vice president of operations for the Sanford Sports Complex. “We’re looking forward to seeing Logan Storley fight in his home state and can’t wait to see a house full of supporters cheering him on.”

Tickets for Bellator 265 are on sale at ticketmaster.com and the Sanford Pentagon Box Office.

Sanford MMA athletes expected to be in attendance for Bellator MMA 265 include Gilbert Burns, Robbie Lawler, Aung La Nsang and head trainer Henri Hooft.

Bellator 265 – Kongo vs. Kharitonov – August 20, 8 p.m.

Heavyweight Main Event: Cheick Kongo (30-11-2) vs. Sergei Kharitonov (32-8)

Featherweight Feature Bout: Adam Borics (17-1) vs. Jay-Jay Wilson (8-0)

Welterweight Feature Bout: Logan Storley (11-1) vs. TBD

About the Sanford Pentagon
The cornerstone of the Sanford Sports Complex in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is the Sanford Pentagon, a 160,000-square-foot, five-sided facility featuring nine basketball courts, including the 1950s/1960s-inspired Heritage Court. The venue combines state-of-the-art amenities—including high-definition video boards and executive suites—with period-specific finishes that are a nod to the nostalgic days of basketball.

The 3,200-seat Pentagon is home to Sanford POWER Basketball Academy, Sanford POWER Volleyball Academy, the NBA G League’s Sioux Falls Skyforce, Augustana University men’s and women’s basketball, the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Women’s and Men’s Basketball tournaments and the South Dakota High School Basketball Hall of Fame. For more information, visit sanfordpentagon.com.

About BELLATOR MMA:
BELLATOR MMA is a leading global mixed martial arts organization featuring many of the best fighters in the world. Under the direction of veteran fight promoter Scott Coker, BELLATOR events take place in major cities worldwide and can be seen on television in over 160 countries to an available audience of over one billion people. In the United States, BELLATOR can be seen on SHOWTIME. BELLATOR is comprised of an executive team that includes top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations. BELLATOR is based in Hollywood, Calif. and owned by entertainment giant ViacomCBS, home to the world's premier entertainment brands that connect with audiences through compelling content across television, motion picture, online and mobile platforms.

About SHOWTIME:
Showtime Networks Inc. (SNI), a wholly owned subsidiary of ViacomCBS Inc., owns and operates the premium television networks SHOWTIME®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ and FLIX®, and also offers SHOWTIME ON DEMAND®, THE MOVIE CHANNEL™ ON DEMAND and FLIX ON DEMAND®, and the network's authentication service SHOWTIME ANYTIME®. Showtime Digital Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of SNI, operates the stand-alone streaming service SHOWTIME®. SHOWTIME is currently available to subscribers via cable, DBS, and telco providers, and as a stand-alone streaming service through Amazon, Apple®, Google, LG Smart TVs, Oculus Go, Roku®, Samsung Smart TVs, Xbox One and PlayStation®4. Consumers can also subscribe to SHOWTIME via Amazon’s Prime Video Channels, Apple TV Channels, AT&T TV Now, FuboTV, Hulu, The Roku Channel, Sling TV and YouTube TV. Viewers can also watch on computers at Showtime.com. SNI markets and distributes sports and entertainment events for exhibition to subscriber