CHICAGO, Ill. — Bellator Fighting Championships’ fourth season will premiere this Saturday, March 5, live on MTV2 from the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino in Lemoore, Calif.

Bellator 35 will feature the quarterfinal pairings in the Season 4 Welterweight Tournament, including: Rick Hawn vs. Jim Wallhead, Jay Hieron vs. Anthony Lapsley, Chris Lozano vs. Lyman Good and Brent Weedman vs. Dan Hornbuckle.

A Spanish-language telecast will air on MTV Tr3s on March 6.  MTV2’s live event telecasts will feature returning duo Sean Wheelock as the play-by-play announcer and Jimmy Smith as the analyst and the Tr3s: MTV, Música y Más telecast will include George X and Manny Rodriguez as the on-air announce team.

“We’re thrilled to have both our English and Spanish language broadcast teams back in place for the coming years,” said Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney. “With their wealth of experience, knowledge of the game and excitement for MMA – I truly believe that we have the best broadcast team in the sport”

Sean Wheelock has called Bellator fights since Season 2 and is familiar to MMA fans around the globe thanks to his experience as the play-by-play announcer for PRIDE, Affliction and M-1 Global events. Wheelock has also been a columnist for the websites of Fox Sports, the BBC and Major League Soccer, along with being the co-founder and a principal of Eudora Productions, LLC, which focuses on soccer and MMA remote productions and live broadcasts.

Also returning for his third Bellator season is Jimmy Smith, the color commentator.  Smith is a professional MMA fighter with a record of 5-1 (4 Submissions) and notable victories over UFC veteran James Wilks and Jason Chambers. As a broadcaster, he has teamed with Wheelock to provide color commentary for M1-Global and was the host of the Discovery Channel’s very popular “Fight Quest.”

DID YOU KNOW?

Live Bellator fights will air weekly on MTV2 and will feature fights from venues around the country with many of the top mixed martial arts fighters in the world.  This season will include a featherweight, lightweight, welterweight, and light-heavyweight tournament with fights airing live every Saturday night for 12 weeks on MTV2.  Bellator on Tr3s will air every Sunday, following the MTV2 live telecast, at 8pm ET/PT.