19-0 Malegarie to Compete in Season 4 Bellator FW Tourney

Tuesday, February 1, 2011

By FCF Staff

Bellator FC has added another rising commodity to its roster, as the promotion has announced that undefeated, featherweight Nazareno “Naza” Malegarie (19-0) will compete in its upcoming, Season Four featherweight tourney.

“Nazareno has had tremendous success in Brazil, and is ready for this world class featherweight tournament,” said Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney in the official announcement. “Our team’s done a spectacular job finding fighters from around the world that can compete at the highest level and Nazareno is one of those fighters.”

The 24 year-old fighter and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt has won 19 straight since he began competing professionally in 2007. The Argentinean fighter, who began training in the sport under UFC vet Thiago Tavares, is coming off a first round, submission victory over Nelson Velasque while fighting under the Colizeu Fight Championship banner.

“I’m just very excited to finally have the chance to show fans in the United States what I'm capable of,” said Malegarie, who currently fights out of the Ataque Duplo gym in Brazil. “Signing with Bellator was very important for me, and I’m ready to prove myself.”

“I’m looking forward to testing myself in this upcoming Bellator Featherweight Tournament,” Malegarie added. “I’ve worked really hard to get to this spot, and I want to let people know who I am.”

Malegarie is the eighth man to be confirmed for the featherweight tournament, joining Patricio “Pitbull” Freire, Wilson Reis, Daniel Straus, Georgi Karakhanyan, Zac George, Kenny Foster, and Eric Larkin. The competition is scheduled to begin in March and will be broadcast live on MTV2.