Russian Usman Nurmagomedov will headline the Bellator 300 tournament

According to the event’s official press release and poster from two weeks ago, the final lightweight grand prix bout between Usman Nurmagomedov and American Brent Primus was to be the third main event of the tournament, with the reigning Bellator heavyweight champion, Ryan Bader, and his title challenger, Linton Vassell, announced as the headliners for the anniversary show.

Judging by an updated poster posted on the league’s official website, the Bellator 300 tournament will be headlined by the lightweights, with a heavyweight clash taking their place in the card.

The women’s featherweight and lightweight title fights remain in place. As a reminder, Cris Cyborg will defend the championship belt against Cat Zingano, while Ilima-Lei McFarlane will attempt to take the title from Liz Carmouche.

Representatives of the organization did not disclose the reasons for this reshuffle, but sources close to the Russian’s team confirmed the change in the card.

Usman Nurmagomedov, 25, took the Bellator championship belt from Patricky Freire last November, defeating the Brazilian by unanimous decision, and in March of this year, the Russian made a successful title defense in the quarterfinals of the grand prix, finishing former UFC and WEC champion Benson Henderson with a rear-naked choke in the first round.

Brent Primus, 38, advanced to the semifinals of the grand prix by defeating Frenchman Mansour Barnouis by unanimous decision. In doing so, the American put his career back on track after losing by technical knockout to Russian Alexander Shablia.