Junior dos Santos to Face Alan Belcher for Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA HW Title

Former Ultimate Fighting Championship talents Junior dos Santos and Alan Belcher will fight for the inaugural Gamebred Fighting Championship heavyweight title in March.

UFC veteran Jorge Masvidal, the founder of the promotion, announced on Instagram that the fight will be a five-round, gloveless mixed martial arts contest on March 2 at the Kia Center in Orlando, Florida. Tickets for the event go live on Jan. 17 and broadcast information is yet to be revealed.

Dos Santos exited the UFC on a four-fight skid, and he followed that with an injury stoppage loss to Yorgan De Castro in his debut at Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Eagle FC in 2022. “Cigano” defeated fellow UFC veteran Fabricio Werdum in his promotional debut at GFC 5 in September to earn the title shot.

Meanwhile, Belcher retired from MMA in 2013 at the age of 29 following a loss to Michael Bisping at UFC 159. The former UFC middleweight contender returned to combat sports in 2021, competing in both boxing and bareknuckle boxing. “The Talent” won the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship heavyweight title with a stoppage win over Arnold Adams in February 2023 but was stripped of the belt months later, as his plans of competing in boxing interfered with the promotion’s plans for his title defense. The 39-year-old earned a split decision win over fellow UFC veteran Roy Nelson in his promotional debut at GFC 6 in November to earn the title shot.