Bellator, Kongo Agree To A Multi-Fight Extension

A man looking for heavyweight gold will now have a few more tries at getting an opportunity. MMA Junkie was the first to report that Cheick Kongo has agreed to a new multi-fight deal with Bellator MMA.

The 44-year-old Kongo (30-10-2, 1NC) made his Bellator debut at Bellator 102 in 2013. He beat Mark Godbeer in the semifinals of the Bellator Season 9 Heavyweight Tournament. Kongo won the finals, beating Peter Graham to earn a right to face Vitaly Minakov for the Bellator Heavyweight Title. He lost the bout in 2014 and it took five years for him to return to contender status.

After the Minakov loss, Kongo went 10-1, beating the likes of Alexander Volkov, Vinicius Queiroz, and Javy Ayala. He beat Minakov at Bellator 216 in February 2019 to become the number one contender for Ryan Bader’s Bellator Heavyweight Title. The two fought at Bellator 226, and the fight was deemed a no-contest following an accidental eye poke by Bader.

Bader has since stated he would welcome a rematch with Kongo if things were to work out.

Kongo made his MMA debut in 2001 for Kings Holland. He has competed for promotions like It’s Showtime and the UFC. Debuting for the latter in 2006, he faced the likes of Mirko Cro Cop, Heath Herring, Cain Velasquez and Frank Mir. He left the UFC to join Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in Bellator after his 2013 bout against Roy Nelson.

As of now, there is no bout planned for Kongo in the next few months.