Russian MMA standout Anatoly Tokov is set to return to the Bellator cage on October 4 in California to face Armenia's Hracho Darpinyan, who will challenge the Fedor Team member's undefeated record within the organization.
One of the top middleweights outside of the UFC roster, Tokov has launched his career inside the world's second biggest fighting promotion Bellator MMA with an impressive record of 4 wins in 4 fights.
Only one of them has gone the full distance, when he earned a unanimous decision victory against Russian 70-fight veteran Alexander Shlemenko.
The only two losses on Tokov's 30-fight pro MMA record were inflicted by other notable Russian fighters: a decision loss to Ramazan Emeev, who now competes in the UFC, and a knockout defeat from current PFL welterweight champion Magomed Magomedkerimov, also known as Maga-Million.
As RT Sport learned on Wednesday, the Fedor Emelianenko Team member will next be challenged by the 33-year-old Darpinyan, who made his Bellator debut last November, scoring a draw against Gerald Harris.
The bout will take place in Temecula, California, as part of the Bellator 229 card, which is headlined by another Russian fighter, Andrey Koreshkov, who will face former UFC fighter Lorenz Larkin.
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While on paper Tokov, 29, looks as the favorite against Darpinyan, who has a 17-8 record, his opponent can count on the support of the Armenian community in California, which is one of the largest Armenian diasporas outside of Armenia and Russia.