Friday's Bellator 119 card loses headliner (and featured prelim) five days out

Bellator officials today announced the main event, which also serves as a middleweight tournament final, has been postponed. Brett Cooper(20-9 MMA, 7-4 BMMA) has suffered a back injury, forcing a delay to his fight with fellow finalist Brandon Halsey (6-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA). The winner of the bout, which will be rescheduled for later this year, eventually will face reigning 185-pound champion Alexander Shlemenko.

Additionally, visa issues have forced Fabricio Guerreiro (19-3 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) off the card. His bout with featherweight Shahbulat Shamhalaev (12-2-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) also will be rescheduled.

Bellator 119 takes place at Casino Rama in Rama, Ontario, Canada. The main card airs on Spike TV following prelims on Spike.com.

“After my fight with Kendall [Grove], my back just hasn’t been where I need it to be to have a proper training camp for one of the biggest fights of my career,” Cooper stated. “It’s a setback, but with some time off, I should be ready to go by late July. I never like missing time, but I know this is the right move. I’ll be back stronger, and I’m looking forward to winning another tournament and getting another shot against Shlemenko.”

A Bellator featherweight tournament final between Daniel Weichel (33-8 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) and Desmond Green (11-2 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) now headlines the show.

The full Bellator 119 lineup now includes:

MAIN CARD (Spike TV, 9 p.m. ET)

Desmond Green vs. Daniel Weichel – featherweight tournament final
Chris Horodecki vs. Marlon Sandro
Vaughn Anderson vs. Marius Zaromskis
Raphael Butler vs. Nick Rossborough
PRELIMINARY CARD (Spike.com, 7 p.m. ET)

John Alessio vs. Eric Wisely
Adrian Miles vs. Brian Rogers
Stuart Austin vs. Craig Hudson
Remy Bussieres vs. Jason Meisel
Malcolm Gordon vs. Chris Kelades
Chad Freeman vs. Behrang Yousefi

Mmajunkie.com

Good thing the whole card was stack, because the Main Card hasn't really suffered all that much.