Ed Ruth (Photo/Bellator)Penn State, the school that's home to the defending NCAA Division I wrestling team title winners, will be hosting a Bellator mixed martial arts event this fall, with fights featuring two former Nittany Lion mat champs.
Bellator MMA told PennLive.com Wednesday that Bellator 186 will take place Friday, Nov. 3 at Bryce Jordan Center on the Penn State campus. Tickets will go on sale Sept. 1 and will be available at the Bryce Jordan ticket office as well as through Ticketmaster.
The Penn State event will be also available for viewing live on Spike TV.
Bellator 186 will include feature former Penn State wrestling champs Phil Davis and Ed Ruth. Their opponents have yet to be announced. In addition, Bellator 186's main event is scheduled to feature light heavyweight champ Ryan Bader -- himself a former Arizona State NCAA All-American -- defending his title against Linton Vassell. (Bader had defeated Phil Davis for that title at New York's Madison Square Garden in June.)
The 32-year-old Davis was a four-time NCAA All-American for the Nittany Lions, winning the 197-pound title at the 2008 NCAAs. Later that year, Davis launched his professional MMA career, where he now sports an overall record of 17-4-1, with three knockouts, five submissions, and nine victories by decision. He competes in the light-heavyweight (205-pound) weight class.
Since signing with Bellator MMA just two years ago, Ruth, 26, has compiled a perfect 3-0 pro record as a middleweight (185 pounds), with all wins by TKO. Prior to entering MMA, Ruth became the first three-time NCAA Division I champ in the long history of Penn State wrestling, winning the 174-pound championship in 2012, and back-to-back titles at 184 in 2013 and 2014.
Bellator 168 at Penn State may well be the first time a big-time MMA promotion has hosted a major event at a university, featuring former wrestlers from that school.
"When I look back at the history of MMA, I don't think it has ever been done before," Bellator President Scott Coker told PennLive.com.
Having both Davis and Ruth fighting for Bellator helped prompt Penn State officials to reach out about bringing an event to Bryce Jordan, according to Coker.
"We travel all over the world and book all these venues, and they knew we signed Phil Davis and Ed Ruth," Coker said. "So, they just said, 'We have this amazing venue, and you have these guys.'"
MMA fans in Happy Valley are in for a first-class show, according to Bellator.
"We only do eight of these shows per year, so our production is going to be big," Coker told PennLive. "The lighting is going to be big, the sound is going to be big, and we are going to have a great mixed martial arts event."
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