Aaron Jeffery will get a big opportunity when he meets a recent title challenger.
Anthony Adams has been forced out and Jeffery (12-3 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) will step in on short notice to face Austin Vanderford (11-1 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) at Bellator 284, which takes place Aug. 12 at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D. The main card airs on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.
Jeffery confirmed the news on social media after an initial report from ESPN.
Jeffery fell short on two stints on Dana White’s Contender Series, losing to Brendan Allen in 2019 and Caio Borralho in September 2021. The former CFFC middleweight champion made a successful Bellator debut in June when he scored a second-round TKO of Fabio Aguiar.
Vanderford will look to rebound from his first career loss. After defeating Fabian Edwards at Bellator 259, Vanderford got a title shot against middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi at Bellator 275 in February, but was stopped in just 85 seconds.
With the change, the Bellator 284 lineup now includes:
MAIN CARD (Showtime, 9 p.m. ET)
- Neiman Gracie vs. Goiti Yamauchi
- Valentin Moldavsky vs. Steve Mowry
- Bruna Ellen vs. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane
- Aaron Jeffery vs. Austin Vanderford
- Gokhan Saricam vs. Said Sowma
PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 6 p.m. ET)
- Marcos Breno vs. Josh Hill
- DeAnna Bennett vs. Justine Kish
- Sarvadzhon Khamidov vs. Jared Scoggins
- Pat Downey vs. Jeff Souder
- Mark Currier vs. Bailey Schoenfelder
- Mitchell McKee vs. Tony Ortega
- Jordan Newman vs. Lance Wright
- Sullivan Cauley vs. Tyson Jeffries
