After being defeating former middleweight champion Rafael Carvalho in his Bellator debut in December, Lyoto Machida isn’t waste anytime waiting around.
The ex-UFC champion has agreed to move back up to light heavyweight to face Chael Sonnen in New York on June 14, and he is confident that a win at Madison Square Garden will guarantee him a shot at the 205-pound championship against Ryan Bader.
Machida, who was next in line for the middleweight championship after defeating Carvalho in his debut, opted to move up to 205 pounds to stay active after a championship bout between Gegard Mousasi and Rafael Lovato Jr.