Major MMA Events In April 2013

Stand by for a busy schedule of MMA events in April with no fewer than four notable shows in the next week alone followed by four weeks of UFC events on Saturday nights.

Thursday, April 4th: Bellator 95

Bellator’s eight season draws to a close this coming Thursday and they are going out with a stacked show headlined by a featherweight title fight as Pat Curran looks to defend his belt against Shahbulat Shamhalaev.

There’s also the final of the current featherweight tournament which pits Mike Richman Vs Magomedrasul Khasbulaev and a middleweight final between Brett Cooper and Doug Marshall. If that’s not enough Karo Parisyan is also in action against Rick Hawn.

Friday, April 5th: ONE FC 8

Asia’s leading promotion ONE FC is back in business a day later with Japanese star Shinya Aoki headlining opposite Kotetsu ‘Krazy Bee’ Boku.

There’s other familiar faces on the main card including Melvin Manhoef up against Brock Larson and Jens Pulver fights Masakatsu Ueda.

Friday, April 5th: Invicta FC 5

In the middle of a rather hectic start to April there’s also Invicta FC action to enjoy and despite the UFC recently starting to sign up female fighters there’s still impressive strength in depth on the card here including an atomweight title fight that sees Jessica Penne going up against Michelle Waterson.

Cris ‘Cyborg’ Santos also fights for the first time since her suspension against Fiona Muxlow, another former Strikeforce champion Sarah Kaufman battles Leslie Smith and former Bellator title holder Zoila Frausto faces Jennifer Maia.

Saturday, April 6th: UFC On Fuel TV 9: Gustafsson Vs Mousasi

The weeks ends with the UFC’s return to Sweden for ‘UFC On Fuel TV 9’ featuring an exciting light-heavyweight match-up between Alexander Gustaffson and Gegard Mousasi.

Ross Pearson welcomes Ryan Couture to the Octagon elsewhere on the main card while there’s also Matt Mitrione Vs Phil De Fries and Brad Pickett Vs Mike Easton on tap here.

Saturday, April 13th: TUF 17 Finale

A week later the UFC is back again, this time with ‘The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale’ live from Las Vegas with Urijah Faber and Scott Jorgensen taking main event duties.

There’s also a female fight between Miesha Tate and Cat Zingano which will decide who coaches opposite Ronda Rousey on TUF 18 while Travis Browne fights Gabriel Gonzaga and of course there will be the TUF final on the main card as well.

Saturday, April 20th: UFC On FOX 7: Henderson Vs Melendez

Heading into the third week of UFC action in a row, we’ve then got the next big UFC On FOX card which is fronted by a long-awaited UFC – Strikeforce title unification bout between Ben Henderson and Gilbert Melendez.

There’s a UFC Vs Strikeforce theme to much of the rest of the card too including Frank Mir vs Daniel Cormier, Nate Diaz Vs Josh Thomson and Matt Brown Vs Jordan Mein.

Saturday, April 27th: UFC 159: Jones Vs Sonnen

And rounding off April is the UFC’s only PPV action of the month, and a big one it is too with TUF 17 coaches Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen fighting for the 205lb title.

Co-main event honors are handed to middleweight stars Michael Bisping and Alan Belcher, while Roy Nelson fights Cheick Kongo and Phil Davis locks horns with Vinny Magalhaes.

Ross launched MMA Insight (previously FightOfTheNight.com) in 2009 as a way to channel his passion for the sport of mixed martial arts. He's since penned countless news stories and live fight reports along with dozens of feature articles as the lead writer for the site, reaching millions of fans in the process.