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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
Despite losses in seven of his last 11 bouts dating back to 2010, Joey Beltran is getting a title fight in Bellator tomorrow night at Bellator 124.
It's more than an odd booking on the surface, but new Strikeforce President Scott Coker said this past week it's a matter of limited options and the need to get Champ Emanuel Newton a fight.
"Newton has been waiting a long time because he was in the tournament format, which is one of the downfalls of the tournament because now the champion is waiting six, eight months – maybe a year," Coker said after Bellator 123 (via MMAJunkie.com).
"We feel like, 'Look, this guy (Beltran) is a scrapper, and he always brings it, so let's get it on.' You know what? You never know what's going to happen in a fight."
Penick's Analysis: The "you never know what's going to happen" card really isn't a good defense for giving Beltran a title bout. It's in the same vein of the unwarranted Pat Curran-Daniel Straus rematch in that no matter the outcome, the booking itself wasn't justified to begin with. There's just no rationalizing this booking, because it's nonsense, and they have to realize that. It's a sign of just how poor the 205 lb. field is that they've had to resort to this level of matchup.
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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