Bellator Fighting Championships today announced the signing of top MMA prospect Mike Ricci (5-0).
Ricci is a regular training partner of UFC welterweight champion and fellow Quebec native Georges St. Pierre. Ricci, 23, trains under Firas Zahabi at TrStar in Montreal.
Zahabi says that Ricci could be the next great fighter to come out of Montreal. “”It’s a long road to become the next GSP, but Ricci is the farthest along that road of anyone we’ve got,” said Zahabi. “He’s still earning his stripes, so to speak, but if he continues to progress, I think he’ll be right up there with St-Pierre. “He’s up for a much bigger challenge on an international stage and Bellator gives him that chance.”
Ricci began training MMA at the age of 19 while playing college football for Varnier University in Montreal. He didn’t last long in college football, however, choosing to give up his football career in order to train more often with Zahabi. He also spends time working on his defensive skills with the Canadian Olympic wrestling team.
Ricci is the first contestant named by the promotion for Bellator’s upcoming eight-man season two lightweight tournament. Bellator will also announce tournaments at featherweight, welterweight and middleweight, with the winner of each tournament being promoted as the number-one contender to the current Bellator champions.
Bellator’s second season begins April 8th and can be seen on Fox Sports Net, NBC and Telemundo.