Heavyweight Cheick Kongo signs with Bellator MMA, joins Season 9 tourney field

Bellator MMA has a new (but familiar) addition to its heavyweight division: longtime UFC fighter Cheick Kongo.

Bellator officials today announced the signing, though terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Although an exact debut date hasn’t been announced, he’s joined the organization’s Season 9 heavyweight tournament, which is expected to kick off in September. However, in a prepared statement, Kongo (18-8-2 MMA, 11-6-1 UFC), suggested he’ll debut instead in October.

“After my contract was up in the UFC, I really wanted to take some time and reflect on everything,” Kongo stated. “After talking to the people around me, especially someone like my longtime friend in ‘Rampage’ (Jackson), he told me how well Bellator has been treating him and what we can do with Bellator, and after getting to know Bjorn Rebney, it just seemed like the right fit for me. I know I have plenty of fight left in me, and my fight in October is the first step to getting that Bellator heavyweight title.”

UFC officials didn’t re-sign Kongo once his contract was fulfilled earlier this year. He’s currently ranked No. 15 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie.com MMA heavyweight rankings.

Kongo, 37, was one of the UFC’s longest-employed and most-experienced fighters before they severed ties. He made his promotional debut way back at UFC 61 in 2006, where the French kickboxer knocked out Gilbert Aldana as part of a 7-2 start to his UFC career. Kongo, in fact, was on a 4-1-1 run before a recent setback to Roy Nelson, which came just two minutes into their UFC 159 fight.

Kongo struggled against the elite of the UFC’s heavyweight division, including notables such as champ Cain Velasquez, Frank Mir and Mark Hunt. The big-fight losses stalled any title hopes, though Kongo proved a tough out for just about anyone, including Velasquez, who’s earned stoppage wins against everyone but Junior dos Santos and Kongo.

Additional participants and opening-round matchups for the upcoming heavyweight tournament will be revealed in the coming weeks, according to today’s announcement.

For more on Bellator’s upcoming schedule, stay tuned to the MMA Rumors section of the site.