Bellator 96 prelims include Berry-Coleman, seven other matchups

The preliminary card is set for Bellator 96, which kicks off the organization’s three-event “Summer Series” on June 19.

The featured bout includes a couple of big-show vets as former Strikeforce fighters Cortez Coleman (9-3 MMA, 1-0 BFC) and Keith Berry (14-10 MMA, 1-0 BFC) meet in a middleweight matchup.

Bellator 96 takes place at WinStar World Casino in Thackerville, Okla., and Spike TV airs the main card following prelims on Spike.com. Lightweight champion Michael Chandler meets challenger Dave Jansen in the headliner.

The rest of Bellator 96's prelims are loaded with prospects. Overall, the 16 fighters competing on the card sport a 102-25 record.

Both Coleman and Berry recently made their Bellator debuts. Coleman scored a decision win over Matt Jones at Bellator 86 for his second straight win, and Berry submitted Richard Rigmaden at Bellator 93 for his third straight.

The other bouts include light heavyweights Brandon Halsey (3-0 MMA, 1-0 BFC) vs. Mikey Brown (3-1 MMA, 0-0 BFC), bantamweights Justin McNally (1-1 MMA, 1-0 BFC) vs. Steven Artoff (5-1 MMA, 0-0 BFC), lightweights Keith Miner (5-4 MMA, 0-0 BFC) vs. Damon Jackson (5-0 MMA, 1-0 BFC), bantamweights Mike Maldonado (4-0 MMA, 1-0 BFC) vs. Jason Sampson (10-1 MMA, 2-0 BFC), and Brandon Girtz (9-2 MMA, 1-0 BFC) vs. Treston Thomison (7-1 MMA, 0-0 BFC) at a catchweight.

The full Bellator 96 card now includes:

MAIN CARD (Spike TV, 7 p.m. ET)

• Michael Chandler vs. Dave Jansen – for lightweight title
• Muhammed Lawal vs. Seth Petruzelli – light-heavyweight tournament opening round
• Jacob Noe vs. Renato Sobral – light-heavyweight tournament opening round
• Blas Avena vs. War Machine

PRELIMINARY CARD (Spike.com, 5:30 p.m. ET)

• Raphael Butler vs. Karl Etherington
• Volkan Oezdemir vs. Joe Yager
• Mikey Brown vs. Brandon Halsey
• Steven Artoff vs. Justin McNally
• Damon Jackson vs. Keith Miner
• Mike Maldonado vs. Jason Sampson
• Brandon Girtz vs. Treston Thomison
• Keith Berry vs. Cortez Coleman

For the latest on Bellator 96, stay tuned to the MMA Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Keith Berry)