If all goes according to plan, Conor McGregor training partner Charlie Ward will be fighting at home once again. The SBG Ireland product is currently being targeted to take on Italy’s Pietro Penini in a middleweight matchup at Bellator 227 in Dublin.
Wednesday, a promotion official confirmed to MMA Junkie the booking is being “targeted,” but is not finalized at this time. Fansided MMA was the first to report the bout.
Bellator 227 will take place Friday, Sept. 27 at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. The event will simulcast on tape delay in the U.S. on Paramount and DAZN. The Bellator Europe 4 portion of the card will stream live in the U.S. on MMA Junkie.
After losing back to back bouts, Ward (7-3 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) was released from the UFC in late 2017. It didn’t take long for Bellator to ink the Irishman, who is undefeated in the organization since that time.
All four of Ward’s Bellator fights have ended inside the distance, all by TKO. Ward has not seen a third round during his winning streak. In his most recent outing, Ward defeated Justin Moore at Bellator 223 via second-round stoppage due to ground and pound.
His opponent, former Venator FC champion Penini (8-1-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) is a new acquisition for Bellator. The 26-year-old fighter is riding a two-fight winning streak. Most recently, Penini defeated fellow countryman Nihad Nasufovic at Italian Cage Fighting 6 in December.
