Undefeated Bulgarian Sambo-stylist Blagoi Ivanov (5-0-0) has withdrawn from the Bellator Season 5 Heavyweight Tournament semi-finals as a result of an undisclosed injury.
Replacing Ivanov on October 29, at Bellator 56 will be veteran South African Neil Grove (11-4-1) who was eliminated in the quarter-final round of the Season 5 tournament after three grueling rounds of action with Mike "300" Hayes who was awarded the split decision victory after fifteen minutes.
Grove will now lock horns with tournament alternate Thiago "Big Monter" Santos (9-1-0) at Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas. Santos was scheduled to compete in the tournament's opening round but visa issues forced the Brazilian veteran from the bracket; he later went on the defeat Josh Burns at Bellator 53 in a necessary tournament-reserve bout after Hayes suffered a fractured orbital bone in his win over Grove, rendering him medically suspended.
Grove is 3-2 inside the Bellator cage with each of his victories coming by first round TKO. In fact, all eleven of "Goliath's" wins have been TKO stoppages.
Once defeated "Big Monter" began his career rattling off six straight wins until he ran into Bellator veteran Alexey Olenik in November of 2009. Since that submission defeat, the native of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, has added three more victories to his record including a submission stoppage in his Bellator debut on October 8.
The other side of the bracket will see heavy-hitters Eric Prindle (8-1-0) and Ron Sparks (8-0-0) do battle as both men look to advance to the tournament final later this year.
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