Bellator champ Joe Warren will drop to bantamweight and compete in the upcoming tournament

The ascension for Bellator featherweight champion has been quick and unexpected.

Although he holds word class credentials as a wrestler, those same accolades have not always meant instant success in the mixed martial arts world. However, Warren already boasts big wins over opponents such as the legendary “Kid” Yamamoto, former WEC champion Chase Beebe, and in his last outing, he claimed the Bellator title after running a roughshod through last season’s 145-pound tourney.

When Warren defeated former champ Joe Soto for the promotion’s title, it put everyone on notice that not only is the Olympic hopeful a force to be reckoned with, but he is one of the best fighters in the world. Now, Warren will take his accolades elsewhere as he tries to claim a title in a second-weight class, but first he must face Marcos Galvao.

Galvao, a former top-10 bantamweight star, will be debuting for Bellator opposite of Warren come April 16 when the two battle in a 137-pound catchweight bout—in a non-title affair.

A member of the famed Nova Uniao team, Galvao holds serious Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu credentials, something that still haunts Warren. In his lone loss, Joe was submitted by grappling ace Bibiano Fernandes under the DREAM banner–the bout took place under the promotion’s inaugural featherweight tourney, where Fernandes eventually became champion.

After his bout with Galvao, Warren has stated in the last televised broadcast of Bellator, which is currently airing on MTV2, that he will compete in the season five bantamweight tournament. He intends to hold both the featherweight and bantamweight titles simultaneously, and eventually return to the competitive field of wrestling, where he hopes to someday earn the Olympic gold medal–something that eluded him in 2008, when Warren tested positive for marijuana before his inception to the Olympics.

So, MMA peeps, what do you think of the news? Warren and Galvao, a WEC veteran, will meet at Bellator 41 on April 16–which is expected to be the main-event of the evening. How do you think the bout will shakeout? Sound off in the comment section below.