Bellator's Ukrainian welterweight champion Yaroslav Amosov will return to action in early 2023 -- for the first time since the Russian invasion of his country in February of this year.
Amosov (26-0) will look to unify his title against interim champion Logan Storley (14-1) in the main event of Bellator 291 on Feb. 25 at 3Arena in Dublin. Bellator officials announced Amosov's return Tuesday.
The 29-year-old champion was scheduled to defend his belt against Michael Page in May of this year in London, but withdrew in late February to join the Ukrainian military. In April, Amosov posted a video on social media of him retrieving his Bellator belt from rubble in his hometown of Irpin, Ukraine, shortly after Ukrainian forces retook the city from Russia.
ESPN ranks Amosov as the No. 7 welterweight mixed martial artist in the world. He is the highest-ranked welterweight who competes outside of the UFC.
Storley, 30, is a former standout NCAA Division I collegiate wrestler at the University of Minnesota. He is 9-1 in the Bellator cage, with his only loss coming against Amosov via split decision in 2020. Storley forced the rematch by picking up the interim title in a split decision win over Page in May.
