Esther Lin, MMA Fighting
Keri Melendez will make her return to action at Bellator 252 when she faces Emilee King on the upcoming card on Nov. 12.
Bellator officials confirmed the pairing to MMA Fighting on Monday following an initial report from Sherdog.
Melendez, wife of former Strikeforce champion and multi-time UFC title contender Gilbert Melendez, has gone undefeated thus far in her fighting career with a perfect 4-0 record. In her last appearance, Melendez defeated Mandy Polk by unanimous decision.
She was then matched up against King in May but the fight was scrapped after Bellator had to postpone or cancel several shows due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Now the bout has been rebooked with King sporting a 4-3 record in her career including a submission win over Ava Knight in her Bellator debut back in January.
In addition to Melendez vs. King, two more preliminary card fights were also confirmed as Gabriel Varga takes on Brandon Phillips and Lucas Brennan faces Andrew Salas.
Bellator 252 will be headlined by a pair of fights from the ongoing Bellator Featherweight Grand Prix as reigning 145-pound champion Patricio “Pitbull” Freire meets Pedro Carvalho in the main event while Daniel Weichel meets Emmanuel Sanchez in a second quarterfinal bout.