Cage Warriors – Europe’s Leading MMA Organisation – has confirmed the addition of a second title bout to their upcoming event in Rome, Italy. Middleweight champion Dario ‘Neanderthal’ Bellandi will make the second defence of his title against old rival Naglis ‘The Smiling Boy’ Kanišauskas in a five round affair.
The bout will feature on the main card of CW 183 on Saturday, March 8th at The PalaPellicone.
Italy’s Bellandi (8-1) will compete in his home nation for the first time as CW champion. The grappling specialist wrested 185lb gold from Mick Stanton in Newcastle at CW 164, before making his first successful defence against Robin Roos in Manchester at CW 175.
The Livorno native has won six on the bounce, including three consecutive points victories.
Challenger Kanišauskas (8-3) will be looking to avenge a July 2023 decision loss to the champion when the pair meet for the second time.
The 24-year-old Lithuanian prospect has been perfect since, stopping undefeated veteran Chris Douglas in under a minute at CW 164, before securing a second round finish against fellow up-and-comer Leon Naumann at CW 175.
“We’re stacking the deck for our return to Rome…” said CW President Graham Boylan.
“Dario Bellandi has been competing away from home, now he gets the chance to defend his championship in front of the Italian crowd.”
“Kanišauskas is out for revenge though; at 24 years of age he’s evolving every day, so Dario is going to have to keep his eye on the ball.”
With two title fights and a card full to the brim with international talent, fans won’t want to miss a second of the action on March 8th!”
Already announced for CW 183: Rome is a bantamweight title bout pitting champion Liam ‘Nightmare’ Gittins against Italian challenger Alessandro Giordano. Elsewhere on the card, Michael Pagani takes on Konstantinos Ntelis, Dylan Hazan faces Michelangelo Lupoli and Giuseppe Mastrogiacomo meets Aiden Lee.
Full card details can be found here.
Tickets are available via TicketOne, with the event streaming live on UFC Fight Pass and international broadcast partners.