A middleweight bout between Canadian standout Cory MacDonald (12-2) and well-travelled veteran Brendan Seguin (23-17-1) and a welterweight scrap between former TFC champion Ryan Ford (17-4) and WEC veteran Luis Santos (50-7-1) have been added to Bellator’s May 4 Bellator 67 card, set for Casino Rama in Rama, Ontario. CagePotato.com learned of the MacDonald-Seguin pairing and confirmed the rumored Ford-Santos bout today from sources close to both bouts.

(Bellator: Now with twice as much maple syrup and back bacon.)

Canadian MMA fans will get a double-dose of Bellator Fighting Championships in back-to-back months this Spring.

CagePotato.com has learned that the Chicago-based promotion has secured May 4 for its second Ontario event of 2012 and that the show will take place at Casino Rama in Rama, Ontario. As we announced last week, BFC will also be holding an April 6 event in Windsor.

The May show will be the third held at the native-run casino. Both Bellator 47 and 57 took place at the venue.

Windsor, Ontario MMA fans will likely only have to wait a few more months for their next live fight fix.

CagePotato.com has learned that Bellator Fighting Championships have penciled in an event for April 6 in Windsor, Ontario and that the event is likely to take place at Caesar’s Windsor Casino, just across the Ambassador bridge from Detroit.

By Mike Russell

One of Canadian MMA’s best kept secrets got an early birthday present this week.

CagePotato has confirmed with sources close to the situation that highly-touted Kingston, Ontario native Cory MacDonald signed with Bellator yesterday and will compete as a middleweight under the Viacom-owned promotion’s banner.

MacDonald (12-2), who turned 34 today, could see action as part of next season’s middleweight tournament.

Having competed primarily at 170 for the majority of his eight-year MMA career, at 6-foot MacDonald was one of the class’ largest competitors. He has been contemplating a move up in weight for a while due to a lack of opponents willing to face him north of the border. It now looks like the move won’t just be a temporary one and that 12-2 former welterweight, who is undefeated in his past seven bouts spanning back to 2007, will finally get his chance to make a name for himself internationally.

(MacGrath could raise his stock immensely with a win over a veteran like Aurelio.)

Cory MacDonald was hoping that his fight at MMA Live 1 against Marcus Aurelio would be his coming out party of sorts that would propel the highly-touted Kingston, Ontario native up the Canadian welterweight rankings. Unfortunately for MacDonald, he will have to wait for his opportunity to open the eyes of fans, pundits and possibly the powers that be at the UFC, as he has been forced to pull out of the May 19 London, Ontario show for undisclosed medical reasons.

Stepping in for McDonald on just over one week’s notice to face Aurelio (20-9) will be always game Halifax, Nova Scotia native Matt MacGrath (10-5). Although he is just 2-3 in his last five outings, each of his losses in that span came against UFC veterans in Kalib Starnes, Jonathan Goulet and Claude Patrick. MacGrath defeated TUF 9 quarter finalist Dean Amasinger at MMA: The Reckoning in Orillia, Ontario April 2.