Joe Yager

Bellator XCVI took place on June 19, 2013 at the Winstar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma. The event was distributed live in prime time by Spike TV. It marked the season debut of the 2013 summer series. Bellator 96 featured the opening round of the 2013 Summer Series Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight tournaments. This event served as the lead in for the debut of Bellator's new reality TV series, Fight Master: Bellator MMA.

Bellator 100: Lima vs. Saunders took place on September 20, 2013 at the Grand Canyon University Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. The event aired live in prime time on Spike TV. The main event was a welterweight bout between Douglas Lima and Ben Saunders.