Cédric Doumbé set to make Bellator Champions Series debut on May 17th

PFL superstar Cédric Doumbé will look to bounce back from his first professional MMA loss when he returns on May 17th in Paris.

Doumbé will make his Bellator Champions Series debut when he faces Derek Anderson in a welterweight matchup. The PFL announced the news of Doumbé’s MMA return in a Monday press release.

Doumbé’s hoping to get back on track after a controversial end to his first professional MMA loss earlier this year. In Round 3 of his last fight against Baissangour Chamsoudinov, Doumbé got a small piece of glass lodged into his foot, resulting in a TKO loss due to injury.

It was speculated that Doumbé and his team would appeal the loss, but it appears that the French striker is focusing on his upcoming fight.

Cédric Doumbé faces Derek Anderson at Bellator Champions Series: Paris

https://twitter.com/PFLMMA/status/1782397950301237519

Doumbé has taken MMA by storm since making the full-time transition from professional kickboxing. Before making his MMA debut in Nov. 2021, Doumbé was the Glory Kickboxing welterweight champion, amassing a 75-7-1 record in the ring.

After knocking out Murthel Groenhart at Glory 77, Doumbé focused on his MMA debut, knocking out Arbi Emiev at Superkombat Universe. All five of his career MMA wins have come by knockout, including a nine-second win against Jordan Zébo in September.

Doumbé’s addition to the Bellator Champions Series Paris card is a welcomed boost to the event. The card recently lost a Bellator lightweight title matchup between Usman Nurmagomedov and Alexandr Shabliy after Nurmagomedov withdrew due to injury.

It’s uncertain, as of this writing, if Doumbé will compete on the PFL Europe circuit after his upcoming Bellator debut. A rematch with Chamsoudinov is also a possibility for later this year.

Doumbé will face a steep test in Anderson, who is 17-4-0 in his MMA career. He returns to Bellator after a loss to Michael ‘Venom’ Page at Bellator 258.