{"id":59326,"date":"2016-04-07T18:14:44","date_gmt":"2016-04-07T23:14:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=59326"},"modified":"2016-04-07T18:14:44","modified_gmt":"2016-04-07T23:14:44","slug":"matt-mitrione-sean-grande-named-spikes-announcing-team-for-bellator-kickboxing-torino","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ringsidereport.com\/?p=59326","title":{"rendered":"Matt Mitrione & Sean Grande Named SPIKE\u2019S Announcing Team for BELLATOR KICKBOXING: TORINO"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"kickboxinglogo_COLOR[1]\"<\/a>Matt Mitrione, a former NFL defensive lineman and current Bellator MMA heavyweight will join Bellator MMA play-by-play announcer and The Voice of the Boston Celtics, Sean Grande as the broadcast duo for Bellator\u2019s inaugural kickboxing event, \u201cBellator Kickboxing: Torino\u201d on Saturday, April 16 from the historic Pala Alpitour in Torino, Italy. The announcement was jointly made today by Bellator President Scott Coker and Jon Slusser, Senior Vice President, Sports and Specials, Spike TV.
\n<\/p>\n

Mitrione joined Bellator MMA in early March after a stellar start to his career in the UFC. His 14-bout stint with that promotion began in 2009 on \u201cThe Ultimate Fighter,\u201d airing on Spike. His list of formidable opponents included: Kimbo Slice, Gabriel Gonzaga, Ben Rothwell, Derrick Lewis, Brendan Schaub, Roy Nelson, Shawn Jordan, and Travis Browne among others.<\/p>\n

Prior to competing in MMA, Mitrione earned a scholarship to play defensive tackle for the Purdue Boilermakers, not far from where he grew up in Springfield, Ill. After college, he played in the NFL for the New York Giants, San Francisco 49ers and Minnesota Vikings until 2005.<\/p>\n

Sean Grande has served as Bellator\u2019s play-by-play announcer since July of 2015. Completing his 18th season in the NBA and 15th as the voice of the Boston Celtics, Grande\u2019s epic account of the two-month run to the 2008 World Championship cemented his status as one of the nation\u2019s elite play-callers. He is joined by analyst Cedric Maxwell for all Boston Celtics games. Since shortly after their 2001 pairing, \u201cGrande and Max\u201d have become one of Boston\u2019s most popular and iconic on-air combinations.<\/p>\n

On May 20, 2013, Grande made his Major League Baseball debut, after being named the alternate play-by-play voice of the World Champion Boston Red Sox. It completed his cycle of broadcasting major pro sports (NBA, NFL, NHL, WNBA and MLS).<\/p>\n

\u201cBellator Kickboxing: Torino\u201d will be televised Friday, April 22 at 11:00 p.m. ET\/PT, immediately following \u201cBellator 153: Koreshkov vs. Henderson\u201d on Spike.<\/p>\n

Complete \u201cBellator Kickboxing: Torino\u201d Fight Card:<\/p>\n

Bellator Kickboxing Middleweight Main Event: Melvin Manhoef (37-12) vs. Alexandru Negrea (8-2)
\nBellator Kickboxing 165-Pound Feature Bout: Mustapha Haida (37-3-3) vs. Karim Ghajji (95-12)
\nBellator Kickboxing Welterweight Feature Bout: Raymond Daniels (10-3) vs. Francesco Moricca (15-2-1)
\nBellator Kickboxing Flyweight Feature Bout: Denise Kielholtz (43-2) vs. Veronica Vernocchi (31-6-1)
\nBellator Kickboxing Bantamweight Feature Bout: Kevin Ross (30-9) vs. Matteo Taccini (24-3-1)<\/p>\n