Eddie Alvarez, Shinya Aoki Cleared for Rematch at Bellator 66 in Cleveland

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Both headlining lightweights hit their contracted marks at the Bellator 66 weigh-ins on Thursday, setting the stage for their main event clash on Friday night at the I-X Center in Cleveland. A former Bellator champion, Alvarez tipped the scales at 154.5 pounds ahead of his rematch with Dream kingpin Aoki, who also checked in at 154.5.

The sixth-season middleweight semifinals will also be contested Friday night on MTV2 and Epix, as Season 5 tournament veteran Brian Rogers (185) locks horns with injury replacement Andreas Spang (185). Spang steps in for the undefeated Bruno Santos, who withdrew from the tournament due to a shoulder injury. While “The Predator” comes fresh off an impressive first-round knockout of Vitor Vianna in his March 16 quarterfinal bout, Spang has not competed since earning a technical knockout over Willie Parks at Strikeforce Challengers 20 this past November.

Former M-1 Global champion Vyacheslav Vasilevsky (185.5) will face off with onetime UFC talent Maiquel Jose Falcao Goncalves (185) in the evening’s second middleweight semifinal. Beaten just once as a professional, Vasilevsky has not lost since 2008. In Falcao, the 23-year-old Russian meets a finisher who has won 11 of his last 12 bouts. The Brazilian owns 23 of his 29 career victories by knockout and has gone the distance just three times in nearly eight years as a pro.

The evening’s main card will also see lightweight semifinalists Lloyd Woodard (154.5) and Rick Hawn (155) collide. Woodard advanced to the round of four by submitting the favored Patricky Freire with a second-round kimura last month. A former welterweight, Hawn also finished his foe in the quarterfinals, knocking out Ricardo Tirloni with a devastating flurry of punches on the same night at Bellator 62.

Also featured on television broadcast, another former welterweight in Brent Weedman (155) squares off with hard-hitting Brazilian talent Thiago Michel Pereira Silva (154.5) to determine the second lightweight finalist. A two-time tournament veteran at 170 pounds, Weedman stopped J.J. Ambrose in the quarterfinals with a first-round shoulder choke. Known simply as Thiago Michel in his native Brazil, Silva took a hard-fought split decision from Rene Nazare in his quarterfinal matchup on March 23.

Bellator 66 Weigh-In Results:
Eddie Alvarez (154.5) vs. Shinya Aoki (154.5)
Andreas Spang (185) vs. Brian Rogers (185)
Vyacheslav Vasilevsky (185.5) vs. Maiquel Jose Falcao Goncalves (185)
Lloyd Woodard (154.5) vs. Rick Hawn (155)
Brent Weedman (155) vs. Thiago Michel Pereira Silva (154.5)
Jessica Eye (130) vs. Anita Rodriguez (130.5)
John Hawk (203.5) vs. Marcus Vanttinen (205)
Dan Spohn (204) vs. Attila Vegh (200)
Donny Walker (144) vs. Frank Caraballo (145)
Julian Lane (155) vs. Joe Heiland (155)