Hieron vs. Hawn welterweight finals coming to Bellator 43, Chandler vs. Freire lightweight finals at Bellator 44

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

The Bellator season final bouts in the lightweight and welterweight divisions are now set, as MMAJunkie.com reports that Jay Hieron vs. Rick Hawn will take place at Bellator 43 and Michael Chandler vs. Patricky "Pitbull" Freire will take place at Bellator 44.

The Hieron vs. Hawn bout will determine the first challenger to Ben Askren's Welterweight Championship. Bellator 33 takes place from the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Okla. on May 7, airing live on MTV2.

Hieron made it to the finals with victories over Anthony Lapsley and Brent Weedman to bring his current winning streak to nine fights. Hawn, meanwhile, moved his undefeated record to 11-0 with wins over Jim Wallhead and inaugural Bellator Welterweight Champion Lyman Good.

Chandler and Freire face off in the finals of the third Bellator lightweight tournament, and the winner will challenge Eddie Alvarez during season five. Their bout takes place May 14 from Caesars Atlantic City in Atlantic City, N.J. Chandler advanced to the finals with wins over Marcin Held and Lloyd Woodard, while Freire blasted through both "Razor" Rob McCullough and two-time tournament finalist Toby Imada.

Phil Baroni Don Barr Pat Barry  Vitor Belfort  Robert Berry David Bielkheden