SURPRISE!! In an appearance last night (Fri., Nov. 14, 2014) on Inside MMA (via AXS TV), Bellator MMA President Scott Coker announced longtime welterweight striker Paul Daley had inked a new deal with the Viacom-owned promotion and will make his return in early 2015.

From his official Facebook page:

Just signed my bout agreement for my return to Bellator......very happy, big big fight.....gonna be super focused, super prepared, and ready to sacrifice what I have to make sure I win this fight.

"Semtex" has won six of his last seven fights by KO or TKO, including his last stint in Bellator, where he finished an overmatched Rudy Bears at Bellator 72. Since that time, he has been fighting largely in Europe, where he has also continued his successful kickboxing career, owning a record of 20 wins versus just three defeats.

Watch a sample of his overseas destruction here.

To succeed in his second stint in Bellator, Daley will need to overcome a history of personal problems in and outside of the cage. He was famously "banned for life" by Dana White when he sucker punched Josh Koscheck after their fight, and his first Bellator run ended due to his alleged involvement in a bar brawl.

"The Phenom" Douglas Lima is on a five-fight winning streak, and his last bout ended his long quest to get the Bellator welterweight title. Although he has teased in interviews that he's getting too old to make the weight cut, he'll give it one more go to face the explosive punching power of Daley.