Gallery Douglas Lima def. Andrey Koreshkov at Bellator 206: Best photos view 14 images

HONOLULU – With only one fight complete in the Bellator welterweight grand prix, Scott Coker already has sights on an end date for the tournament.

The Bellator president Coker hopes for the eight-main championship tournament to wrap up in September, which would be one year after it started with Douglas Lima’s (30-7 MMA, 12-3 BMMA) victory over Andrey Koreshkov in their trilogy bout at Bellator 206.

Lima is waiting on his side of the bracket for the winner of February’s Bellator 216 headliner, which will see Michael Page (13-0 MMA, 9-0 BMMA) clash with rival and fellow British striker Paul Daley (40-16-2 MMA, 6-3 BMMA).

The opposing side of the bracket kicks off this weekend at Bellator 213 in Honolulu, with undefeated prospects Neiman Gracie (8-0 MMA, 6-0 BMMA) and Ed Ruth (6-0 MMA, 6-0 BMMA) meeting in a quarterfinal affair.

At this point, the only possibly hiccups with the tournament timeline surrounds current 170-pound champ Rory MacDonald (20-5 MMA, 2-1 BMMA), who is still recovering from his failed bid at the middleweight belt against Gegard Mousasi at Bellator 206. MacDonald meets Jon Fitch (31-7-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) in his part of the bracket, and Coker said that fight is tentatively slated for March.

“He’s healing up, but I think he’s starting to train now,” Coker told MMAjunkie of MacDonald. “But he will be fighting Jon Fitch sometime in March. We’re finalizing the location of that fight.”

Once MacDonald fights Fitch, the plan is for the tournament to move along quickly. Coker said he hopes to complete the semifinal and final rounds within a five-month span.

“We’ll get into the semifinals in May and then June, and then September will be the finals,” Coker said. “So, that’s the timeframe for the tournament for the year.”

For more on the Bellator schedule, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.