Nearly a year after the UFC cut him loose, John Alessio has signed a deal with Bellator MMA. Bellator officials confirmed Alessio’s signing to MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) and said the fighter is expected to make his debut with the promotion sometime during Season 9, which begins in September on Spike TV. Although Alessio has fought much of his career at welterweight, he is expected to compete at 155 pounds this fall, where he dropped to 18 months ago. The Canadian lightweight first announced the news on his Facebook page late Friday. He did not disclose the length of the deal. “Very excited for this new chapter in my fight career,” Alessio wrote on Facebook.