Bellator XCVI took place on June 19, 2013 at the Winstar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma. The event was distributed live in prime time by Spike TV. It marked the season debut of the 2013 summer series. Bellator 96 featured the opening round of the 2013 Summer Series Heavyweight and Light Heavyweight tournaments. This event served as the lead in for the debut of Bellator's new reality TV series, Fight Master: Bellator MMA.

Muhammed Lawal
as Himself

Seth Petruzelli
as Himself

Jacob Noe
as Himself

Renato Sobral
as Himself

Vitaly Minakov
as Himself

Ron Sparks
as Himself

War Machine
as Himself

Blas Avena
as Himself

Damon Jackson
as Himself

Keith Miner
as Himself