Bellator News

Tom Taylor - September 10, 2020

On Friday night, Bellator MMA will promote the first card of a two-event weekend in Bellator 245, which features a host of high-profile fighters. In the Bellator 245 main event, former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida will lock horns with Phil Davis in a rematch of a 2013 fight that occurred in the UFC’s Octagon. The winner of the fight will be well positioned for a crack at new Bellator light heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov, who assumed the throne with a blistering knockout win over Ryan Bader last month.

Harry Kettle - September 10, 2020

Bellator featherweight Cat Zingano has explained why she is satisfied with her decision to join the promotion after leaving the UFC. Zingano, 38, is set to make her promotional debut tomorrow night when she squares off against Gabrielle Holloway in the co-main event of Bellator 245. She’s been officially signed as a member of the roster for almost a year now, and she’s certainly ready to prove to the world why she could be a top contender in her new home.

Adam Martin - September 9, 2020

MMA legend Cris Cyborg will defend the Bellator women’s featherweight title later this year against top contender Arlene Blencowe. Amy Kaplan of FanSided was the first to reveal that Cyborg’s next opponent would be Blencowe. It should be noted that there is currently no date set for this fight, only that it is expected to take place before 2020 is over. Bellator president Scott Coker previously said that Blencowe was likely going to be next in line to fight Cyborg, and this new report all but confirms that is indeed the direction that the Bellator matchmakers are going in.

Tom Taylor - September 9, 2020

Bellator MMA and combat sports analyst Robin Black have teamed up to create an intriguing new video series titled Fight Secrets. The first episode of Fight Secrets, which delves into the subtleties of Phil Davis and Lyoto Machida’s games, debuted on the Bellator MMA YouTube channel on Wednesday. See it below:

Cole Shelton - September 8, 2020

The ninth episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com with Cole Shelton is here ahead of UFC Vegas 10 and Bellator 246. We’re first joined eighth-ranked strawweight and one-half of the main event, Michelle Waterson (3:05). Next, Bellator bantamweight, Patrick Mix (15:43) comes on. Then, UFC flyweight, Roxanne Modafferi (33:00) joins the program. Finally, UFC featherweight, Kyle Nelson (44:02) closes out the show.

Tom Taylor - September 1, 2020

Bellator featherweight champion Cris Cyborg believes retired two-division UFC champion Daniel Cormier is a “shill” for the Las Vegas-based promotion. Speaking on a recent episode of ESPN’s DC and Helwani show, Cormier divulged that he was paid a $1M bonus after his 2015 decision loss to Jon Jones. He also revealed that he received a $400,000 bonus after he defeated Anthony “Rumble” Johnson in 2015.

Cole Shelton - August 31, 2020

Bellator is interested in signing Brock Lesnar if he truly is a free agent. Earlier on Monday, it was reported by multiple sites that Lesnar is no longer under contract with WWE. With Lesnar being a free agent, he will no doubt command a lot of money from promotions like WWE, AEW, UFC, and now Bellator.

Tom Taylor - August 31, 2020

Heavyweight MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko has written a poignant tribute to his coach Vladimir Mikhailovich Voronov, who recently passed away. Emelianenko, who is widely regarded as the greatest heavyweight in the history of the sport, paid his respects on Instagram.

Alfredo Zullino - August 27, 2020

A Bellator welterweight clash between Carlo Pedersoli Jr. (11-3 MMA, 0-0 Bellator) and Grachik Bozinyan (10-5 MMA, 0-1 Bellator) is set for September 24 in Milan, Italy, sources with knowledge of the situation told BJPENN.com. The sources asked for anonymity since the news hasn’t been officially confirmed yet. The Miami-born Italian fighter was supposed to make his promotional debut at Bellator 239 back in February against Mark Lemminger, in Thackerville, Oklahoma, but Pedersoli was eventually forced to pull out of the fight due to an infection.

Natasha Hooper - August 27, 2020

Alex Volkanovski shrugged off Patricio Freire’s fight challenge, leaving “Pitbull” to unload a scathing counterattack on the UFC featherweight champion. The Bellator two-division champion offered an astronomical bet to UFC president Dana White this week, that he could beat both Khabib Nurmagomedov and Alex Volkanovski.

Tom Taylor - August 27, 2020

After knocking out Benson Henderson at Bellator 243 earlier this month, Michael Chandler, the promotion’s former lightweight champ, is now a free agent. As one of the biggest stars Bellator has produced to date, Chandler can almost certainly expect lucrative offers from some of the sport’s biggest organizations. He’s already expressed interest in a potential move to the UFC, and UFC President Dana White has reciprocated that interest. Chandler has also discussed a potential move to ONE Championship, where a compelling trilogy fight with his chief rival Eddie Alvarez could await.

Tom Taylor - August 25, 2020

Bellator President Scott Coker is extremely impressed by the promotion’s red-hot flyweight prospect Valerie Loureda. Loureda, a Taekwondo specialist who is now 3-0 as a mixed martial artist under the Bellator banner, was the subject of some high praise from the promotion’s president at the Bellator 244 post-fight press conference.