Bellator News

Cole Shelton - August 4, 2021

Brent Primus was shocked he didn’t get his hand raised against Islam Mamedov at Bellator 263. Although Primus spent the majority of the fight on his back, he was the one doing all the damage. He was landing heavy shots from the bottom while Khabib Nurmagomedov’s protégé was just holding him down and not landing anything significant.

Drake Riggs - August 2, 2021

AJ McKee is the new Bellator featherweight king. Bellator 263 this past Saturday night saw the 26-year old crowned to close out the 145-pound one-million-dollar Grand Prix. To do so, McKee put away the greatest fighter in promotional history, Patricio “Pitbull” Freire, in just a single round.

Adam Martin - August 1, 2021

Bellator president Scott Coker challenged UFC president Dana White to a UFC and Bellator cross-promotion fight with AJ McKee. McKee finished Patricio Pitbull in the main event of Bellator 263 on Saturday night to become the promotions new’s 145lbs champion and the winner of the $1 million grand prize. Just 26 years old, McKee is now a perfect 18-0 in MMA. By taking out Pitbull, who is one of the best featherweights in the world, it showed that “The Mercenary” is one of the best at 145lbs regardless of promotion. McKee is so good, in fact, that Coker believes he matches up well against the best featherweights that the UFC has to offer, including current UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and past champ Max Holloway.

Adam Martin - August 1, 2021

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Quinton Jackson could make an MMA comeback, hinted Bellator new Bellator featherweight champ, AJ McKee. McKee defeated Patricio Pitbull via first-round submission on Saturday night in the main event of Bellator 263 to claim the promotion’s 145lbs title, and the $1 million grand prize for winning the Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix sixteen-man tournament. Now a perfect 18-0 in MMA, McKee appears to be a superstar for Bellator for years to come. It hasn’t come out of anywhere either, as the son of former UFC fighter Antonio McKee was always considered a natural in mixed martial arts, training under his veteran father.

Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021

Tonight’s Bellator 263 event was headlined by the tournament finals of the promotions 145-pound grand prix as Patricio Freire squared off with A.J. McKee. Patricio Freire (32-5 MMA), Bellator’s reigning featherweight champion, had entered tonight’s main event on a seven-fight winning streak, his latest being a first round submission victory over Emmanuel Sanchez in the featherweight grand prix semifinals.

Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021

Tonight’s Bellator 263 event is headlined by the tournament finals of the promotions 145-pound grand prix as Patricio Freire meets A.J. McKee. Patricio Freire (32-4 MMA), the reigning Bellator featherweight champion, will enter tonight’s main event sporting a seven-fight winning streak, his latest being a first round submission victory over Emmanuel Sanchez in the featherweight grand prix semifinals.

Chris Taylor - July 31, 2021

The fighter salaries for tonight’s Bellator 263 event have been revealed and featherweight headliners Patricio Freire and A.J. McKee are set to cash in. Freire and McKee will collide in the tournament finals of the promotions 145-pound grand prix this evening, with the winner set to take home an additional $1 million award.

Adam D Martin - July 30, 2021

Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull sent a warning about respect to his upcoming opponent AJ McKee ahead of Bellator 263. Pitbull, the Bellator 145lbs and 155lbs champion, steps into the cage on Saturday night in Los Angeles against McKee in the finals of the Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix. Pitbull has won seven straight fights heading into this finale, while McKee is undefeated with a 17-0 record in Bellator and in MMA. The son of former UFC fighter Antonio McKee is confident that he can beat Pitbull, and at the press conference ahead of the fight, he told the Brazilian that he would beat him up in front of his wife and kids. Pitbull did not take kindly to the comments and they got into an altercation afterwards, which he explained.

Adam D Martin - July 27, 2021

Bellator MMA announced on Tuesday that Douglas Lima vs. Michael Page 2 will headline the promotion’s upcoming event in London, England. Lima vs. Page 2 will headline Bellator 267, which takes place on October 1 at The SSE Arena, Wembley in London, England. The promotion made the matchup official on Tuesday.

Adam D Martin - July 20, 2021

Heavyweight MMA fighter Matt Mitrione has been released by Bellator following his third straight knockout loss this past weekend. MMAFighting.com confirmed with promotional officials that Mitrione received his walking papers from Bellator after tapping out to strikes against Tyrell Fortune at last Friday’s Bellator 262 event. In addition to Mitrione, Bellator also confirmed that it has released Ronny Markes and Adil Benjilany. Markes was knocked out at Bellator 262, but Benjilany defeated Johnny Soto, marking his release as a strange one considering he just won.

Adam D Martin - July 18, 2021

Bellator star Dillon Danis offered to fight former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz following the news of his planned 2021 return. Ortiz this week announced that he will be returning to the cage sometime later this year. Danis saw Ortiz’s tweet and immediately responded to him, saying that he would be interested in taking on the legend in a fight later in 2021. Check out the exchange below.

Adam D Martin - July 14, 2021

Former Bellator MMA fighter and GLORY kickboxing star Joe Schilling provided the latest update following his recent bar-punching incident. Schilling was recently involved in an incident at a bar where he was caught on video knocking a man out cold with punches. Schilling later claimed it was self-defense and said that there is more to the story than meets the eye, though the victim, Justin Balboa, said that he plans on taking legal action against “Stitch ‘Em Up.” However, we haven’t had much provided in the way of an update as far as potential charges against Schilling.

Adam D Martin - July 5, 2021

Former WWE superstar Jake Hager wants to fight Fedor Emelianenko in Bellator, saying that “I really honestly believe that this is my fight.” The legend Emelianenko recently revealed that he is set to return to the Bellator cage this October in Moscow, Russia. Bellator did not announce his opponent yet, with company president Scott Coker admitting that there has been significant interest from other fighters to take on “The Last Emperor,” specifically mentioning Junior dos Santos, Alistair Overeem, and Josh Barnett as potential fights. But it appears there is another challenger in the arena.

Adam Martin - July 4, 2021

Former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum called for the Fedor Emelianenko rematch, suggesting that “Fedor was never the GOAT.” It was just over 11 years ago in Strikeforce that Werdum and Emelianenko met inside the cage and the Brazilian pulled off one of the biggest upsets of all time when he tapped the Russian out with a triangle-armbar. Fans have always wanted to see a rematch between these two rivals, but it has never happened. With Emelianenko set to return to the Bellator cage later this year in Russia, Bellator president Scott Coker has admitted that a number of big names have been in touch with his company to fight Emelianenko, naming fighters such as Josh Barnett, Junior dos Santos, and Alistair Overeem among the possibilities.

Adam D Martin - June 30, 2021

Bellator women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg said in a recent interview that “the best thing for my career was leaving the UFC.” Cyborg was once the UFC women’s featherweight champion, but after beating Felicia Spencer at UFC 240 in July 2019, UFC president Dana White released her from her contract after not being able to come to an agreement on a rematch with Amanda Nunes. Cyborg then became a free agent and, not long after that, she signed with Bellator. She has since become the Bellator women’s 145lbs champion as she has continued to dominate her foes.

Adam D Martin - June 28, 2021

Heavyweight legend Fedor Emelianenko could fight Josh Barnett, Junior dos Santos, or Alistair Overeem, says Bellator president Scott Coker. It was revealed last week that Emelianenko will be returning to action on October 23 when he headlines Bellator’s first-ever event in Moscow, Russia. Although “The Last Emperor” is now 44 years old — and he will be 45 by the next time he fights — he is still one of the most accomplished and respected mixed martial artists of all time, and anytime he fights, it’s a big deal. Although Emelianenko will return to the cage this fall, we do not know his opponent yet. However, we now have an idea of who could potentially be for him next.

Adam D Martin - June 25, 2021

Fedor Emelianenko headlines the first Bellator event in Moscow, boasting that “the Russian fans are excited for Bellator to come to Russia.” It was revealed earlier this week that the legendary MMA heavyweight would be returning to the Bellator cage this fall, and now we have a date and location for the fight. On Friday, Bellator officially announced its inaugural event in Russia. The card takes place on October 23 in Moscow, Russia, and Emelianenko will be the headliner of the event, though his opponent has yet to be determined. The event will take place at the VTB Arena.

Adam D Martin - June 24, 2021

One of the greatest MMA fighters of all time will fight once again this fall when Fedor Emelianenko makes his return to the Bellator cage. MMA journalist Ariel Helwani reports that Emelianenko will officially announce his return to the Bellator cage on Friday against an opponent that is still to be determined. The fight will take place in October at a location and venue that has yet to be revealed. It will be the first fight for the Russian legend since he defeated Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at Bellator 237.