Bellator News
Bellator 222 Results: Lyoto Machida stops Chael Sonnen with a flying knee (Video)
Chris Taylor - June 14, 2019
A light heavyweight bout between fan favorites Lyoto Machida and Chael Sonnen served as the co-headliner of tonight’s Bellator 222 event in New York City. Chael Sonnen was last seen in action at Bellator 208 where he suffered a first round TKO loss to MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko. Prior to the setback, Sonnen was coming off back-to-Back decision victories over former MMA champions Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson and Wanderlei Silva.
Bellator 222 Results: Dillon Danis stops Max Humphrey in Round 1 (Video)
Chris Taylor - June 14, 2019
A catchweight bout (175-pounds) between Dillon Danis and Max Humphrey took place on the main card of tonight’s Bellator 222 event in New York City. Danis returned to the cage for the first time since Bellator 198, where he scored a first round victory over Kyle Walker in his mixed martial arts debut.
Bellator 222 Results: Kyoji Horiguchi defeats Darrion Caldwell
Chris Taylor - June 14, 2019
A highly anticipated rematch between Darrion Caldwell and Kyoji Horiguchi took place at tonight’s Bellator 222 event in New York City. Horiguchi (27-2 MMA) submitted Caldwell (12-2 MMA) in the third round of their New Years Eve bout in Japan. The victory crowned Horiguchi the first Rizin FF super bantamweight champion.
Bellator 222 | Pros react after Adam Borics KO’s Aaron Pico
Cole Shelton - June 14, 2019
Aaron Pico was returning to the cage at Bellator 222 to take on an undefeated opponent in Adam Borics. There, the 22-year-old was looking to get back into the win column after being knocked out to Henry Corrales back in January. Aaron Pico was also fighting under Greg Jackson for the first time, and ahead of the fight, he said he is a brand new fighter and couldn’t wait to showcase his talents. He said he planned on using his wrestling which he did and knew how important a win was.
Chael Sonnen says he 'will be a failure' if he doesn't win a title
Cole Shelton - June 13, 2019
In the co-main event of Bellator 222, Chael Sonnen will take on Lyoto Machida at light heavyweight. There, it is expected the winner of that fight will take on Ryan Bader for the promotions light heavyweight title. With that said, this could be the last time that Chael Sonnen finds himself within reach of a title shot. The 42-year-old made a promise to his father before he passed away that he would win a title in a major MMA promotion. After three attempts in the UFC and one in the WEC, he has yet to accomplish it. Sonnen still plans on keeping that promise, for if he doesn’t, he consider himself a failure.
Scott Coker opens door to Bellator-UFC cross promotion
Tom Taylor - June 13, 2019
Under the leadership of Scott Coker, Bellator MMA has co-promoted with a number of other promotions, most notably Japan’s RIZIN Fighting Federation, but also with England’s BAMMA and Italy’s Oktagon. In fact, RIZIN bantamweight champion Kyoji Horiguchi will take to the Bellator cage to battle Bellator bantamweight champion Darrion Caldwell at Bellator 222 on Friday Night in New York City — the latest evidence of Coker’s willingness to work with other organizations.
Dillon Danis says 'there is no one that can even compare' to him in MMA
Cole Shelton - June 13, 2019
Dillon Danis is set to return to the cage this Friday at Bellator 222. There, the jiu-jitsu star will take on Max Humphrey in what will be Danis’ second pro fight. Although Humphrey is the more experienced fighter, Danis is confident that won’t be a big factor in the fight.
Scott Coker responds to Cris Cyborg's free agency plans
Tom Taylor - June 13, 2019
Former UFC featherweight champion Cris Cyborg recently stated that she plans to test her value as a free agent once her current UFC contract expires. That contract will conclude after her featherweight showdown with Felicia Spencer a UFC 240 in Edmonton in July. If Cyborg does indeed become a free agent, it sounds like she can expect a meeting with Bellator boss Scott Coker. “Listen, if you are a free agent, give us a call. This is a Viacom-backed company and we will take care of the fighters that move the needle for us,” Coker explained during a recent media scrum (transcript via MMA Mania). “So, if she is free one day, please give us a call.”
Bellator 222 | Pro fighters make their picks for Chael Sonnen vs. Lyoto Machida
Cole Shelton - June 12, 2019
Bellator returns to Madison Square Garden in New York City with the stacked Bellator 222 card this weekend. The card sees two titles on the line and an intriguing light heavyweight matchup between Chael Sonnen and Lyoto Machida. Ahead of the light heavyweight showdown, BJPENN.com reached out to several pro fighters to get their predictions on this light heavyweight matchup. And, the consensus is that Sonnen will use his wrestling and grind out a win.
Aaron Pico says top featherweights are still turning down fights with him
Cole Shelton - June 11, 2019
At Bellator 222 inside Madison Square Garden, highly touted prospect Aaron Pico will return to the cage to take on Adam Borics. He’ll be looking to rebound from a knockout loss to Henry Corrales. Although Pico is coming off of a loss, he is ready to return and believes he’s taken the perfect amount of time off. With the loss, the highly regarded prospect also decided to take a step back and go back to the drawing board. He even undertook a camp change to JacksonWink MMA.
Aaron Pico explains move to JacksonWink MMA
Cole Shelton - June 10, 2019
Aaron Pico is one of the most highly touted prospects on Bellator’s roster. And, ahead of his upcoming fight at Bellator 222, he changed camps from Team Body Shop to JacksonWink MMA in Albuquerque. The 22-year-old says there is a simple reason for this change.
Cris 'Sunshine' Lencioni willing to absorb and deliver some soccer kicks in RIZIN
Drake Riggs - June 9, 2019
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OsO88Wf8PLA The past month has treated Bellator featherweight, Cris ‘Sunshine’ Lencioni pretty kindly when it comes to the world of combat that he finds himself entrenched in.
Eduardo Dantas will make his debut at featherweight against Juan Archulaeta at Bellator 222
Matheus Costa - May 28, 2019
Eduardo Dantas is done with the bantamweight division. The former Bellator champion will be moving up to the featherweight ranks and will make his debut against Juan Archulaerta at Bellator 222. The promotion made the announcement earlier today. Dantas’ decision is an interesting one as the upcoming featherweight grand prix needs some good names to be as stacked as possible. The Brazilian fighter won his first fight in almost two years, defeating Toby Misech in February via unanimous decision. If he beats Archulaeta, he will probably lock up a spot in the tournament.
Patricio Freire explains why he's 'absolutely certain' he'd beat Max Holloway
Tom Taylor - May 27, 2019
Patricio Freire now owns the Bellator featherweight and lightweight titles. In accomplishing this historic feat, he solidified his rep as one of the sport’s greatest fighters, regardless of promotion. Given Freire’s status as one of the best fighters on earth, many fans have wondered how he might fair in the UFC, namely against UFC featherweight champion Max Holloway.
Daniel Cormier breaks down potential matchup with Ryan Bader
Tom Taylor - May 27, 2019
For a brief period, it looked as though Daniel Cormier and Ryan Bader would meet in the UFC. Unfortunately, the matchup never materialized, and the two wrestling specialists went their separate ways. Today, both men are hovering at the pinnacle of the sport in different promotions. Bader currently holds the light heavyweight and heavyweight titles in Bellator. Cormier, meanwhile, briefly held the same titles in the UFC, though he relinquished the light heavyweight belt.
Lyoto Machida explains decision to fight Chael Sonnen, details lofty goals in Bellator
Chris Taylor - May 25, 2019
Lyoto Machida will return to the cage on June 14 where he will square off with Chael Sonnen in the headliner of Bellator 222. The former UFC light heavyweight champion, Machida (25-8 MMA), made his Bellator debut this past December where he picked up a split-decision win over former Bellator middleweight title holder Rafael Carvalho.
Michael Chandler releases deep and poetic statement following title loss
Drake Riggs - May 16, 2019
Historically, there are few if any fighters in Bellator that have achieved more in the promotion than the three-time lightweight champion, Michael Chandler. Perhaps the obvious one who we could say has achieved more and is now the greatest fighter in Bellator history is none other than the man to defeat Chandler this past weekend, the current featherweight champion and now lightweight champion, Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire.
Patricio Freire welcomes super fights with UFC champions
Adam Martin - May 16, 2019
Patricio Freire joined the shortlist of double champions in a major MMA organization last weekend when he knocked out Michael Chandler in the first round of the main event of Bellator 221 to win the promotion’s lightweight title. “Pitbull” was already the Bellator featherweight champion, making him the promotion’s second current dual champion alongside Ryan Bader, who is the Bellator heavyweight and light heavyweight champion. But Pitbull doesn’t just have his sights set on the titles Bellator has to offer. Now, he wants to go after the UFC’s champions as well.