Bellator News
A.J. McKee would love the opportunity to fight Nate Diaz in Bellator: “He can get a Long Beach slap”
Harry Kettle - September 30, 2022
AJ McKee has given his thoughts on the idea of possibly meeting free agent Nate Diaz inside the Bellator cage. Ever since his submission win over Tony Ferguson at UFC 279, fans have been wondering what’s next for Nate Diaz. The Stockton king is one of the most exciting fighters in the game and now that he’s done with UFC, at least for the time being, there are plenty of possibilities out there for him to explore – whether it be in mixed martial arts or beyond.
Patricio Pitbull plotting move down to bantamweight to become champion at third weight class: "To take the legend step"
Josh Evanoff - September 29, 2022
Bellator featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull has his eyes set on bantamweight gold. The Brazilian has been out of action since his rematch with A.J. McKee in April. In their first encounter, ‘Mercenary’ picked up a first-round submission victory to win gold. In the rematch, Pitbull flipped the script, and re-won his title by unanimous decision.
Eddie Alvarez reveals he's open to UFC or Bellator return after leaving ONE Championship: "Keep my options open"
Josh Evanoff - September 28, 2022
Lightweight star Eddie Alvarez is open to anything next. ‘The Underground King’ has been out of action since his decision loss to Ok Rae Yoon at ONE on TNT 4 last April. The bout set Alvarez back to 1-2 (1 NC) in the ONE Championship cage. As it turns out, that was the last time he would fight in the promotion.
Scott Coker announces Bellator lightweight Grand Prix for 2023: "It's going to be amazing"
Josh Evanoff - September 28, 2022
Scott Coker has announced that Bellator has some big plans for 2023. Last weekend, Bellator lightweight stars Benson Henderson and Peter Queally faced off in Dublin. The former UFC champion wound up picking up the victory by decision. This weekend, Bellator 286 features former champion A.J. McKee taking on Spike Carlyle.
Scott Coker unsure if Dillon Danis will fight in Bellator again: "Dillon is a kid we had a lot of high hopes for"
Cole Shelton - September 26, 2022
Scott Coker doesn’t know if Dillon Danis will fight in Bellator again. Danis was a high-profile signing for Bellator as he was highly known for his work in jiu-jitsu as well as being a training partner and grappling coach of Conor McGregor. However, the signing hasn’t panned out as Danis has fought just twice in Bellator and hasn’t competed since 2019 and Coker is unsure if he will fight again.
Cris Cyborg and Cat Zingano trade barbs over why their fight hasn't materialized: "This b***h left to boxing right when I earned my title shot"
Fernando Quiles - September 25, 2022
Bellator Women’s Featherweight Champion Cris Cyborg has found herself in a war of words with Cat Zingano. The two 145-pounders haven’t exactly been chummy. Zingano is a top contender in the women’s featherweight division, but a matchup with Cyborg still hasn’t come to fruition and there’s a lot of finger-pointing going on.
Bellator 285 Results: Benson Henderson defeats Peter Queally (Highlights)
Chris Taylor - September 23, 2022
Tonight’s Bellator 285 event is headlined by a key lightweight contest featuring Benson Henderson taking on Peter Queally. Henderson (30-11 MMA), a former UFC lightweight champion, most recently competed back in January where he earned a split decision victory over Islam Mamedov. That win had snapped a three-fight losing skid for ‘Smooth’, as he had previously suffered defeats to Michael Chandler, Jason Jackson and Brent Primus.
Pros react after Yoel Romero TKO's Melvin Manhoef at Bellator 285
Chris Taylor - September 23, 2022
Tonight’s Bellator 285 event was co-headlined by a highly anticipated light heavyweight bout between Yoel Romero and Melvin Manhoef. Romero (15-6 MMA) was returning to action for the first time since scoring a TKO victory over Alex Polizzi this past May at Bellator Paris. That victory had snapped a four-fight losing skid for ‘The Soldier of God’, as Romero previously suffered a string of decision defeats to Robert Whittaker, Paulo Costa, Israel Adesanya and Phil Davis.
Scott Coker reveals he tried to make Anderson Silva vs. Fedor Emelianenko, hopes to re-open the "dialogue" and make it happen in Japan
Cole Shelton - September 22, 2022
Scott Coker is hoping to make Anderson Silva vs. Fedor Emelianenko in Bellator. After Silva fought out his UFC contract and became a free agent, Coker says he tried to sign the Brazilian. He wanted to do a one-off fight against Emelianenko but Silva made it known he wanted to pursue boxing.
Yoel Romero claps back at "pampered" Israel Adesanya for his recent comments: “How many fights does Izzy have that are boring? You see?”
Cole Shelton - September 21, 2022
Yoel Romero has fired back at Israel Adesanya. Adesanya recently looked back on a low point in his career, which was the Romero fight, and put much of the blame on the now Bellator fighter. That fight served as the main event of UFC 248 and resulted in what many fans and analysts refer to as a snooze fest.
Scott Coker confirms Bellator is "in dialogue" with Nate Diaz on a potential deal
Cole Shelton - September 21, 2022
Scott Coker is hoping to bring Nate Diaz to Bellator. Coker used to promote Nick and Nate Diaz in Strikeforce and the two have a good relationship. With Coker now serving as Bellator’s president, he confirmed to the media in Ireland that the promotion is talking with Diaz and his team about a deal. The hope is to have a deal in place that allows Diaz to take boxing fights but his MMA fights would be in Bellator.
A.J. McKee hopeful for possible crossover bout with PFL's Anthony Pettis: "That would be kind of lit, low-key"
Josh Evanoff - September 16, 2022
Former Bellator featherweight champion A.J. McKee is down for some crossover fights. ‘Mercenary’ has been out of action since his rematch with Patricio Pitbull in April. Their first outing nearly a year prior saw McKee win the featherweight title by first-round submission. In the rematch, the Brazilian flipped the script and regained his championship by decision.
Cris Cyborg reveals retirement plans, wants to finish career within three years: "I want to have the best fights that my fans to see during that time"
Josh Evanoff - September 12, 2022
Bellator women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg believes her time in the sport is limited. The Brazilian has been out of the cage since her rematch with Arlene Blencowe in April. The two first faced off in October 2020, with Cyborg scoring a submission win. Their rematch earlier this year was much closer, but once again the champion claimed the victory, by decision.
Bellator 284 Results: Goiti Yamauchi KO's Neiman Gracie with a nasty uppercut (Video)
Chris Taylor - August 12, 2022
Tonight’s Bellator 284 event was headlined by a key welterweight contest featuring Goiti Yamauchi taking on Neiman Gracie. Yamauchi (28-5 MMA) had entered the contest sporting a two-fight winning streak, this after earning back-to-back finishes over opponents Chris Gonzalez (TKO) and Levan Chokheli (submission) in his most recent Bellator appearances. The Japanese-born Brazilian MMA fighter has been competing for Scott Coker and company since 2013.
Bellator 284 Results: Aaron Jeffery KO's Austin Vanderford in Round 1 (Video)
Chris Taylor - August 12, 2022
Aaron Jeffery stepped up on short notice to fight former title challenger Austin Vanderford on the main card of tonight’s Bellator 284 event. Jeffery (13-3 MMA), a former CFFC middleweight champion, had made his Bellator debut back in June, scoring a second-round TKO victory over Fabio Aguiar.
Patricky Pitbull to defend lightweight title vs. Usman Nurmagomedov at Bellator 288
Josh Evanoff - August 11, 2022
Bellator lightweight champion Patricky Pitbull has his first assignment as champion. He will face Usman Nurmagomedov at Bellator 288 in November. The Brazilian captured the Bellator lightweight strap with a knockout win over Peter Queally in November 2021. The win avenged a previous defeat to the Irishman from that May. With that, Pitbull joined his brother, Patricio, as a Bellator titleholder.
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane eyes retirement fight against friend and mentor Liz Carmouche for the belt: "I have four fights left on this contract and that will be it for me"
Cole Shelton - August 8, 2022
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane will be looking to return to the win column in a big way at Bellator 284. Macfarlane ended her nearly year-and-a-half layoff back in April in Hawaii and suffered a decision loss to Justine Kish. After the loss, Macfarlane told Bellator she wanted to return as soon as possible and got her wish as she will face Bruna Ellen on Friday night.
Patricio Pitbull vs. Adam Borics, A.J. McKee lightweight debut set for Bellator 286
Josh Evanoff - August 3, 2022
Patricio Pitbull, Adam Borics, and A.J. McKee have been added to Bellator 286 in October. In April, the Brazilian faced off with ‘Mercenary’ for the second time. They first faced off at Bellator 263 in July 2021, with the Bellator featherweight title on the line. That outing saw McKee capture the strap with a stunning first-round submission victory.