Bellator News

Cole Shelton - January 25, 2022

Benson Henderson knows people are counting him out but he’s eager for the challenge of facing Islam Mamedov at Bellator 273. Henderson is set to fight Mamedov in the co-main event, and even though the former UFC champion is on a three-fight losing skid, he’s fighting the presumed number one contender. Although many were surprised by the fight booking, Henderson says he asked for the fight as he wants to get back in the title picture.

Fernando Quiles - January 23, 2022

Maiquel Falcao, who once competed under the UFC and Bellator banners, has died after being stabbed in Pelotas, Brazil. Gaucha ZH reports that Falcao was stabbed in the stomach outside of a bar. The incident is said to have occurred around 3 a.m. local time. Falcao was taken to a hospital but he has passed away.

Harry Kettle - January 3, 2022

Bellator president Scott Coker has cast a shadow of doubt over the immediate future of Dillon Danis and Anthony Johnson in the promotion. There are plenty of reasons for fans of Bellator to feel hopeful as we begin 2022. The last twelve months have seen them continue to flourish with high-profile title fights, big signings and successful tournaments.

Christopher Taylor - January 1, 2022

MMA Journalist Ariel Helwani ruthlessly trolled Dillon Danis after the Bellator fighter labeled him a “b*tch” for supporting Jake Paul. Earlier this afternoon Helwani captioned Paul’s ‘real challenge’ to Dana White with the words “Bigger dub”.

Christopher Taylor - December 5, 2021

Scott Coker says that Bellator is not currently interested in signing free agent Kevin Lee following his UFC release. The former interim lightweight title challenger, Lee (18-7 MMA), was let go by Dana White and company last week after suffering setbacks in four of his past five Octagon appearances.

Chris Taylor - December 4, 2021

Kyoji Horiguchi has provided fans with an update following his nasty knockout loss to Sergio Pettis last night at Bellator 272. Pettis (21-5 MMA) and Horiguchi (29-3 MMA) squared off yesterday evening in Connecticut with the Bellator bantamweight title on the line.

Chris Taylor - December 3, 2021

Tonight’s Bellator 272 event was headlined by a highly anticipated title fight featuring Sergio Pettis taking on Kyoji Horiguchi. Pettis (21-5 MMA) was looking to earn his first career title defense when he took on former champion Horiguchi (29-3 MMA) this evening.

Chris Taylor - December 3, 2021

Sergio Pettis pulled off one of the craziest comebacks in recent memory when he knocked out Kyoji Horiguchi in tonight’s Bellator 272 main event. Pettis (21-5 MMA) was looking to earn his first career title defense when he took on former champion Horiguchi (29-3 MMA) this evening.

Adam D Martin - November 28, 2021

Bellator women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg explained in a recent interview how leaving the UFC for Bellator saved her MMA career. Cyborg was the former UFC women’s featherweight champion, but after losing her belt to Amanda Nunes, her relationship with the UFC and its president Dana White started to worsen. After Cyborg beat Felicia Spencer in 2019, the UFC released her from her contract after White said she was not easy to work with. Not long after that, Cyborg signed with Bellator, where she has been competing ever since with four wins, all of them by stoppage.

Adam D Martin - November 26, 2021

Newly-crowned Bellator lightweight champion Patricky Pitbull pointed out the next challengers for his Bellator lightweight title. Pitbull recently won Bellator’s vacant 155lbs title when he knocked out Peter Queally. The belt was recently vacated by his brother Patricio Pitbull, who let go of his lightweight belt in order to focus on his rematch with AJ McKee for the featherweight crown.

Adam D Martin - November 25, 2021

Former Bellator and UFC heavyweight contender Matt Mitrione explained why he is “done with MMA” following his three-fight losing skid. Mitrione recently was finished by Tyrell Fortune in Bellator for his third straight loss and his fifth fight without a win in the promotion. Bellator released Mitrione, and he now takes on Alexander Flores in Triad Combat. Speaking to MMAFighting.com’s The MMA Hour, Mitrione admitted that he is probably done with MMA now, and he explained exactly why.

Drake Riggs - November 24, 2021

Kyoji Horiguchi is a man on a mission. The current RIZIN FF 135-pound bantamweight king recaptured the title he never officially lost on New Year’s Eve 2020 and hasn’t fought since. Now, Horiguchi has signed with Bellator in a rare deal that sees him remain the RIZIN champ and seeks the other title he relinquished when sidelined in all of 2020 recovering from an ACL tear.

Drake Riggs - November 22, 2021

Gabi Garcia isn’t buying the Kayla Harrison hype. The 31-year old two-time Olympic Judo gold medalist in Harrison is currently testing the free agency waters after an 11-0 career in the PFL (12-0 overall). When it comes to likely options, the UFC, Bellator, or returning to the promotion where she’s won two million-dollar titles seem most likely

Adam D Martin - November 21, 2021

Bellator women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg says she is interested in facing Cat Zingano next, saying it would be a “great fight.” Cyborg is coming off of a quick first-round KO win over Sinead Kavanagh at Bellator 271. For Cyborg, she is currently riding a five-fight win streak including a four-fight winning streak since she joined Bellator with four wins coming by way of knockout. Cyborg has looked absolutely phenomenal so far in Bellator and she is excited to get back out there and perform. Following her quick win over Kavanagh, Cyborg is now looking ahead at who she could potentially be facing next, and Zingano seems to be the ideal opponent for her.

Christopher Taylor - November 20, 2021

Jake Hager has refuted Jon Jones’ claim that they are set to compete in a grappling match at next month’s ‘Fury Pro Grappling’ event. Earlier this afternoon Jones (26-1 MMA) took to social media where he suggested that he was set to compete in a grappling match opposite the undefeated Bellator heavyweight on December 9th.

Chris Taylor - November 20, 2021

Jon Jones will be returning to action under the Fury Grappling banner for a bout with undefeated Bellator heavyweight Jake Hager. The former UFC light heavyweight kingpin, Jones (26-1 MMA), announced the news just moments ago on social media.

Adam D Martin - November 14, 2021

MMA legend Cris Cyborg praised Sinead Kavanagh following her KO win at Bellator 271, calling her “One of the toughest women I’ve ever met.” Cyborg took on Kavanagh in the main event of this past Friday’s Bellator 271 event, and she won the fight in spectacular fashion when she knocked out Kavanagh in the first round. Take a look at the video of the knockout below. As you can see, Cyborg caught Kavanagh on the feet with a heavy blow, dropped her to the mat, then finished her with strikes.

Chris Taylor - November 13, 2021

Bellator is planning to have a ‘massive’ retirement fight for MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko in his home country of Russia. Emelianenko (40-6 MMA) recently returned to action at last month’s Bellator 269 event, where he scored a sensational knockout victory over Tim Johnson (see that here). The win marked Fedor’s second first round finish in a row, as he had previously stopped Quinton ‘Rampage‘ Jackson.