Bellator News

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.

Adam D Martin - August 30, 2020

Bellator double champion Patricio Pitbull fired back at Dan Hooker after the two got into a back-and-forth about a potential crossover fight. Pitbull is currently the Bellator lightweight and featherweight champion, but in the last few weeks, he has taken to social media to call out numerous members of the UFC roster including UFC featherweight champion Alex Volkanovski and his teammate Hooker. Although Pitbull is currently under contract with Bellator, he hasn’t fought in close to a year and is clearly getting frustrated waiting around. While Pitbull is one of the Bellator’s top home-grown talents, it seems obvious he is interested in fighting UFC fighters.

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.

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.

Harry Kettle - August 25, 2020

Patricio “Pitbull” Freire is willing to bet Dana White $1 million that he can beat Khabib Nurmagomedov and Alexander Volkanovski. The subject of UFC vs Bellator dream fights has always been present in the MMA community, especially in the last few years. While the last few days has seen a discussion commence regarding which promotion has the best light heavyweight division, it appears as if that’s starting to extend to some of the other weight classes too.

Adam Martin - August 23, 2020

Former Bellator light heavyweight champion Ryan Bader has released a statement following his brutal TKO loss to Vadim Nemkov. Bader saw his eight-fight unbeaten streak snapped at the hands of Nemkov, who brutally finished Bader in stunning fashion in the main event of Bellator 244. After dropping Bader with a high kick, Nemkov was able to unload punches until the referee was forced to step in and stop the fight, crowning Nemkov as the new Bellator light heavyweight champion.

Cole Shelton - August 21, 2020

Tim Johnson believes he has his confidence back. After going 4-3 in the UFC, Johnson signed with Bellator and in his debut fought Cheick Kongo. It was a big fight for him, and unfortunately, did not go his way as he suffered a knockout loss in just 68 seconds.

Cole Shelton - August 20, 2020

Andrew Kapel is looking to go 2-0 in Bellator. On the main card of Bellator 244, Kapel is returning following his November knockout win over King Mo. It was King Mo’s retirement fight, and now Kapel is excited to get back in the cage and try and beat another big name in John Salter.

Adam Martin - August 20, 2020

Bellator president Scott Coker has gone on record saying he believes Bellator has a superior light heavyweight division to the UFC. Coker and Bellator recently signed top-five light heavyweight Corey Anderson to a big-money free-agent deal, strengthening the division. Bellator light heavyweight champion Ryan Bader fights this Friday at Bellator 244 against top contender Vadim Nemkov, in what is an excellent matchup for the belt. Other light heavyweights in the promotion include Lyoto Machida and Phil Davis, who face each other in a rematch in September.

Tom Taylor - August 20, 2020

Fedor Emelianenko wants a rematch with Fabricio Werdum, and Bellator President Scott Coker is ready to “go make it happen” for the Russian legend. Emelianenko and Werdum first met in 2010, under the Strikeforce banner, with Werdum winning by submission in a shocking upset. Today, when Emelianenko is under contract with Bellator, and Werdum is a free agent, the timing for a rematch between the two heavyweight legends seems perfect.

Tom Taylor - August 20, 2020

Patricio Freire, who holds the Bellator featherweight and lightweight titles, expects his former foe Michael Chandler to sign with ONE Championship. Chandler, the former Bellator lightweight champ, recently concluded his current Bellator contract with a knockout win over former UFC lightweight champion Benson Henderson.

Tom Taylor - August 20, 2020

On Friday night, Bellator MMA will return to our screens with the stacked Bellator 244 card. The event, which will air on the Paramount Network and DAZN, will be topped by a light heavyweight title fight between the champ Ryan Bader, who also holds the promotion’s heavyweight strap, and challenger Vadim Nemkov.

Tom Taylor - August 20, 2020

Bellator light heavyweight champion Ryan Bader, who is gearing up for a title defense against Vadim Nemkov at Bellator 244, believes he could be the best light heavyweight competing right now. Bader, who was previously a top-5 UFC light heavyweight, believes that with Daniel Cormier retired, and Jon Jones moving up to heavyweight, he has legitimate claim to that lofty label.

Cole Shelton - August 19, 2020

John Salter thought he had done enough to earn a title shot following his last fight. With the Bellator middleweight title vacant and Gegard Mousasi not being able to get into the United States, he thought the timing was perfect for him to take on Douglas Lima. The 35-year-old is on a two-fight winning streak. He is also 7-1 in Bellator with his lone loss coming to Rafael Lovato Jr.

Tom Taylor - August 19, 2020

Former UFC bantamweight title challenger Cat Zingano has an opponent for her long-awaited debut in the Bellator MMA cage. According to Ariel Helwani of ESPN, Zingano will make her debut with the promotion on September 11, when she’ll take on Gabby Holloway.

Tom Taylor - August 16, 2020

UFC President Dana White would love to talk to former Bellator lightweight champion and new free agent “Iron” Michael Chandler. White was asked about Chandler, who recently reached the end of his latest Bellator contract, at the UFC 252 post-fight press conference.