Bellator MMA is back in London, England, and the interim welterweight title is on the line.
Flashy English striker Michael ‘Venom’ Page gets a home fight against Logan Storley in the main event. Initially ‘MVP’ was going to fight champ Yaroslav Amosov, but the ongoing war in Ukraine led to Amosov stepping away from competition indefinitely, hence the interim title. Even with Storley’s improved striking, this is very much a striker vs. wrestler/grappler matchup on paper.
Co-main event action sees legendary former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida take on Fabian Edwards (brother of UFC welterweight contender Leon Edwards) in a middleweight matchup. There will definitely be big cheers for Paul Daley, who will hang up the gloves after taking on short notice replacement Wendell Giacomo in his retirement bout.
Bellator 281 kicks off with a free live stream of the prelims, which can be watched at the top of the page starting at 1 PM ET/10 AM PT. Showtime has the main card at 4 PM ET/1 PM PT. You can watch the main card on Bellator’s YouTube channel if you live in other select international jurisdictions. BBC Three has this card for the United Kingdom viewers.
Main Card (4 PM ET, Showtime)
Logan Storley def. Michael Page via split decision (48-47, 47-48, 49-46) to win Bellator interim welterweight title
Fabian Edwards def. Lyoto Machida via KO (punches) at 3:18 of Round 1
Kana Watanabe def. Denise Kielholtz via submission (triangle choke) at 3:03 of Round 2
Paul Daley def. Wendell Giacomo via KO (punch) at 4:09 of Round 2
Simon Biyong def. Luke Trainer via unanimous decision (29-27, 28-27, 29-28)
Preliminary Card (1 PM ET, Online)
Daniel Weichel def. Robert Whiteford via KO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:12
Elina Kallionidou vs. Kate Jackson via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:53
Oliver Enkamp def. Mark Lemminger via submission (inverted triangle choke) at :25 of Round 3
Alfie Davis vs. Tim Wilde is declared a majority draw (29-27, 28-28, 28-28)
Andrew Fisher def. Attila Korkmaz via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Charlie Ward def. Alan Carlos via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-25)
Maciej Rozanski def. Lee Chadwick via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Chiara Penco def. Lanchana Green via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)