Bellator MMA’s Bantamweight World Grand Prix got off to a sizzling start tonight (Sat., April 23, 2022) at Bellator 279 in Honolulu, Hawaii, with Patchy Mix upsetting Kyoji Horiguchi in the opening fight. But it was the co-main event fight that had people buzzing.
Raufeon Stots and Juan Archuleta squared off in what was an interim Bantamweight title fight, as well as a quarterfinal bout after Sergio Pettis was bounced out of the tournament with an injury.
Archuleta look solid in the opening two rounds, scoring takedown and being quicker to the punch than “Super,” though Stots did have some shining moments of his own. In the opening seconds of round three, however, Stots unleashed a huge kick that dropped Archuleta. A few follow up shots later and Stots was the new interim champion.
Once the replay rolled out, it was clear that a knee was what caught “The Spaniard” on the head, sending him tumbling down to his demise. Stots now moves on to the semifinals and is one step closer to a shot at $1 million and a title unification bout against Pettis, who is his teammate.
For complete Bellator 279 play-by-play updates and results click here