Bellator MMA got off to a scorching start to its 2021 campaign, staging three events in as many weeks in the month of April, which included a couple of title fights and the several opening round match ups to it’s Light Heavyweight Grand Prix.
kicking things off was Bellator 255, which saw current “champ champ” Patricio Freire submit Emmanuel Sanchez (see it) to hold on to his Featherweight title and advance to the finals of The 145-pound Grand Prix against A.J. McKee.
The Following week, Ryan Bader defeated Lyoto Machida to retain his Light Heavyweight belt and advanced to the next round of the division’s 205-pound tournament (see it here). He will face Corey Anderson, who stopped Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov the following week at Bellator 257. Also on that card, division king Vadim Nemkov eliminated Phil Davis’s hopes at winning the belt and $1 million after outworking him for five rounds (highlights).
Along the way, there were several knockouts and submissions that took place on all three cards, and Bellator has put together a highlight reel of all of the best stoppage wins (such as this one and this one) ahead of it’s pending return on May 7 with Bellator 258. The event will feature a Bantamweight title fight between division champion Juan Archuleta and Sergio Pettis. Also, Yoel Romero and Anthony Johnson throw down in the final opening round fight of the Light Heavyweight Grand Prix.
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