Tag: Bellator News

Fedor Emelianenko Could Fight JDS or Alistair Overeem in Return

Fedor EmelianenkoFedor Emelianenko is reportedly interested in fighting either Junior Dos Santos or Alistair Overeem for his return to Bellator later this year in Russia. Overeem and Dos Santos were released by the UFC earlier this year in a series of cuts by the promotion. Both fighters lost their last bouts with the UFC after long […]

Fedor Emelianenko

Fedor Emelianenko is reportedly interested in fighting either Junior Dos Santos or Alistair Overeem for his return to Bellator later this year in Russia.

Overeem and Dos Santos were released by the UFC earlier this year in a series of cuts by the promotion. Both fighters lost their last bouts with the UFC after long tenures that included knockout finishes and heavyweight title runs.

Emelianenko announced his desire to return to Bellator later this year after an 18-month hiatus from the sport. On his way into retirement, he knocked out former UFC champion Quinton “Rampage” Jackson at Bellator 237 in Japan.

Bellator president Scott Coker spoke during his Bellator 261 post-fight media availability about possibilities for Emelianenko’s return to the octagon; including Overeem, Dos Santos, and Josh Barnett.

“Believe me, there is no shortage of opponents (for) Russia right now. Listen, the managers of all the free agents are calling. Josh Barnett was texting me today. I talked to (Junior Dos Santos’) manager a couple of days ago. Alistair Overeem. The list goes on and on and on,” Coker told MMA Junkie.

The 44-year-old Emelianenko is widely regarded as the greatest heavyweight martial artist of all time, and one of the greatest overall regardless of division and weight. Despite being past his prime due to his age, he has won three of his past five fights with his only losses to current Bellator heavyweight champion Ryan Bader and Matt Mitrione.

Emelianenko made the move to Bellator back in 2017 after long stints in Fight Nights Global, Strikeforce, and M-1 Global. He has accumulated an incredible professional fighting record of 39-6 over his career since his MMA debut back in 2000.

21 years after making his debut in Russia, Emelianenko will return to compete in his native country for his return to the sport of MMA. Regardless of who his opponent may be for his return bout, all eyes will be on Russia as one of the greatest legends in the sport comes back to compete.

How excited are you for Fedor Emelianenko’s return to Bellator? Who do you think he should fight next?

Joe Schilling KO’s Bar-Goer During ‘Life-Threatening’ Altercation, Claims ‘Self Defence’

SchillingFormer Bellator MMA middleweight, Joe ‘Stitch ’em Up’ Schilling has been involved in an altercation with a bar patron, in which he knocks out the man, in a video recorded over the course of last weekend. In the below video, Schilling, who is filmed walking into the patron who is standing by the bar in the […]

Schilling

Former Bellator MMA middleweight, Joe ‘Stitch ’em Up’ Schilling has been involved in an altercation with a bar patron, in which he knocks out the man, in a video recorded over the course of last weekend.

In the below video, Schilling, who is filmed walking into the patron who is standing by the bar in the middle of a walk-way, before turning and confronting the man, who appears to make a lunge toward the kickboxer, before he is punched twice, resulting in a rather vicious knockout. As the video comes to an end, Schilling is seen walking away from the bar-goer, who is now on the ground, unconscious, as bystanders attend to him.

Schilling, 37, initially posted the video on his official Instagram account, before removing the footage of the altercation. 

The Ohio native posted a follow-up on Instagram, reacting to his post’s deletion by the social media network, claiming that the United States isn’t about “self defence” anymore.

“Self defence is apparently now what this country is about anymore,” Schilling posted. “Don’t trip I got the video love you guys thanks for the concern and support during my life-threatening experience. Big shout out to @theyardmuaythai for preparing me for this life-threatening situation. #f*ckracists.“

In another post, this time a story on his official page, Schilling claimed he isn’t someone who will attempt to calm people down or de-escalate a situation; “if you think I’m going to be the guy to calm everything down, you got me f*cked up,” Schilling posted. “I’m here for the show.“

At the time of publication, it’s currently unknown if Schilling, who is currently plying his trade with Sanford MMA in Deerfield, Florida has been arrested in relation to the altercation, or if charges have been pressed against the kickboxer.

Schilling holds a 23-9 professional kickboxing record, scoring victories over the likes of Chidi Njokuani, Artem Levin, Wayne Barrett, Jason Wilnis. The Ohio-born striker won the 2013 GLORY middleweight world championship tournament. 

A 10-fight professional mixed martial arts veteran, Schilling holds a 4-6 record, competing six-times for the Scott Coker-led Bellator MMA banner.

Fedor Emelianenko Returns For Bellator’s First Russian Event

Fedor EmelianenkoFedor Emelianenko will make his long-awaited return to the cage this year, as Bellator welcomes the legend back at its first event on Russian soil. Bellator made the announcement today ahead of Bellator 261 this evening at Mohegan Sun Arena. As the main event of Bellator 261 features Tim Johnson and Valentin Voldavsky facing off […]

Fedor Emelianenko

Fedor Emelianenko will make his long-awaited return to the cage this year, as Bellator welcomes the legend back at its first event on Russian soil.

Bellator made the announcement today ahead of Bellator 261 this evening at Mohegan Sun Arena. As the main event of Bellator 261 features Tim Johnson and Valentin Voldavsky facing off for the interim heavyweight title, the announcement of the former heavyweight king returning is timely.

Emelianenko has been away from the sport for almost two years. In his last appearance, Emelianenko knocked out Quentin “Rampage” Jackson in the first round of Bellator 237. He had been unable to regain the heavyweight title earlier in the year, losing the 2019 Heavyweight Grand Prix Championship to reigning heavyweight king Ryan Bader. There had been talks of a Fedor retirement tour. However, the pandemic struck, and plans for the tour never materialized.

The tour may not have happened, but Emelianenko will do something he has not done thus far in his illustrious career. On October 23, 2021, at VTB Arena in Moscow, Russia, Fedor Emelianenko will compete for Bellator in his home country for the first time. When asked how important this was to him, Emelianenko was all smiles.

“Of course it was very important to me,” said Emelianenko.  

“I like to represent my country and it [is] very exciting for the Russian fans, because [it will be] the first time that Bellator [comes] to Russia. All the fans [will] get to see their favorite fighters live for the first time.”

As exciting as the event will be for fans, there are still significant questions that must be answered. Bellator has not revealed any other fights on the card. They also have not announced who will stand across from Emelianenko in the cage. For his part, Emelianenko is not interested in calling out any one fighter.

“Oh, yeah. You know, I got a lot of names in my head, but it’s up to Bellator. But for now, I’m just figuring through names. But again, it is up to Bellator or the people.”

As we await confirmation of his opponent, one thing is sure. We are all happy to see Fedor Emelianenko back in the cage.

Who would you like to see Fedor Emelianenko face in Bellator’s first Russian event?

Fedor Emelianenko Set To Make Bellator Return In October

Fedor EmelianenkoOne of MMA’s all-time greats will make his return in October, when Fedor Emelianenko will compete at an unnamed Bellator event. Ariel Helwani has reported that ‘The Last Emperor’s return will be made official by the promotion on Friday. An opponent and venue for the event have yet to be named. It will be Emelianenko’s […]

Fedor Emelianenko

One of MMA’s all-time greats will make his return in October, when Fedor Emelianenko will compete at an unnamed Bellator event.

Ariel Helwani has reported that ‘The Last Emperor’s return will be made official by the promotion on Friday. An opponent and venue for the event have yet to be named. It will be Emelianenko’s first time competing since he claimed a victory over Rampage Jackson at Bellator 237 in December 2019.

Emelianenko will be 45 by the time he steps into the cage again. At this point in his career, he is no longer considered a true title contender, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t a number of interesting fights that await him in the cage. Most notably, recently released former UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos has been rumored to be joining the Bellator ranks, and a fight between the two superstars would be one of the biggest the organization could put together. There were even reports earlier this year that the two were set to meet at an event in Russia.

Dos Santos fell on hard times to end his run in the UFC. He has lost his last 4 fights, dropping all of them by way of TKO. Still, his name holds value and he was in the UFC title picture as recently as June 2019. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that a change of scenery and a little luck could find him with a belt around his waist once more.

Whoever Emelianenko ends up fighting, it is sure to draw the attention of the entire MMA community. The former Pride heavyweight champion has still proven to be a draw, and has amassed a respectable 5-2 record since coming out of retirement in December 2015. His return means he obviously believes he still has something left in the tank, so let’s hope that his return will see him look in recent form.

Who do you want to see Fedor Emelianenko fight in October? Let us know!

Official – Patricio Pitbull vs. A.J. McKee Headlines Bellator 263 On July 31

PitbullThe Bellator featherweight Grand Prix finale between two-weight champion, Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire, and the #1 ranked featherweight contender, A.J. ‘Mercenary’ McKee has finally got its landing pad — in the form of a main event tilt at Bellator 263 from Los Angeles, California on July 31.  Headlining the promotion’s return to California, Pitbull looks to […]

Pitbull

The Bellator featherweight Grand Prix finale between two-weight champion, Patricio ‘Pitbull’ Freire, and the #1 ranked featherweight contender, A.J. ‘Mercenary’ McKee has finally got its landing pad — in the form of a main event tilt at Bellator 263 from Los Angeles, California on July 31. 

Headlining the promotion’s return to California, Pitbull looks to lodge the sixth successful defence of his undisputed featherweight championship under the Scott Coker-led banner, following his most recent win over two-time foe, Emanuel Sanchez at Bellator 255 in April — stopping the Milwaukee native with a first round guillotine.

For Long Beach standout, McKee, he’ll make his 18. walk under the Bellator banner, attempting to lift gold at the first time of asking, after a hugely innovative hybrid neck crank finish over former bantamweight gold holder, Darrion Caldwell at Bellator 253 in November of 2019. McKee currently holds a perfect professional record of 17-0. MMA Fighting reporters, Guilherme Cruz and Damon Martin were first to report the finale bout, whilst Bellator officials confirmed the matchup this afternoon. 

Riding a seven-fight undefeated streak into the tournament finale, Pitbull began the featherweight Grand Prix with a unanimous decision win over former bantamweight champion, Juan Archuleta back in September of 2019 before progressing into the quarter final stage where he defended his crown with a quickfire one-punch knockout over Straight Blast Gym mainstay, Pedro Carvalho.

A Bellator feature since his 13. professional fight dating back to April of 2010, Freire has also lodged other notable victories against the likes of Wilson Reis (x2), Georgi Karakhanyan, Daniel Straus (x3), Daniel Weichel (x2), Pat Curran, Henry Corrales, and took the lightweight championship from recent UFC lightweight title challenger, three-time Bellator gold holder, Michael Chandler.

On route to his final appearance, McKee, the son of Bellator feature, the veteran, Antonio McKee — has managed to notch wins over contenders, common-foe, Georgi Karakhanyan and promotional alum, Derek Campos. 

With six knockouts to go with another six submission successes, McKee has been a Bellator staple since his professional debut back in April of 2015 — spending his 17-fight career under their banner. 

Yaroslav Amosov Dethrones Douglas Lima – Bellator 260 Highlights

Yaroslav AmosovIn the Bellator 260 main event a new welterweight champion was crowned as Yaroslav Amosov put on a dominant performance over five rounds to dethrone Douglas Lima. Amosov closed the distance and wrestled Lima to the mat in each and every round. The undefeated Ukranian fighter was able to control on top and land enough […]

Yaroslav Amosov

In the Bellator 260 main event a new welterweight champion was crowned as Yaroslav Amosov put on a dominant performance over five rounds to dethrone Douglas Lima.

Amosov closed the distance and wrestled Lima to the mat in each and every round. The undefeated Ukranian fighter was able to control on top and land enough damage to avoid being stood up by the referee. Any time spent on the feet was easily dealt with by Amosov who stayed out of trouble. The only slight moment of success for Lima came with 30 seconds left as he threatened with a submission, but Amosov eventually escaped and claimed the victory.

This loss brings an end to Lima’s third reign as the Bellator welterweight champion. Amosov stretched his perfect record to 26-0 while claiming the 170lb strap.

Check out the highlights from the Bellator 260 main event.

Do you think Yaroslav Amosov will enjoy a long reign as champion?