Tag: Bellator

Paul Daley Is Bellator’s Problem Now


(“Let’s fight like men, okay? No leg kicks, takedowns, submissions, or any punches that aren’t blind haymakers.”)

Remember when we said that Bellator’s roster is “becoming a dumping ground for disgraced former Zuffa prospects“? (We were specifically talking about heavyweights then, but still.) The latest word out of Rebneyville is that welterweight bad boy Paul Daley — who had recently asked to be released from his Strikeforce contract because they weren’t giving him enough fights — has been signed by Bellator. Daley’s promotional debut will take place at Bellator 72, July 20th at the University of South Florida’s Sun Dome in Tampa. Said Bjorn Rebney via press release:

“I’ve been a Semtex fan for years. He’s an incredibly explosive fighter who is magic to watch inside the cage. So, when the opportunity presented itself to join forces with Paul, it was a simple decision to make. Paul’s one of those fighters I’ve always intentionally stayed home to watch and now I can watch him cageside at Bellator.”

Though Rebney deserves to be excited about signing a well-known knockout artist like Daley, two factors might stall out Semtex’s success in the Bellator cage:


(“Let’s fight like men, okay? No leg kicks, takedowns, submissions, or any punches that aren’t blind haymakers.”)

Remember when we said that Bellator’s roster is “becoming a dumping ground for disgraced former Zuffa prospects“? (We were specifically talking about heavyweights then, but still.) The latest word out of Rebneyville is that welterweight bad boy Paul Daley — who had recently asked to be released from his Strikeforce contract because they weren’t giving him enough fights — has been signed by Bellator. Daley’s promotional debut will take place at Bellator 72, July 20th at the University of South Florida’s Sun Dome in Tampa. Said Bjorn Rebney via press release:

“I’ve been a Semtex fan for years. He’s an incredibly explosive fighter who is magic to watch inside the cage. So, when the opportunity presented itself to join forces with Paul, it was a simple decision to make. Paul’s one of those fighters I’ve always intentionally stayed home to watch and now I can watch him cageside at Bellator.”

Though Rebney deserves to be excited about signing a well-known knockout artist like Daley, two factors might stall out Semtex’s success in the Bellator cage:

1) Missing weight, which he’s unfortunately done four times since 2010. As we’ve seen during their most recent season, Bellator has a zero-tolerance policy for tournament fighters blowing it on the scale. And…

2) Dealing with wrestlers (see his losses to Josh Koscheck and Tyron Woodley). If Paul was pissed off at being blanketed by Koscheck for three rounds, oh man, just wait until he finds out about Ben Askren.

Daley most recently dropped a split-decision to Kazuo Misaki at Strikeforce: Tate vs. Rousey in March, which was his third consecutive loss under the Strikeforce banner. Prior to the Misaki fight, he had won a pair of decisions last fall over Jordan Radev (at BAMMA 7) and Luigi Fioravanti (at Ringside MMA 12). Any suggestions for Daley’s first opponent in Bellator?

Paul Daley Finds New Organization to Miss Weight With, Signs with Bellator

Paul Daley, as most of us know, is not the best fighter in the world when it comes to making weight.Since 2010, Daley has missed a regulated weight four times, in bouts against Dustin Hazelett, Jorge Masvidal, Yuya Shirai and Jordan Radev. He’s done so…

Paul Daley, as most of us know, is not the best fighter in the world when it comes to making weight.

Since 2010, Daley has missed a regulated weight four times, in bouts against Dustin Hazelett, Jorge Masvidal, Yuya Shirai and Jordan Radev. He’s done so in three different companies: the UFC, Shark Fights and BAMMA. 

That makes it all the more curious why Daley has chosen to sign with Bellator Fighting Championship and start fighting in their signature tournaments. Daley was granted his release from Zuffa-owned Strikeforce last week.

From MMAFighting.com’s Mike Chiappetta:

Bellator continued its aggressive plunge into the free agent pool, signing UFC and Strikeforce veteran Paul Daley.

The promotion confirmed the addition of the British knockout artist to MMA Fighting on Friday.

Daley will make his organizational debut at Bellator 72 on July 20.

The news is interesting because participants in Bellator tournaments must be capable of making weight every four weeks or so over the duration of the tournament. Daley hasn’t been able to shed pounds even when he has eight weeks to prepare. Attempting to do the same thing once a month sounds like a recipe for disaster.

I’m not saying Daley isn’t capable of making weight. He’s done so more times than not over the course of his career.

But he’s going to have to dedicate himself to the cause. Take the time before his actual tournament debut—which won’t be his July 20 organizational debut—and shed weight.

He needs to get to a manageable level and stay there during the entirety of the tourney. 

If he doesn’t, he won’t end up embarrassing himself. He’s proven over the past few years that doing his part and making weight isn’t all that important to him. But he’ll end up embarrassing Bellator if he comes into the tournament, makes it to the finals and then comes in overweight.

Nobody wants that.

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MMA: Invicta FC Will Be Bigger Than Bellator in 5 Years

Invicta FC held its inaugural event earlier this year with a dynamite main event between Marloes Coenen and Romy Ruyssen. The all-female event also featured former title challenger Liz Carmouche and an exciting war between Leslie Smith and Ka…

Invicta FC held its inaugural event earlier this year with a dynamite main event between Marloes Coenen and Romy Ruyssen. The all-female event also featured former title challenger Liz Carmouche and an exciting war between Leslie Smith and Kaitlin Young.

The event streamed live on the promotion’s website and was a fairly popular trend among the MMA community on Twitter.

The promotion already has a second event scheduled for July 28, which shows the promotion will make good on its intent of keeping the women fighters active. As of right now, only Strikeforce and Bellator are the major promotions that showcase women fighters.

While there’s no doubt that Strikeforce is the number two destination in the world for MMA fighters and fans, its third place ranking could see a shift as Invicta FC continues to grow.

The Chicago-based Bellator has long been playing second fiddle to the UFC and, for the most part, is considered the third best promotion in North America. While I think Bellator puts on great events, I can foresee a promotion like Invicta FC surpassing the company in a handful of years.

How can an all-female promotion possibly do better than a promotion that features both women and men? It’s actually very simple.

MMA fans know when they watch Bellator that it is nothing more than a filler until the next UFC/Strikeforce event. Aside from a handful of fights (you could honestly count them on two hands or less), Bellator bouts haven’t so much as cracked the list of top fights in a year.

Although the promotion doesn’t compete outright with the UFC, there’s no doubt Bellator is always competing to attempt to be the top promotion. It’s an uphill battle that Bellator will likely never achieve.

Invicta FC, on the other hand, can offer fans something they won’t get on a UFC event or even on a regular basis for Strikeforce shows: Women’s MMA. I’ve met all kinds of MMA fans who are both for and against it, but the fact remains WMMA is sort of a “niche-within-a-niche” sport.

If Invicta FC can continue putting on shows on a regular basis with top talent like their first show, WMMA fans will tune in to see their favorite stars compete. Instead of offering “B-level” talent in the mens division, Invicta FC can offer a great selection of WMMA bouts.

Of course, Strikeforce remains the go-to place for the top stars in WMMA. But for the ladies who aren’t guaranteed a spot on a card, such as the ladies whose last names aren’t Rousey or Tate, Invicta FC will give them a place to grow their stock in the rankings and remain active.

The final point I’ll make about Invicta FC’s potential chances at rising as a top promotion lays in the product itself. I’m by no means condoning this advertisement method, but the top demographic for MMA is the young adult males age group.

In case people forgot, these young adult males have plenty of hormones going through their body, and seeing two attractive women compete is something that can appeal to that demographic. We saw it with the Rousey-Tate matchup, in which the women’s looks were brought up as a reason for the success of the pre-fight hype.

I’m certainly not saying Invicta FC will become a huge promotion in North America; that would be a bit of hyperbole, given the promotion’s young history. But they can certainly become a top promotion for WMMA and give fans something they can’t find on TV every weekend.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Brett Rogers Signs with Bellator

It seems like a decade ago that Brett Rogers took his 10-0 record into a fight with Fedor Emelianenko. In reality, only two-and-a-half years have passed.Rogers’ MMA career took a nosedive after his loss to Emelianenko. Over his last five fights, Rogers…

It seems like a decade ago that Brett Rogers took his 10-0 record into a fight with Fedor Emelianenko. In reality, only two-and-a-half years have passed.

Rogers’ MMA career took a nosedive after his loss to Emelianenko. Over his last five fights, Rogers has a record of 1-4, with his only win coming against Ruben Villareal, who owns a career record of 20-24.

Now it appears Rogers is going to try and put his career back on the map. MMAFighting.com is reporting that Rogers has signed with Bellator. His first fight will take place on June 22 at Bellator 71.

Rogers is saying all the right things as he heads into his first fight with Bellator:

“Over the past year I have been challenged in my personal life, but all is now good in the Rogers family. Everyone makes mistakes in life but it’s how you recover that really counts. I spend every day with my wife and kids and enjoy every minute of it. Fighting is my job and I love it, but I also love my family and that’s why I made things right before returning to the cage. All I can say is get ready for a new and improved Brett Rogers.”

One has to be encouraged whenever somebody claims to have worked out personal issues, but it doesn’t mean Rogers’ recent poor performance in the cage was entirely due to distractions.

Was the 10-0 start to Rogers’ career legitimate, or was it simply a case of him being matched up against inferior opponents? If he is going to add credibility to his career, it’s going to start at Bellator 71.

 

Joe Chacon is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and a Staff Writer for Operation Sports. You can follow him on Twitter @JoeChacon.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Brett Rogers Signs With Bellator, Debut Scheduled for June 22nd


(Man, 2009, right? Crazy times. / Image via City Pages)

Bellator sent out a press release this morning announcing that they’ve signed struggling slugger Brett Rogers, who will make his promotional debut at Bellator 71, June 22nd in Chester, West Virginia. “I am incredibly thankful to Bjorn Rebney and Bellator for giving me and my family this opportunity,” Rogers said. “I feel that I am still one of the top heavyweights in the sport and now I have the opportunity to prove it with Bellator. I love the tournament format as it will give me the chance to regain my top position, of course with a lot hard work.”

Rogers’s opponent for the June 22nd card hasn’t been announced yet, but his tournament ambitions will have until this fall; Bellator 71 is slated to host the quarterfinals of their 2012 Summer Series Light-Heavyweight tournament, featuring Travis Wiuff, Zelg Galesic, and Richard Hale.

After starting his career with ten consecutive wins — all by strikes within the first two rounds — Rogers hit a dramatic rough patch in which he lost three straight fights under the Strikeforce banner, got arrested and convicted for beating up his wife, then dropped a split-decision to Eddie Sanchez at Titan FC 20. Most recently, Rogers fought a 2-1 gym-owner named Todd Allee to a no-contest at Donofrio Entertainment’s “My Bloody Valentine” show; in his attempt to finish Allee on the ground, Rogers landed an illegal blow to the back his opponent’s head that Allee wasn’t able to recover from.

As Rogers explains in the press release:


(Man, 2009, right? Crazy times. / Image via City Pages)

Bellator sent out a press release this morning announcing that they’ve signed struggling slugger Brett Rogers, who will make his promotional debut at Bellator 71, June 22nd in Chester, West Virginia. “I am incredibly thankful to Bjorn Rebney and Bellator for giving me and my family this opportunity,” Rogers said. “I feel that I am still one of the top heavyweights in the sport and now I have the opportunity to prove it with Bellator. I love the tournament format as it will give me the chance to regain my top position, of course with a lot hard work.”

Rogers’s opponent for the June 22nd card hasn’t been announced yet, but his tournament ambitions will have until this fall; Bellator 71 is slated to host the quarterfinals of their 2012 Summer Series Light-Heavyweight tournament, featuring Travis Wiuff, Zelg Galesic, and Richard Hale.

After starting his career with ten consecutive wins — all by strikes within the first two rounds — Rogers hit a dramatic rough patch in which he lost three straight fights under the Strikeforce banner, got arrested and convicted for beating up his wife, then dropped a split-decision to Eddie Sanchez at Titan FC 20. Most recently, Rogers fought a 2-1 gym-owner named Todd Allee to a no-contest at Donofrio Entertainment’s “My Bloody Valentine” show; in his attempt to finish Allee on the ground, Rogers landed an illegal blow to the back his opponent’s head that Allee wasn’t able to recover from.

As Rogers explains in the press release:

“Over the past year I have been challenged in my personal life, but all is now good in the Rogers family. Everyone makes mistakes in life but it’s how you recover that really counts. I spend every day with my wife and kids and enjoy every minute of it. Fighting is my job and I love it, but I also love my family and that’s why I made things right before returning to the cage. All I can say is get ready for a new and improved Brett Rogers.”

Added Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney:

“I was in Chicago the night Brett Rogers came within just a few punches of dethroning The Last Emperor on a worldwide stage and I watched early in his career when he was a KO machine. Brett’s management’s been talking to us for months about Brett. And, after talking to Brett at length, I think this could be the type of fresh start he needs to put his fighting career and other parts of his life back to where he hoped they would be.”

Rogers’s entry into Bellator could also add some much-needed name value to a thin heavyweight roster that hasn’t exactly captured the imaginations of MMA fans and is becoming a dumping ground for disgraced former Zuffa prospects. Can Da Grim recapture some of his old magic on a smaller stage, now that his personal troubles are behind him? Or will he get smacked down as soon as he rises to the top of the Bellator food chain?

Good News of the Day: Blagoi Ivanov Recovered from Coma, Released from Hospital

Earlier this year, the future of undefeated Bellator heavyweight prospect Blagoi Ivanov appeared uncertain for the most unfortunate of reasons. However, Sherdog.com is reporting that Ivanov has made a “miraculous recovery” over the past ten days, and has been released from Pirogov Hospital in Sofia, Bulgaria. Ivanov will still require treatment, but is determined to eventually fight again.

In February, Blagoi Ivanov was attending the after party of a boxing tournament when a fight broke out. Ivanov attempted to break up the fight when he and two of his friends were attacked by eight men carrying guns and knives. While his friends only suffered minor injuries, Ivanov was stabbed in the armpit, with the blade piercing his heart.

Earlier this year, the future of undefeated Bellator heavyweight prospect Blagoi Ivanov appeared uncertain for the most unfortunate of reasons. However, Sherdog.com is reporting that Ivanov has made a “miraculous recovery” over the past ten days, and has been released from Pirogov Hospital in Sofia, Bulgaria. Ivanov will still require treatment, but is determined to eventually fight again.

In February, Blagoi Ivanov was attending the after party of a boxing tournament when a fight broke out. Ivanov attempted to break up the fight when he and two of his friends were attacked by eight men carrying guns and knives. While his friends only suffered minor injuries, Ivanov was stabbed in the armpit, with the blade piercing his heart.

While surgery immediately following the stabbing was successful, Ivanov was placed in a medically-induced coma and remained on life support six weeks after the stabbing. At the time, his physicians did not comment on whether or not they expected him to fully recover from the attack.

Blagoi Ivanov’s 23-year-old assailant is being held indefinitely on charges of attempted murder. His defense team is claiming self-defense, but Ivanov’s friends insist that the attack was unprovoked.

Blagoi Ivanov first appeared on our radar in 2008, when he defeated the seemingly-indestructible (at the time) Fedor Emelianenko in a Sambo match on points (8-5) in the semi-finals of the World Combat Sambo Championships. Ivanov would go on to win the gold medal, and eventually transition to MMA. He racked up a 3-0 record (1 NC) before being signed by Bellator, where he would knock out William Penn in just over two and a half minutes at Bellator 38 and choke out TUF 10 alum Zak Jensen at Bellator 52. His most recent fight was a third round TKO over former UFC Heavyweight Champion Ricco Rodriguez on Christmas Eve, 2011 in Chekhov, Russia.

Doctors expect his recovery to take six months to a year. We’ll keep you up to date on his recovery.