Tag: Michael Chandler

Bellator 160 Results: Benson Henderson Scores Shot At Michael Chandler, Bellator Title

No matter how it came about, Benson Henderson’s hand was raised as the winner Friday night in the main event of Bellator 160.

Henderson, a former UFC lightweight champion who lost his Bellator debut earlier this year to welterweight titleholder Andr…

Bellator 160

No matter how it came about, Benson Henderson’s hand was raised as the winner Friday night in the main event of Bellator 160.

Henderson, a former UFC lightweight champion who lost his Bellator debut earlier this year to welterweight titleholder Andrey Koreshkov, was awarded a second round TKO victory vs. Patricio “Pitbull” Freire after Freire suffered a broken shin.

Next up for “Smooth” will be Bellator champion Michael Chandler, who sat cage-side for the bout.

The co-main event went to the scorecards, as Derek Anderson defeated Saad Awad, while Georgi Karakhanyan made it 2-for-2 vs. Bubba Jenkins with a knockout in just 54 seconds.

Benson Henderson def. Patricio “Pitbull” Freire via TKO (leg injury) at 2:26 of Round 2

Derek Anderson def. Saad Awad via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Georgi Karakhanyan def. Bubba Jenkins via KO (strike) at :53 of Round 1

A.J. McKee def. Cody Walker via submission (guillotine choke) at :32 of Round 2

Joey Davis def. Keith Cutrone via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Gabriel Green def. Alex Trinidad via TKO (strikes) at 2:01 of Round 2

Andy Murad def. Johnny Cisneros via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Jacob Rosales def. Mike Segura via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Chinzo Machida def. Mario Navarro via TKO (strikes) at 2:57 of Round 1

Jake Roberts def. Stephen Martinez via TKO (strikes) at 4:24 of Round 1

Video: Bellator 157: Dynamite 2 Post-Fight Press Conference

https://youtu.be/KeBarlS3XTU

On Friday evening, Bellator MMA officials held their post-fight press conference following their Bellator 157: Dynamite 2 event from St. Louis, Missouri.

Embedded above is a complete video archive of the official Bell…

quinton-rampage-jackson-scr

https://youtu.be/KeBarlS3XTU

On Friday evening, Bellator MMA officials held their post-fight press conference following their Bellator 157: Dynamite 2 event from St. Louis, Missouri.

Embedded above is a complete video archive of the official Bellator 157 post-fight press conference, which features Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Michael Chandler and other fighters who competed on Friday night’s fight card.

For complete Bellator 157 results, click here.

Michael Chandler-Patricky Pitbull Will Steal The Show Under The Arch (Editorial)

Most of the hype around Friday night’s Bellator 157 event centers around Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Matt Mitrione.

The two are in separate bouts, as Jackson headlines in his return to Bellator against Satoshi Ishii, while Mitrione makes his promo…

michael-chandler

Most of the hype around Friday night’s Bellator 157 event centers around Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Matt Mitrione.

The two are in separate bouts, as Jackson headlines in his return to Bellator against Satoshi Ishii, while Mitrione makes his promotional debut against Carl Seumanutafa on Spike TV.

But the best fight on paper for the night is the co-main event.

Former Bellator champion Michael Chandler will try to wear the belt once more when he meets Patricky “Pitbull” Freire. The two have long been set to square off, but the fight took on more significance when the promotion released Will Brooks and put the belt up for grabs.

Chandler, a 30-year-old native of Missouri, has won two straight since a three-fight losing skid to Brooks (twice) and Eddie Alvarez. He has looked as his old self in demolishing David Rickels and Derek Campos.

Before his split decision defeat to Alvarez in 2013, Chandler (14-3) had won his first 12 pro bouts. That included wins over Alvarez, Rick Hawn and even Freire via decision five years ago.

A former University of Missouri wrestling standout, Chandler has scored 12 career finishes – six via knockout and six by submission.

Freire, the same age as Chandler, is on a two-fight win streak that includes a decision over Kevin Souza in April and a knockout of Ryan Couture to start the year. Overall, the Brazilian is 5-2 in his last seven, losing only via decision to Derek Anderson and Marcin Held.

This, though, marks his first five-round title fight, as he
twice reached the tournament finals in Bellator before falling.

Ten of his career wins have been knockouts, with one submission also to his credit.

Rampage and Mitrione will garner the headlines, but if you want to see a pure MMA fight between two of the top lightweights in the world, do not miss the co-main event.

Michael Chandler Channels Matthew Modine In “Vision Quest” Tribute

For anyone out there a fan of wrestling, Michael Chandler knocks his “Vision Quest” tribute out of the park.

Chandler, who will face Patricky “Pitbull” Freire for the vacant Bellator lightweight title later this year, recreated the icon moments from…

michael-chandler

For anyone out there a fan of wrestling, Michael Chandler knocks his “Vision Quest” tribute out of the park.

Chandler, who will face Patricky “Pitbull” Freire for the vacant Bellator lightweight title later this year, recreated the icon moments from the movie made famous by Matthew Modine recently.

And here’s the original:

Michael Chandler Targets Bellator 157 And Either Thomson Or Henderson

Former Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler doesn’t want to wait too long to return to action.

His planned co-main event fight at Bellator 154 next weekend with Josh Thomson was scrapped after Thomson suffered an injury in training. Chandl…

michael-chandler

Former Bellator lightweight champion Michael Chandler doesn’t want to wait too long to return to action.

His planned co-main event fight at Bellator 154 next weekend with Josh Thomson was scrapped after Thomson suffered an injury in training. Chandler (14-3) is focusing in on Bellator 157 for his return, leaving the door open for someone other than Thomson to face him.

“My Twitter has been blowing up about Benson (Henderson),” Chandler told MMAjunkie Radio. “People want to see me fight him, and I think he’s got a lot better shot at 155 than 170, judging by his last fight.”

Henderson made his Bellator debut last month, losing to welterweight champion Andrey Koreshkov via decision.

Chandler, though, remains hopeful for a meeting with Thomson, adding “Josh is a great guy in the sport, and an exciting guy, so I think the matchup hopefully happens down the road eventually because I think it’s a fight that people want to see; I respect Josh big-time as a competitor.”

Josh Thomson Out Of Bellator 154 Fight With Michael Chandler

It looks like former UFC Lightweight contender Josh Thomson is out of his upcoming Bellator 154 fight with Michael Chandler.

“The Punk” was scheduled to fight the former Bellator Lightweight Champion at the promotion’s upcoming event later this mont…

Josh Thomson

It looks like former UFC Lightweight contender Josh Thomson is out of his upcoming Bellator 154 fight with Michael Chandler.

“The Punk” was scheduled to fight the former Bellator Lightweight Champion at the promotion’s upcoming event later this month in California.

Thomson has amassed a 2-0 record since leaving the UFC and joining the Bellator ranks. He was scheduled to attempt to extend that record to 3-0 against Chandler in his own hometown of San Jose, where he fought for years under the Strikeforce banner.

As of this writing, Bellator has yet to announce a replacement for Thomson.

Bellator 154 is scheduled for May 14, 2016 in San Jose, California.