Bellator middleweight champion Rafael Carvalho will make his first title defense this May at Bellator 155 against Melvin Manhoef.
The event, which airs live on Spike TV, takes place May 20 from the CenturyLink Arena in Boise, Idaho. The fight announ…
Bellator middleweight champion Rafael Carvalho will make his first title defense this May at Bellator 155 against Melvin Manhoef.
The event, which airs live on Spike TV, takes place May 20 from the CenturyLink Arena in Boise, Idaho. The fight announcement was made recently by officials.
Carvalho (12-1) won the belt when he finished Brandon Halsey last year in one of the biggest upsets in MMA history. The 29-year-old connected with a body kick, earning his 12th straight win and improving to 4-0 with Bellator.
In Manhoef, he’ll face a veteran of the sport. “No Mercy” is 30-12-1 overall and coming off a knockout of Hisaki Kato.
The card will also feature Pat Curran, a former Bellator featherweight champion, taking on Georgi Karakhanyan in the co-main event.
The first leg of tonight’s #FridayNightWars MMA double-header kicks off with the Bellator 123: Curran vs. Pitbull 2 main card, live from Uncasville, CT, at 8 p.m. ET on Spike. We’re saving up our liveblog energy for UFC Fight Night 50 later this evening, but follow us after the jump for quick results from the Bellator card, as well as GIFs of all relevant knockouts and submissions. As always, follow us on twitter at @cagepotatomma for live commentary and ball-busting.
The first leg of tonight’s #FridayNightWars MMA double-header kicks off with the Bellator 123: Curran vs. Pitbull 2 main card, live from Uncasville, CT, at 8 p.m. ET on Spike. We’re saving up our liveblog energy for UFC Fight Night 50 later this evening, but follow us after the jump for quick results from the Bellator card, as well as GIFs of all relevant knockouts and submissions. As always, follow us on twitter at @cagepotatomma for live commentary and ball-busting.
MAIN CARD (Spike TV, 8 p.m. ET)
Pat Curran vs. Patricio Freire
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal vs. Dustin Jacoby
Cheick Kongo vs. Lavar Johnson
Bobby Lashley vs. Josh Burns
Tamdan McCrory vs. Brennan Ward
PRELIMINARY CARD (Spike.com, 6 p.m. ET)
Rico DiSciullo vs. Marvin Maldonado
Steve Garcia vs. Kin Moy
Josh Diekmann vs. Mike Wessel
Dan Cramer vs. Perry Filkins
Mark Griffin vs. Mike Mucitelli
Pete Rogers vs. Phillipe Martins
Brandon Fleming vs. Blair Tugman
Matt Bessette vs. Scott Cleve
Bellator has a new leader and direction. Fans will get a chance to see a little of it on Friday when the first post-Bjorn Rebney show takes place at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. Former Strikeforce head man Scott Coker is in now in …
Bellator has a new leader and direction. Fans will get a chance to see a little of it on Friday when the first post-Bjorn Rebney show takes place at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. Former Strikeforce head man Scott Coker is in now in charge of the brand, and he has big plans.
He told Steven Marrocco of MMA Junkie that the promotion will move to monthly events next year, and there is a buzz and excitement surrounding the once troubled company.
Coincidentally, Bellator 123 happens on the same day the UFC will be in The Constitution State.
UFC Fight Night 50 will be held in Mashantucket, so the promotions will battle head-to-head for the attention of local MMA fans.
That might sound like an easy win for the UFC, but this Bellator card is no joke. Aside from a potentially awesome rematch and featherweight title bout between Pat Curran and “The Pitbull” Patricio Freire, the card will also feature Cheick Kongo, “King Mo” MuhammedLawal and Bobby Lashley.
It’ll be one of the most star-studded cards the company has produced. Here’s a look at the scheduled fights, my predictions and viewing information. Just below the table is a closer look at the four biggest main card bouts.
Need a second, third, fourth and even fifth opinion? Check out what MMA Junkie’s staff said about the top four fights on the card.
Cheick Kongo Will Outsmart Lavar Johnson
Both Cheick Kongo and Lavar Johnson are big, strong veterans of the UFC, and both men have one-punch KO power.
While this could be a knock-down, drag-out affair, Kongo has traded in his mindless slugging nature for a more calculated approach of late. The 39-year-old can still drop bombs, but he takes his time more in recognition of his limited gas tank.
That’s something we’ve never seen Johnson do.
In almost every fight Johnson has lost, his lack of stamina has been the culprit. When stamina hasn’t gotten the best of him, his vulnerability to submissions has been his downfall.
Kongo isn’t a submissions specialist, but it wouldn’t be all that surprising to see him drop Johnson with a strike and lock in a basic submission like a rear-naked choke to finish off an already gassed opponent. That’s merely a hunch, but the definitive prediction is a first-round TKO for Kongo.
Bobby Lashley‘s Wrestling Skills Will Lead to Ground-and-Pound Win
Josh Burns is Bobby Lashley‘s opponent, and quite honestly, he isn’t much of a threat. Burns has lost four of his last five fights, and he’s extremely one-dimensional. He throws haymakers that he hopes find a home on his opponent’s face.
He’ll repeat this occurrence for about 90 seconds before he gets tired. Burns is likely being placed with Lashley to help the bigger name gain some momentum.
That’s unfortunate, but it should make for an exciting finish for Lashley.
The 38-year-old powerhouse should have no problem controlling Burns on the ground and pounding him out before the bell to end the first round.
King Mo Will Dominate Jacoby with his Wrestling and Strength
King Mo will beat former UFC and Glory fighter Dustin Jacoby to get back in the win column. Having lost two of his last three, including a disputed grudge match with Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in May, Lawal needs a win in a big way.
Jacoby does present a tough challenge because he’s four inches taller than Lawal, and he possesses a strong kickboxing background. It’s clear from his comments to John Joe O’Regan of Sherdog that he plans to utilize those skills against Lawal.
Jacoby said:
After doing kickboxing and then watching all these MMA fights I have noticed that the leg kicks are wide open in MMA. That’s something I sort of already knew but never really felt it and saw it the way that I do now. The leg kicks are wide open and that set up the head kick in my last fight. I hit him with seven or eight hard low kicks, then faked a low kick and came up top with the head kick.
It would seem that a veteran like Lawal would be prepared for a heavy leg attack from Jacoby. Look for Lawal to counter the leg strikes with takedowns. Many forget that Lawal was a highly decorated collegiate wrestler. He’ll need to dust off those skills to take Jacoby out of his comfort zone.
Expect another ground-and-pound finish in this one.
Pat Curran Will Go 2-0 Against The Pitbull
The last time Curran and Freire met, the former emerged with a disputed split-decision victory. This time, Curran will leave less doubt. Initially, it seemed as if Curran was a little surprised by Pitbull‘s explosiveness in the first fight.
The champion was caught off guard by Freire‘s ability to close the four-inch height gap. In the second round, Curran established his jab and Freire never really solved the length issue in the final three rounds. In the rematch, we should expect more of the same.
Ever the cerebral fighter, Curran will simply pick up where the left off and control the mad dashes from Freire. The fight will still be competitive, but Curran will win an undisputed unanimous decision on more effective striking.
Follow Brian Mazique, aka FranchisePlay, the Sports Video Game Journalist.
Truly great fighter nicknames are hard to come by in MMA. If they aren’t blatant attempts to sound intimidating using some well-worn cliche like “The Assassin” or “The Hitman”, they’re alliteration or pun-focused atrocities like “The Muscle Shark” Sherk or “Twinkle Toes” Trigg. I swear to God, if one more fighter calls themselves “The Pitbull”, I am going to walk into the nearest MMA gym with a fully loaded AK-47 and just start spraying bullets.
Worst of all, the nicknames many MMA fighters choose often fail to fit their personalities/fighting styles. Bob Sapp is not a “Beast.” Likewise, TUF 19 winner Corey Anderson does not beast 25/8, because the constraints of time prevent him from doing so. Justin McCully may be illiterate, but he is definitely not “The Nsane1.” And so on, and so forth.
But in the late aughts, there was one MMA fighter who rose to prominence in the UFC thanks largely to his inventive and more importantly appropriate nickname: Tamdan “The Barn Cat” McCrory.
What is a barn cat, exactly? Well, I’m glad you asked…
(Photo via Sherdog.)
Truly great fighter nicknames are hard to come by in MMA. If they aren’t blatant attempts to sound intimidating using some well-worn cliche like “The Assassin” or “The Hitman”, they’re alliteration or pun-focused atrocities like “The Muscle Shark” Sherk or “Twinkle Toes” Trigg. I swear to God, if one more fighter calls themselves “The Pitbull”, I am going to walk into the nearest MMA gym with a fully loaded AK-47 and just start spraying bullets.
Worst of all, the nicknames many MMA fighters choose often fail to fit their personalities/fighting styles. Bob Sapp is not a “Beast.” Likewise, TUF 19 winner Corey Anderson does not beast 25/8, because the constraints of time prevent him from doing so. Justin McCully may be illiterate, but he is definitely not “The Nsane1.” And so on, and so forth.
But in the late aughts, there was one MMA fighter who rose to prominence in the UFC thanks largely to his inventive and more importantly appropriate nickname: Tamdan “The Barn Cat” McCrory.
What is a barn cat, exactly? Well, I’m glad you asked.
Having grown up in an aggressively rural town and worked on farms for years, I have dealt with the feral, disease-ridden beast known as the barn cat more than most. While not much different than your average household feline at first glance, I would place barn cats closer to the lynx or bobcat in terms of their attitude. They are paranoid, untrustworthy (even by a cat’s incredibly low standards), and prone to bouts of unprompted aggression, which makes sense when you realize that they only wind up on farms in the first place because their owners have actively chosen to abandon them there. I seriously cannot tell you how many times I have seen someone drive up to the edge of a cornfield and heave a cat out the window like it was yesterday’s garbage before peeling off like the cold-blooded scumbag they are.
But back to the man behind the nickname. After compiling a 3-2 record in his first five UFC bouts, McCrory all but vanished from MMA competition following his split decision loss to John Howard at UFC 101. Until yesterday morning, that is, when Luke Thomas broke the news that “The Barn Cat” will make his highly anticipated return to the cage at Bellator 123, a.k.a the card that the UFC totally *isn’t* trying to counter-program by holding a Fight Night card 10 miles down the street.
Speaking of nicknames, McCrory will face off against Brennan “The Irish Bad Boy” Ward, who according to our “What Your MMA Nickname Really Says About You” breakdown, is probably an asshole who isn’t even really from Ireland.
Featuring a featherweight title fight rematch between Pat Curran and Patricio “Pitbull”(*sigh*) Freire and the MMA return of Bobby Lashley, Bellator 123 goes down from the Mohegan Sun arena in Uncasville, CT on September 5th.
(Angry Jose Aldo looks identical to Happy Jose Aldo)
It’s been a rare, event-less weekend. Despite the lack of fisticuffs, Saturday and Sunday have been packed with quite a bit of mid-level news and fight booking house-keeping matters.
The biggest recent news has been a spat between Jose Aldo and Chad Mendes. As you’ve likely heard, an Aldo injury forced “postponement” [Ed’s note: LOL] of UFC 176.
If Aldo can’t stay healthy and is too fragile to go through a training camp, then I think it is time to step aside and let guys who are able to do that and able to push through all that stuff, to be a champ.
To put it bluntly, Aldo was fucking pissed. He told Combate (translation via MMA Fighting):
Maybe I have so many injuries because I’m not taking the same ‘supplements’ you take. I have injuries because I train a lot to beat you like I did last time, and I think you remember that and still have nightmares about it. I did all the medical exams I had to do, but if you’re a doctor now, I can send them so you can take a look. Maybe you can prescript one of your supplements so I can heal faster.
The one who gets beat up usually runs away from another beating, but you can’t run forever because I’m going after you. Before the cage is closed you can say whatever you want, because once they close it you won’t be able to open your mouth, so keep talking while you have a mouth. And who are you to say where we are going to fight? I don’t think Dana White would be happy to see someone making his decisions. … You’re the one who seems to only fight at your home, who desperately doesn’t want to fight in Brazil. I got injured before and my fight with Frankie Edgar was moved from Brazil to Las Vegas. I fought your coach in your home, fought at Mark Hominick’s home in front of 55,000 fans, I fought in Japan and Europe. And now you tell me you want to be the champion? A champion doesn’t choose opponents or where the fight is going to be. And now I ask you, who’s the real pussy?
Harsh words from a harsh man.
In other UFC news…
(Angry Jose Aldo looks identical to Happy Jose Aldo)
It’s been a rare, event-less weekend. Despite the lack of fisticuffs, Saturday and Sunday have been packed with quite a bit of mid-level news and fight booking house-keeping matters.
The biggest recent news has been a spat between Jose Aldo and Chad Mendes. As you’ve likely heard, an Aldo injury forced “postponement” [Ed’s note: LOL] of UFC 176.
If Aldo can’t stay healthy and is too fragile to go through a training camp, then I think it is time to step aside and let guys who are able to do that and able to push through all that stuff, to be a champ.
To put it bluntly, Aldo was fucking pissed. He told Combate (translation via MMA Fighting):
Maybe I have so many injuries because I’m not taking the same ‘supplements’ you take. I have injuries because I train a lot to beat you like I did last time, and I think you remember that and still have nightmares about it. I did all the medical exams I had to do, but if you’re a doctor now, I can send them so you can take a look. Maybe you can prescript one of your supplements so I can heal faster.
The one who gets beat up usually runs away from another beating, but you can’t run forever because I’m going after you. Before the cage is closed you can say whatever you want, because once they close it you won’t be able to open your mouth, so keep talking while you have a mouth. And who are you to say where we are going to fight? I don’t think Dana White would be happy to see someone making his decisions. … You’re the one who seems to only fight at your home, who desperately doesn’t want to fight in Brazil. I got injured before and my fight with Frankie Edgar was moved from Brazil to Las Vegas. I fought your coach in your home, fought at Mark Hominick’s home in front of 55,000 fans, I fought in Japan and Europe. And now you tell me you want to be the champion? A champion doesn’t choose opponents or where the fight is going to be. And now I ask you, who’s the real pussy?
Harsh words from a harsh man.
In other UFC news:
Michael Johnson is out of his UFC on FOX 12 bout with Josh Thompsondue to injury. This is a shame as the two were expected to curtain-jerk the main card and it would’ve been quite an exciting affair. Let’s hope the main event of Robbie Lawler vs. Matt Brown stays intact.
World Series of Fighting, too, has some title news. Lightweight champion Justin Gaethje–who recently defeated Nick Newell at WSOF 11–will defend his title against Melvin Guillard. No date has been announced. We’re amped up for this one. Gaethje is quite talented, and Guillard looked fantastic in his last fight against Gesias Cavalcante.
That’s all for now, Potato Nation. We suggest you make the best of what’s left of your Sunday.
“I have my sights set on getting back into the cage as soon as possible, with July in mind, but I want to be 100 percent healthy heading into that cage to smash ‘Pitbull.’”
“I have my sights set on getting back into the cage as soon as possible, with July in mind, but I want to be 100 percent healthy heading into that cage to smash ‘Pitbull.’”
