1/31/24: Bellator Announces First Event of 2024
Also: John Dodson's next bare-knuckle title fight booked.
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Bellator To Kick Off New Era With Light Heavyweight Title Fight In March
Bellator’s first standalone card since being acquired by the PFL in late 2023 is set.
Bellator is expected to head to Belfast, Ireland for a card on March 22nd, per a report from Ariel Helwani. The card will reportedly be headlined by former UFC talent Corey Anderson and Ireland’s own Karl Moore, who will both be competing for the vacant Bellator Light Heavyweight Championship.
Details about the venue or how the event will be broadcasted aren’t known at the moment.
Bellator’s last numbered event came in mid-November. Bellator 301 marked the end of the Showtime era for Bellator, and was the last event before they were sold to the PFL later that year.
PFL founder Donn Davis announced the plan to keep Bellator alive as a separate brand instead of being discontinued. While PFL does a year-long season format that lasts 10 events, the plan is thatBellator will be roughly eight cards separate from that season.
The first appearance of Bellator under the PFL banner was announced weeks ago. A “PFL vs. Bellator” card will take place on February 24th, with champions from both promotions facing off in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
The light heavyweight belt is one of the few Bellator titles not appearing at the February card. The 205-pound division’s absence from the pay-per-view event is due to former titleholder Vadim Nemkov dropping his belt earlier this month in hopes of pursuing a career at heavyweight.
Anderson has been a Bellator fighter since 2020, when he switched brands after a 15-fight UFC run. After attaining three consecutive finish wins, Anderson unsuccessfully challenged champion Nemkov in late 2022, losing via unanimous decision.
Anderson’s last fight was a unanimous decision win over Phil Davis in June 2023.
Moore will be challenging for a Bellator title for the first time in his career. He has slowly built up four wins in the promotion since 2019, including victories over Karl Albrektsson and Alex Polizzi.
Moore has challenged for a title before, fighting for a Cage Warriors belt in 2018. He did not win against Mauro Cerilli, lasting a mere 15 seconds.
John Dodson To Defend Flyweight Bare-Knuckle Boxing Belt In March
Flyweight veteran John Dodson will look to defend a belt in bare-knuckle boxing for the first time later this year.
Dodson will put his flyweight title on the line at BKFC 59 on March 24th, facing Dagoberto Aguero at the Tingley Coliseum in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA.
The 17-fight UFC vet, has found success in bare-knuckle boxing since debuting in the ruleset more than a year ago. Dodson earned a title shot after scoring a pair of first-round finish wins, beating Ryan Benoit and Jarod Grant.
Dodson captured BKFC’s flyweight title in August of last year, stopping JR Ridge in just under two minutes. He has remained active in MMA during this time as well, picking up two wins and one loss in the RIZIN ring since late 2022.
Dodson will now face Aguero, who has a background as a boxer. Aguero attained a pro boxing record of 15 wins from 2013 to 2019. After losing back to back fights as a pro, Aguero switched to fighting under bare-knuckle rules.
Aguero won his BKFC debut just two months back, stopping Chance Wilson in the third round of a bout.
Badmatsyren Dorzhiev To Defend CFFC Flyweight Title At March 8th Show
Undefeated Badmatsyren Dorzhiev will return to CFFC later this year to defend his flyweight title for the first time.
Dorzhiev has been booked to face Israel Galvan in the main event of CFFC 130 on March 8th from the Florida State Fairgrounds in Tampa, Florida, USA.
Dorzhiev, a 29-year-old flyweight prospect, earned a belt in CFFC last year with a four-round decision win over Shamel Findley. This added to a flawless record that he has built up since 2019, which also includes a 23-second stoppage from a U.S. regional card earlier in 2023.
Galvan will be fighting for a regional belt for the first time since turning pro in 2020. He stopped the momentum of flyweight prospect Max Quinones last year, beating the then-undefeated fighter via unanimous decision at CFFC 123. Before that fight, Galvan suffered a decision loss to undefeated LFA prospect Christian Natividad.
A total of seven fights were announced for CFFC 130 this week. Details on the other bouts can be seen in the notes section below.
Notes On: UFC, ONE Championship, KSW, Cage Warriors & CFFC
UFC has warned fighters competing on UFC 297 about rules that the California State Athletic Commission implemented. A recent memo sent to fighters warned them about the state’s marijuana tests, which could result in fines. It also mentioned California’s weight cutting program, which potentially will offer recommendations “for any fighter who puts on more than 10 percent of their body weight plus one pound, from weigh-in day to event night” to change weight classes for their next fight. Damon Martin of MMA Fighting has the scoop.
Hyder Amil’s (8-0) struggles to debut on UFC’s February 10th card have continued. After initial opponent Shayilan Nuerdanbieke pulled out of a fight against Amil, replacement fighter Melsik Baghdasaryan (8-2) reportedly has as well, per James Lynch. It is not known at the moment if Amil will get a third opponent for the quickly approaching card.
Mohammad Usman (10-2) has received a change in opponent for his March 23rd UFC “Fight Night” booking. While he was originally expected to face veteran Chris Barnett (23-8), a recent UFC lineup showed that he is instead facing English prospect Mick Parkin (8-0). The reason for Barnett’s withdrawal is not known at the moment. Parkin will be looking for the third win in his rookie year on the UFC roster.
Lightweights Trevor Peek (9-1) and Charlie Campbell (8-2) have been paired up for UFC’s April 6th card, per social media posts made by both fighters. Peek bounced back from his first pro loss in October 2023, beating Mohammad Yahya on scorecards. Campbell won his UFC debut last year with a first-round finish of Alex Reyes.
An MMA bout between Danial Williams (6-2) and Lito Adiwang (15-5) at flyweight has been added to ONE Fight Night 19 on February 19th from Bangkok, Thailand. Williams is returning to MMA after losing in kickboxing and Muay Thai last year. He had a three-fight winning streak in MMA broken in 2022 when Jeremy Miado stopped him with punches. Adiwang is riding the momentum of a pair of wins from 2023.
Also announced for ONE Fight Night 19 was a mixed rules bout between Nat Jaroonsak and Dayane Cardoso. The four-round bout will alternate between Muay Thai and MMA rules. A full look at the card can be seen here.
A pair of MMA bouts will take place this weekend as part of ONE Championship’s “Friday Fights 50” card from the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Undefeated featherweights will meet when Carlo Bumina-ang (4-0) and Xie Zhipeng (3-0) fight. Bumina-ang has scored three wins in ONE since just August 2023, with two victories coming within a minute each. Xie earned his previous victories on the Chinese regional scene.
Uzbekistani talent Avazbek Kholmirzaev (6-1) will make his ONE debut against Leandro Gomes (5-1). Kholmirzaev has found success recently in Kazakhstan-based promotion Alash Pride. Gomes won his ONE debut last month, stopping Milad Huseyini with strikes.
A bout between Polish welterweights Oskar Szczepaniak (5-1) and Michal Gniady (2-0) has been booked for KSW 92 on March 16th. Gniady — still in his rookie year as a pro — is undefeated with a pair of first-round finishes, including a win in KSW. Szczepaniak has won his last three, including two in KSW. His last win saw him put away Adrian Gralak in just a round.
RIZIN held a press conference on Wednesday afternoon. They revealed 12 more bouts for their March 23rd card. While the Kobe, Japan show was initially set to be called RIZIN 46, it was announced this week that its name has been changed to RIZIN LANDMARK 9.
RIZIN Lightweight Champion Roberto Satoshi Souza (15-3) will try to bounce back from his 2023 loss to Patricky Pitbull when he faces K-Taro Nakamura (36-11-2). Nakamura, an 11-fight UFC vet, earned a win in his last RIZIN appearance.
Undefeated welterweight prospect Igor Tanabe (5-0) will search for win number six when he faces Strasser Kiichi (20-11-2). Tanabe has won all five of his fights via submission since turning pro in 2021. Kiichi has picked up a win and two losses since returning to RIZIN from Bellator in 2021.
17-fight DEEP Impact veteran Yuya Shibata (18-7) will make his RIZIN debut against Erson Yamamoto (4-6). For Yamamoto, the fight will be a chance to bounce back from a third-round stoppage loss he took to Ryuya Fukuda in September 2023.
Getting somewhat of a quick turnaround after a New Year’s Eve win, Yuta Kubo (3-1) will meet Ryogo Takahashi (14-7-1). Takahashi fought on the ONE Championship roster from 2019 to 2022, earning two wins through six appearances. He returned to the regional scene last month, fighting to a draw at Pancrase 340.
Attempting to break a four-fight losing streak in RIZIN — the longest of his career — Kintaro (14-13-2) will meet Daiki Lightyear (10-11-3). While Lightyear has dropped his last three, he won in his last RIZIN appearance.
Takakenshin (0-3) will try for the fourth time to earn an MMA win, meeting Cody Jerabek (1-0) at heavyweight. Jerabek is an American heavyweight who won his pro debut in 2022 on LFA 142. He lost a fight in Karate Combat last year to UFC vet Antonio Arroyo due to a leg injury.
Kazakhstani fighter Arman Ashimov (12-3-1) will make his RIZIN debut against the experienced Yusaku Nakamura (18-10-1). Ashimov has picked up four consecutive wins since 2018. Nakamura’s last RIZIN appearance was a split decision win over Hiroya.
Yusuke Yachi (25-13) has received a new opponent for RIZIN LANDMARK 8 on February 24th. While he was originally scheduled to face Korean standout Kim Kyung-pyo (13-4), he has now been booked against Rikuto Shirakawa (11-9-1), who lost his most recent RIZIN fight to Yoshiki Nakahara.
Flyweights Tom Creasey (5-1) and Amir Alekpour (6-2) have been paired up once again, this time for Cage Warriors 169 on March 30th from London, England. Malekpour has scored four consecutive wins since 2022, inlcuding a pair of Cage Warriors victories. Creasy had a successful Cage Warriors debut in July of last year, beating Ander Sanchez on scorecards. Malekpour and Creasy were first scheduled to meet at Cage Warriors 163 in November 2023, although that bout ended up not happening.
Two fights have been added to Cage Warriors 170 on April 6th from Simmonscourt RDS in Dublin, Ireland.
Cage Warriors veteran Decky McAleenan (8-5-1) will meet Finnish talent Ville Mankinen (5-3-1). McAleenan put an end to a two-fight losing streak last year with a quick submission over Wasi Adeshina. Mankinen lost his Cage Warriors debut two months ago to Milad Ahady.
Undefeated middleweight prospects will meet when Francesco Mazzeo (3-0) and Jordan O’Neill (2-0) face off. Mazzeo has won three fights since his 2021 debut, including two in Cage Warriors. O’Neill is entering the promotion after a pair of wins on the regional scene last year.
Along with the flyweight title fight announced for CFFC 130, six other bouts have been booked for the undercard:
Max Quinones (4-1) will try to bounce back from his sole pro loss when he faces Jimi Natividad (3-2), who snapped a two-fight skid with a quick finish victory at CFFC 127.
CFFC vet William Rentz (3-2) will try to come back from a recent finish loss when he takes on promotional newcomer Marcellus Wallace (2-1) at lightweight.
Two-time “Dana White’s Contender Series” fighter Brandon Lewis (6-3) will fight Michael Billups (6-2-2). Lewis has lost in his past two fights, including a 2023 submission defeat against Justin Wetzell. Billups won in his CFFC debut last month.
Looking to even his pro record, Caleb Hall (4-5) will return to CFFC for the first time in over two years against Brandon Lopez (7-6) at welterweight. Lopez will be making his seventh promotional appearance.
Heavyweight William Tarpley (4-3) will return to the CFFC cage against David Ciuclea (2-2).
Invicta FC and Titan FC alum Serena DeJesus (5-3) will make her promotional debut against Elizabeth Schroder (4-3). Schroder made her first CFFC appearance last fall, beating Alexa Conners.