Bellator 275 went down at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland today with a middleweight title fight between Gegard Mousasi and Bellator MMA’s No. 1 ranked middleweight, Austin Vanderford.
The 31-year-old Vanderford is known to casual fans of the sport for being the husband of Paige VanZant, but for anyone that has been paying attention, he’s definitely a world-class fighter.
Mousasi is only a few years older than Vanderford but his experience in mixed martial arts competition was considered a key factor by pundits ahead of his title defense against Vandeford at Bellator 275.
You can peep the highlights from the main event below followed by the Bellator 275 quick results!
UFC 271 featured a middleweight title fight that had Israel Adesanya retain his title and another middleweight put himself next in line. Also, a warrior hung up her gloves and some heavyweights shook things up in Texas in the co-main event that made the pay-per-view fun enough.
There was a lot to take away from UFC 271, here are some things that stood out.
Contracts
On Wednesday of fight week, many of the UFC regularly reporting entities had mentioned that before the fight, Israel Adesanya’s management had announced that he renewed his contract with the UFC for another multi-fight deal. Considering that he had yet to defend the title at the time and signed his end of the deal to face Whittaker the same week is either proof that fighters are getting more leverage, or his management is one of the best for athletes in MMA.
Per a release from @ParadigmSports, Israel Adesanya has signed a new multi-fight deal with the UFC, making him "one of the top paid athletes in the history of mixed martial arts."
During weigh-ins Friday morning there were some updates announced for UFC 271. William Knight came in 12 pounds over the contracted weight against his bout with Max Grishin. As a result, Knight had to forfeit 40% of his purse and the two will fight as heavyweights officially. Then, Alex Perez also missed weight as well and his match against Matt Schnell was canceled.
No Rogan
You might have missed it, but Joe Rogan has been in the news a lot in recent weeks. Some of it is due to the guests he has had on his podcast and the conversations they had about COVID-19, and most recently for footage of him using a racial slur years ago. ESPN, a company owned by Disney handles the broadcast and sells the UFC pay-per-views. So, on Friday-the day before the event, it was announced that Rogan would not be calling the event.
Per a UFC official, Joe Rogan had a scheduling conflict this week and will not be on the call for UFC 271.
He is scheduled to do colour commentary for UFC 272 in March.
Tomorrow's broadcast booth will consist of Jon Anik, Daniel Cormier and Michael Bisping.
While it was said that it was due to a “scheduling conflict,” given the current state of media, one has to wonder if that was the case. In the post-fight press conference, UFC President Dana White said he expects Rogan to work again when there are no conflicts that keep him from working.
The Happy Warrior
Roxanne Modafferi fought her last fight at UFC 271. She lost a split decision to Kasey O’Neill and while the judging of the fight was questionable, the heart of Modafferi has never left any doubt. Good luck to you and whatever you do in the future.
Jared Connonier Secures His Spot Amongst Middleweights
With the win he picked up at UFC 271 over Derrick Brunson, Cannonier made sure Dana White’s attention was on him in the cage in his post-fight interview when he said he wanted the winner of the main event of UFC 271. It’s hard to argue that he should be next in line for the middleweight crown.
Swangin and Bangin
Both Derrick Lewis and Tai Tuivasa delivered on their promise to put on a show in the co-main event. With minimal clinching and a lot of swinging, fans were not disappointed in the fight these two heavyweights put on. While Lewis impressed with some takedowns in round one, it would be the resilience of Tuivasa in round two that would have him win the striking exchange and catapult himself up the heavyweight rankings.
To Beat The Champ…
Adesanya won his bout against Whittaker but Whittaker did a lot better than the first time they met. So much so, that he even felt he won the latter rounds and did enough to win. Given the odd judging in Modafferi and O’Neill’s fight, it’s no surprise that the result is sure to be a topic of conversation when the UFC updates their rankings on Tuesday.
There’s obviously more to take away from this event than what is listed here. The match between Adesanya and Connonier is all but booked and with things opening up, Dana White expressed interest in adding more locations to the UFC’s road schedule in 2022. Time will tell but hopefully, things get back to something close to normal.
Bellator MMA’s first event of the year has just wrapped up, and it featured a heavyweight title fight to determine their undisputed champion. Sitting champ Ryan Bader was in the light heavyweight World Grand Prix, so to keep the heavyweight division moving, an interim title fight between Timothy Johnson and Valentin Moldovsky went down last June with Moldavsky emerging as the victor.
Bader lost his semifinal bout in the Grand Prix, so at Bellator 273, he returned to heavyweight to determine who the true champion is. At media day on fight week, Bader said, “The last fight (in Phoenix at Bellator 268 on Oct. 16, 2021) was not the result we wanted. The crowd showed up. Arizona showed up. We packed the house. Let’s get a little redemption here in front of the home crowd.”
Below, you can find highlights from the main event that saw Bader retain the heavyweight championship.
UFC 270 was the first pay-per-view event of the new year and came in with two title fights for UFC fans. A fight for the undisputed UFC heavyweight title and a third flyweight title fight to settle who the “King of the flies” is once and for all.
There was a lot to take away from UFC 270, here are some things that stood out.
COVID Protocols
The UFC has new protocols in place for 2022. MMA Junkie obtained a copy of the memo sent to fighters on the UFC roster to let them know how they have to roll if they want to rock on fight week. In short, fighters and their corners have to take three pre-fight tests for the fight week of their scheduled events. One at-home test before showing up, one upon arrival, and one after weighing in. That’s three chances to lose fights for future events so, fans should keep their fingers crossed for fighters on cards being announced this year.
Lost Some
Speaking of losing fights, the UFC had to scratch quite a few bouts from UFC 270. Whittled down to 11 bouts the first pay per view of the year, as well as the previous weekend’s event lost fights for various reasons, including the above protocols. When thinking about that, the pay-per-view price increase for this year is really hard to swallow.
Night of Something Strange
UFC press conferences in the past have usually been about the fighters, their antics, and trash talk to get fans riled up for a fight. Lately, not just this last one for UFC 270 it seems to be becoming a platform for members of the media to try and get their 15 minutes of fame. Questions obviously aimed at antagonizing fighters seem to keep happening more and more, but it seems any attention is good attention for the UFC— but is it good for MMA?
Victor Henry
What are the ingredients to make a “fight of the night” candidate? An underdog and a favorite, a high pace, and the fight going the distance. This fight featured all three and with Henry a +375 underdog, him winning and pushing the pace made this fight one that put Victor Henry’s name on the radar for UFC fans. Raoni Barcelos fought well and was a -510 favorite, but after watching this fight, you’d wonder who’s making odds over at Draftkings?
Usually, a trilogy settles a rivalry in combat sports. However, when one is a draw, Brandon Moreno wins the second match, and Deiveson Figueiredo wins the third. These great flyweights are 1-1 against each other. Another one has to happen to truly close the book on who the true flyweight king is. For now, it is Figueiredo but you’d be hard-pressed to find someone against seeing them fight for the title again. This was the official “Fight of the Night.”
Francis Ngannou cemented his position as the most dangerous man in MMA by defeating the Interim Champion Cyril Gane. So, where does he go from here? He is still the champion but when asked in his post-fight interview by Joe Rogan, he clearly seems to want to try boxing. However, he also said he hurt his ACL and MCL in training which is likely why he wrapped both knees for this match with compression wraps.
You Put it On Him
Photo via MMAJunkie
For winners of title fights, it is usually Dana White that wraps the belt around the champion when the announcement is made in the cage. However, when Ngannou won the decision in the main event, it was UFC Matchmaker Mick Maynard who put the belt on him.
There’s obviously more to take away from this event than what is listed here. Especially when it comes to the heavyweight division. Ngannou’s injuries obviously need time and the business between him and the UFC needs to be discussed. Dana White did not attend the post-fight press conference, which is usually something he does come to. Could be telling of the future.
UFC 269 featured two title fights that crowned a new queen of the women’s bantamweight division and a current champion proved himself as worthy of holding the title he won earlier this year.
There was a lot to take away from UFC 269, here are some things that stood out.
O’Malley vs. Garbrandt?
During the pre-fight press conference, Sean O’Malley and Cody Garbrandt went after each other, even though they both had their own fights with other people at UFC 269 to worry about. Still, O’Malley seemed to think it would be a good idea for them to square up at the press conference for a future event. Is this something you want to see?
It happens enough these days, bookmakers should start laying odds on what fight will get pulled from a card, and for what reason. After the weigh-ins, the UFC announced that the flyweight bout between Matt Schnell and Alex Perez was canceled due to medical issues with Schnell.
The Savage Gets Back in The Win Column
Gillian Robertson was on a two-fight losing streak going into UFC 269. If that wasn’t enough fuel to pick up a win, her opponent Priscila Cachoeira missed weight and they fought at a catchweight. Robertson scored the first submission and finish of the night to get back in the win column and did it with Cachoeira fighting dirty. Losers never win, and Robertson proved that here. Check out Robertson’s submission finish and doing it while Cahcoeira was poking her in the eye.
France stopped Garbrandt in his tracks for Garbrandt’s flyweight debut, leaving questions for Garbrandt’s future but opening doors for France. With his first-round finish of the former bantamweight champion, France made it known he has his eyes on Brandon Moreno and Deivison Figueredo. Either fight would make a great future match-up for him.
Dominick Cruz
Dominick Cruz, Image Credit: MMA Fighting
Cruz made news for his criticism of Daniel Cormier’s broadcast style on fight week and that may have taken away from the fact that regardless of how anyone handles a mic, Cruz can still manage the cage better. It’s obvious he does just as much homework for fights as he does for his broadcast duties. Cruz fought and won against a very tough Pedro Munhoz to pick up a decisive victory. If there’s a fight to make, maybe he and Jose Aldo could headline a card in 2022.
And New!
Julianna Pena, Image Credit: Chris Unger
A huge underdog, Julianna Peña came in with nothing but heart and a great jab that would hand Nunes the loss that would cost her the title, and crown The Venezuelan Vixen the new bantamweight champion. Peña was a +650 underdog and when the going got tough, Peña’s resolve would be the fuel that won her the title.
And Still!
Charles Oliveira. Image Credit: USA TODAY Sports
Diamonds are tough but “Do Bronx” is tougher as Charles Oliveira proved that he can stand with the tougher, more damaging fighter the likes of Dustin Poirier. Oliveira’s chin was definitely tested in this fight, especially in round one but if there were a physical demonstration of “being like water,” Oliveira definitely did it to Poirier when he scored the submission victory.
There’s obviously more to take away from this event than what is listed here especially with it being the last one of 2021. New challengers for various titles, up-and-coming fighters looking to get in the top 15, and potential rematches to make. The UFC certainly closed their pay-per-view schedule well.
What did you take away from the event? Better yet, what would you like to see in 2022?
Bellator 272 took place tonight from the Mohegan Sun Arena with a title fight in one of their most challenging divisions.
Sergio Pettis took on the former Bellator MMA and RIZIN bantamweight champion, Kyoji Horiguchi. This was Pettis’ first title defense since winning it from Juan Archuleta at Bellator 258. Fans might remember that when Horiguchi held the two coveted 135-pound titles he had to relinquish them when he was injured in 2019.
Oddly enough, the injury happened just before the end of the year and before COVID-19 rocked the world. It gave Horiguchi enough time to rest and return to action at the end of 2020 at RIZIN 26 where he avenged his non-title fight loss to Kai Asakura.
Check out the highlights from the main event between Sergio Pettis and Kyoji Horiguchi below followed by the Bellator 272 fast results!
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