Bellator News

Josh Evanoff - November 20, 2023

PFL executive Donn Davis is hoping to see his best face Bellator’s early next year. Earlier today, the Bellator-PFL sale was made official. Throughout much of this year, the two companies were in talks, especially after Showtime made the decision to drop combat sports. While already rumored, the announcement this fall made Donn Davis and others get this deal finalized.

Cole Shelton - November 20, 2023

PFL founder Donn Davis says they are offering Bellator president Scott Coker an opportunity to stay on if he wants. On Monday, it was announced that PFL has bought Bellator and the promotion has expectations for both brands. According to the press release, the plan is to do a champions vs. champions event in 2024. Also, Bellator will be rebranded to Bellator International Champions Series and will run concurrent to PFL in 2024 with eight one-off events in 2024.

Susan Cox - November 20, 2023

The PFL has officially acquired Bellator MMA, and in doing so has stated, ‘Our fighter roster is equal to UFC’. The news of the merger has been in the works for months, but now is a done deal and the Professional Fighters League has officially acquired Bellator MMA.

Zain Bando - November 18, 2023

Friday night at Wintrust Arena was Patchy Mix’s crowing achievement. In what was likely the final Bellator event ever, Patchy Mix, the Bellator interim bantamweight champion, made good on his dream.

Josh Evanoff - November 17, 2023

Former Bellator lightweight champion Patricky Pitbull is just as unsure of the company’s future as anyone. The Brazilian has been out of the cage since a knockout win over Roberto de Souza in July. That was a nice rebound win for Patricky Pitbull, having lost his lightweight gold to Usman Nurmagomedov in his prior outing. With the win at Bellator X RIZIN 2, he advanced to the lightweight Grand Prix semifinals.

Zain Bando - November 17, 2023

Now that all 32 fighters have weighed in, Bellator 301 is official for tonight at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Ill. The final Bellator event in the history of Showtime Sports features two title fights plus a highly-anticipated lightweight Grand Prix semifinal bout. The Bellator 301 main event pits Yaroslav Amosov vs. Jason Jackson for the Bellator welterweight strap. In contrast, the co-main event between Sergio Pettis and Patchy Mix will make the winner the undisputed bantamweight champion.

Zain Bando - November 16, 2023

Bellator 301 takes place Friday night from the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Ill., as it is the promotion’s third trip back to “The Windy City” in one year and its second of 2023. The 16-fight Bellator 301 card features many huge names from top-to-bottom, including two world title fights and a Grand Prix lightweight semifinal bout.

Zain Bando - November 15, 2023

Sergio Pettis and Patchy Mix will meet in the co-main event of Bellator 301 on Friday night in Chicago to unify the promotion’s bantamweight titles. Pettis, who turned 30 in August, said Wednesday that his return to the cage is more than just about completing the journey. “I just want to be an example for everyone who is a late bloomer,” Sergio Pettis said. “I feel like I am a late bloomer, and it took me time to develop my game, skill, and confidence. Growing up, I was not a confident individual and had a lot of anxiety. With that, I was also under my brother’s shadow, but in those dark times, I was able to learn who I am.”

Zain Bando - November 15, 2023

Raufeon Stots and Danny Sabatello picked up right where they left off ahead of their Bellator 301 bantamweight rematch in Chicago. Amid their trash talk amongst each other, emotions ran high. The fued began ahead of Bellator 289 in December last year, where Raufeon Stots was able to secure a decision victory before ultimately losing to Patchy Mix in his next fight.

Cole Shelton - November 14, 2023

Patchy Mix wasn’t sure if he was going to get the chance to fight Sergio Pettis. After Mix knocked out Raufeon Stots back in April to become the interim champ and the grand prix winner, it secured him a title shot. He was booked to face the bantamweight champ, Sergio Pettis at Bellator 301. But, with all the rumors that the promotion would be sold, Mix wasn’t sure if this fight was going to happen.

Cole Shelton - November 14, 2023

Dillon Danis appears to be walking away from the fight game. Danis returned to combat sports back in October when he fought and lost to Logan Paul in his boxing debut. It was his first fight since June of 2019 when he fought at Bellator 222.

Cole Shelton - November 14, 2023

The 146th episode of Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com with host Cole Shelton is live ahead of UFC Vegas 82 and Bellator 301. We’re first joined by the interim Bellator bantamweight champion Patchy Mix (2:01). Next, UFC featherweight Chase Hooper (18:59) comes on. Sixth-ranked Bellator bantamweight Danny Sabatello (42:49) joins the show. Closing out the program is UFC bantamweight Chad Anheliger (1:01:35).

Josh Evanoff - October 30, 2023

It seems that the PFL’s sale with Bellator might be going through after all. As most MMA fans are aware, the Scott Coker-led company has had its troubles in 2023. For most of this year, Bellator has been linked to a potential sale to the PFL. The news was first reported by Todd Atkins earlier this summer. For the most part, the million-dollar deal has been played out in public, as Viacom confirmed their plans to drop combat sports from Showtime.

Cole Shelton - October 18, 2023

SBG Ireland head coach John Kavanagh is hopeful Dillon Danis will return to Dublin to prepare for an MMA fight. Danis finally returned to combat sports last weekend as he boxed influencer Logan Paul. Danis ended up being DQ’d in the sixth round, but before that, he was getting badly beat as he barely threw any punches.

Harry Kettle - October 18, 2023

Bellator champion Johnny Eblen has questioned Gordon Ryan after some claims he made recently regarding doping in MMA. Gordon Ryan, outside of boxing and mixed martial arts, is one of the biggest names in combat sports. His jiu-jitsu prowess speaks for itself and as we look ahead to the future, it seems as if he’ll continue to make waves for many years to come.

Cole Shelton - October 16, 2023

Dillon Danis will be appealing the DQ loss he suffered to Logan Paul on Saturday. Danis made his boxing debut against Paul on the PRIME card in Manchester, England. It was a fight that got a ton of hype due to Danis’ trash talk and antics. However, in the bout itself, Danis rarely threw many punches as Paul dominated and was cruising to a decision win.

Harry Kettle - October 10, 2023

Bellator featherweight champion Cris Cyborg has revealed the conversation she had with Cat Zingano after Bellator 300. At Bellator 300, Cris Cyborg made a statement by defeating Cat Zingano to successfully retain her Bellator featherweight championship. In doing so, she reminded the world of what many already knew – she is one of the greatest female fighters of all time. In terms of what’s next, nobody really knows for sure, but she’ll happily sit back and bask in the glory of what she’s just achieved for a while yet.

Harry Kettle - October 9, 2023

Bellator president Scott Coker has given his thoughts on some of the remarks made recently by UFC president Dana White. Last weekend, Bellator 300 took place as the promotion celebrated a landmark event with a parade of high-profile fights. However, while it was a great evening for the company and Scott Coker, we still saw plenty of questions being asked about their immediate future. It’s been reported for a while now that Bellator could be on the verge of being sold, with PFL supposedly being one of the frontrunners in that race.