Several Fights Reportedly Set For Bellator’s Back-To-Back September Shows
Over the last few years, Bellator has been hosting events one right after the other. Friday cards have been the appetizers to Saturday shows. It appears the promotion is ready to return to that format.
ESPN was the first to confirm that Bellator will have veterans, title fights, and debuts on both cards. Taking place on September 11 will be Phil Davis v. Lyoto Machida II, while the main event of the card on the 12th will feature Juan Archuleta v. Patrick Mix for the vacant Bellator Bantamweight Title.
Davis (21-5) and Machida (26-9) competed against one another at UFC 163 in 2013. In Brazil, Davis would beat Machida via unanimous decision.
Making his professional debut in 2008, Davis signed with Bellator in 2015 following the Machida win. He beat Liam McGeary to win the Bellator Light Heavyweight Championship at one point. 8-2 with the promotion, Davis is on a two-fight win streak. He last fought in October, beating Karl Albrektsson via TKO.
Machida (26-9) made his pro debut in 2003 and made his UFC debut at UFC 67 in 2007. Beating Rashad Evans to win the UFC Light heavyweight Title in 2009, Machida lost the title to Mauricio Rua at UFC 113. Machida ended up 16-8 with the promotion, last fighting Vitor Belfort at UFC 224 in 2018. He signed with Bellator after, beating Rafael Carvalho (Bellator 213) and Chael Sonnen (Bellator 222), but losing to Gegard Mousasi at Bellator 228 in September. That ended a four-fight win streak.
Also on the Bellator 245 (per MMA Junkie) card will be the Bellator debut of Cat Zingano v. Gabby Holloway. Zingano (10-4) made her MMA debut in 2008. She fought Ronda Rousey in 2015 for the UFC Bantamweight Title losing via submission. She ended up losing four of her last five bouts with the promotion before signing with Bellator in October. Holloway (6-5) is 1-2 with Bellator, last facing Alexis Dufresne at Bellator 174 in 2017. She won via TKO.
At Bellator 246 (via MMA Junkie) the next day, Juan Archuleta and Patrick Mix will face off. Archuleta (22-4) is on a one-fight win streak, beating Henry Corrales in January via unanimous decision. It was a rebound after losing to Bellator Featherweight Champion Patricio Freire in the opening round of the Bellator Featherweight Grand Prix. The 32-year-old has a 6-1 record with the promotion.
“Patchy” Mix (13-0) made his professional debut in 2016. Also fighting for KOTC, the 27-year-old first fought for Bellator in June 2019, beating Ricky Bandejas. He has since beaten Isaiah Chapman and Yuki Motoya.
Also on the card will be the Bellator debut of Liz Carmouche. Carmouche (13-7) was let go from the UFC following a unanimous decision loss to Women’s Flyweight Champion Valentina Shevchenko back in August 2019. Overall, she was 5-5 with the promotion. Carmouche was released while doing promotional work for the company and was supposed to make her Bellator debut in May.
She faces DeAnna Bennett (10-6-1), who is on a two-fight losing streak, her last fight in September 2019 for Invicta.
Finally, the September 12 show will feature a welterweight bout between Neiman Gracie and Jon Fitch. Fitch (32-7-2, 1 NC) last fought in April 2019, fighting Rory MacDonald to a draw in the Bellator Welterweight Grand Prix. The former World Series of Fighting Welterweight Champion is currently on a six-fight unbeaten streak dating back to 2015.
Gracie (9-1) is looking to recover from a loss against MacDonald inside Madison Square Garden in June 2019. That was during the semifinals of the Welterweight Grand Prix. The 31-year-old has eight wins via submission.