Bellator 249’s Arlene Blencowe on title shot vs. Cris Cyborg
Bellator 249’s Arlene Blencowe on title shot vs. Cris Cyborg
Bellator 249’s Arlene Blencowe on title shot vs. Cris Cyborg
Tag: Arlene Blencowe
Bellator 249’s Cris Cyborg on boxing potential, Arlene Blencowe, CBS Sports Network and more
Bellator 249’s Cris Cyborg on boxing potential, Arlene Blencowe, CBS Sports Network and more
Bellator 249’s Cris Cyborg on boxing potential, Arlene Blencowe, CBS Sports Network and more
Cris Cyborg vs. Arlene Blencowe headlines Bellator’s move to CBS Sports Network
Cris Cyborg will put her women’s featherweight title on the line for the first time in October as part of Bellator’s move to a new broadcast home.
[autotag]Cris Cyborg[/autotag] will put her women’s featherweight title on the line for the first time in October as part of Bellator’s move to a new broadcast home.
Cyborg (22-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) will headline Bellator 249 on a special Thursday night event against challenger [autotag]Arlene Blencowe[/autotag] (13-7 MMA, 6-3 BMMA), the promotion announced today at a special news conference. The news first was reported by CBSSports.com.
CBS Sports Network will be Bellator’s new broadcast home. Like its current Paramount platform, CBS Sports Network is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group, which is part of parent company Viacom. The cable network launched in 2002 and has undergone several rebranding efforts over its nearly two decades on the air.
Cyborg won the 145-pound title in January when she took out longtime champion Julia Budd with a fourth-round TKO at Bellator 238. It was her promotional debut after coming to Bellator from the UFC, where she was featherweight champion until she was upset by Amanda Nunes in December 2018. Till that point, Cyborg largely was considered the best pound-for-pound woman in the sport.
After her loss to Nunes, Cyborg got back on track at UFC 240 with a unanimous decision win over Felicia Spencer. But that deal was the last on her UFC contract, and the promotion let her leave for Bellator as a free agent.
Blencowe will have her second shot at a Bellator title. She challenged Budd for the belt in December 2017, but lost a split decision. It was her second close loss to Budd in 14 months. But since that setback, the Australian has three straight wins with a knockout of Amber Leibrock, a 22-second KO of Amanda Bell, and a unanimous decision over Leslie Smith in November 2019.
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Video: Relive Bellator 233 on MMA Junkie
Check out a live replay of Bellator 233, which featured the final fight of “King Mo’s” career.
You can watch a live replay of Bellator 233 right here on MMA Junkie, beginning at 6 p.m. ET (3 p.m. PT).
Bellator 233, which took place November 8, 2019 at WinStar World Casino in Thackerville, Okla., featured former Strikeforce champion [autotag]Muhammed Lawal[/autotag]’s retirement fight.
In the middleweight main event, [autotag]John Salter[/autotag] defeated [autotag]Costello van Steenis[/autotag] by unanimous decision. The co-headliner was “King Mo” losing by first-round knockout to [autotag]Andrew Kapel[/autotag] in his retirement fight. [autotag]Arlene Blencowe[/autotag] and [autotag]Tyrell Fortune[/autotag] also picked up victories on the main card.
You can catch all of the action in the video above.
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Bellator free fight: Arlene Blencowe outpoints Leslie Smith, calls for title shot
Arlene Blencowe may have positioned herself for another crack at the title after defeating veteran Leslie Smith.
[autotag]Arlene Blencowe[/autotag] may have positioned herself for another crack at the Bellator women’s featherweight title after defeating a battle-tested veteran in her most recent outing.
Blencowe (13-7 MMA, 6-3 BMMA) was matched up with former UFC fighter Leslie Smith at Bellator 233 and was able to mix things up with her jab, leg kicks and combinations to sweep the judges’ scorecards for a unanimous decision win.
It was Blencowe’s third win a row. Her most recent loss was a split decision setback to then-champion Julia Budd in December 2017.
It was the second time she lost to Budd, but after Cris Cyborg dethroned Budd at Bellator 238 in January, Blencowe’s chances for another title shot got better.
Check out Blencowe’s Bellator 233 win over Smith in the video above.
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Arlene Blencowe calls for new Bellator champ Cris Cyborg: ‘The fight Iβve always wanted’
Arlene Blencowe is hoping to get the first crack at newly minted Bellator women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg.
[autotag]Arlene Blencowe[/autotag] is hoping to get the first crack at newly minted Bellator women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg.
Following Cyborg’s (22-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) fourth-round TKO of Julia Budd at Bellator 238, company president Scott Coker said he’s leaving the door open for what his new champion wants next. Cyborg will have major influence in deciding her next move, but if she wants to fight MMA again soon and defend her title, he said a contender is waiting in the wings.
That contender is Blencowe (13-7 MMA, 6-3 BMMA), who Coker mentioned by name. He touted her experience of having the most appearances in Bellator women’s featherweight history, and Blencowe said she’s ready for the call.
“This is it,” Blencowe told MMA Junkie. “I’ve been looking at Cris Cyborg at the top of the featherweight rankings since I started fighting. She’s the fight I’ve always wanted. It’s the fight everyone should want, to fight the best.”
Blencowe has had a chance at Bellator gold once before. She suffered a split-decision loss to Budd at Bellator 189 in December 2017 but has put together a three-fight winning streak since.
The most recent victory, a unanimous decision over Leslie Smith at Bellator 233 in November, appears to have given Blencowe the push she needs to fight for that title once more. Now she hopes Cyborg and the Bellator brass will make it happen.
“My eyes are on that title,” Blencowe said. “I dropped the chance back in 2017, and I’ve worked my butt off to get back to having my chance again. This is it, all or nothing.”
What does Bellator do with Cris Cyborg? Four potential options after her title win
Breaking down the potential next fight options for Bellator women’s featherweight champ Cris Cyborg.
[autotag]Cris Cyborg[/autotag] added another layer to her legacy to kick off 2020 when she claimed her fourth major promotional title by taking the Bellator women’s featherweight belt from Julia Budd.
Cyborg (22-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) has been the most dominant women’s featherweight fighter in MMA history. She may have lost to Amanda Nunes in the UFC, and a rematch may ended a similar way. But there is no one else who is her equal at the moment.
So what kind of predicament does that leave Bellator in? The promotion is kept to a lower standard and can get away with borderline grotesque mismatches more than its UFC counterpart. People have seen Cyborg in those types of fights for more than a decade, though, and it would be in Bellator’s best interest to seek out the biggest challenges.
Bellator president Scott Coker has even said he’s open to Cyborg taking a boxing match or any other unique challenges she wants to pursue. No one is raving to see that since MMA is the Brazilian’s best space. In light of that, here are four other more compelling options.
* * * *
1. Rematch with Budd
Let’s just get this one out of he way immediately: Yes, Cyborg’s fourth-round TKO of Budd was convincing, but it was also far less one-sided than most Cyborg fights. Budd’s size and strength automatically make her a compelling opponent, and if the Canadian can improve on some lessons learned from the initial encounter, she could potentially close the gap in a second fight.
And more so than anything, Budd deserves the opportunity. She distinguished herself as Bellator’s best female 145-pound fighter over a seven-fight winning streak and three title defenses before running into Cyborg. On paper, she is the most credible and legitimate opponent for Cyborg on the Bellator roster.
[opinary poll=”what-do-you-want-to-see-next-for-bellato” customer=”mmajunkie”]
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MMA rankings report: UFC on ESPN+ 21, Bellator 233 fallout
What does another big weekend of MMA action mean for the rankings? We walk you through it all in this week’s rankings report.
It was another eventful weekend in the MMA world. Consider the highlights:
- [autotag]Zabit Magomedsharipov[/autotag] continued his climb up the 145-pound ladder with a win over Calvin Kattar in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 21.
- [autotag]Alexander Volkov[/autotag] returned to action, as the former Bellator champion decisioned Greg Hardy in the UFC Moscow co-feature.
- [autotag]Arlene Blencowe[/autotag] proved she’s still a factor in the Bellator featherweight division with her impressive unanimous-decision victory over Leslie Smith.
So what does this all mean for the weekly USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings? Let MMA Junkieβs John Morgan and “Gorgeous” George Garcia walk you through the changes in the video above.
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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Nov. 12: How high can Zabit Magomedsharipov fly?
After another impressive victory, how close is Zabit Magomedsharipov to the top of the 145-pound rankings?
With an impressive victory over the ultra-tough Calvin Kattar on Saturday in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 22, the only real question left for [autotag]Zabit Magomedsharipov[/autotag] is how close he might be to a featherweight title shot.
The Dagestani standout remained unbeaten in the UFC with his victory in Moscow, and there isn’t a whole lot of daylight left between him, champion Max Holloway, and top contender Alexander Volkanovski, who square off for the title next month at UFC 245.
So where to rank Magomedsharipov after another impressive outing? We’ve settled on No. 4, for now. Maybe he gets the UFC 245 winner, maybe he’s one more fight away, but a title shot sometime in 2020 certainly seems plausible the way things are going.
That wasn’t the only matchup of note with divisional implications over the weekend. We also had former Bellator heavyweight champion [autotag]Alexander Volkov[/autotag]’s win over Greg Hardy. And over at Bellator 233, former featherweight title challenger [autotag]Arlene Blencowe[/autotag] made her case for another championship match with a nice win over the well-respected Leslie Smith.
To find out where they landed in their respective divisions β or to learn where your favorite or least favorite fighters currently rank β scroll up above to check out the current USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings.
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Arlene Blencowe thinks she’s earned another title shot with win over Leslie Smith at Bellator 233
Arlene Blencowe thinks her win over Leslie Smith at Bellator 233 should warrant a title shot.
THACKERVILLE, Okla. β [autotag]Arlene Blencowe[/autotag] thinks she’s positioned herself as the No. 1 contender after this past Friday.
She defeated Leslie Smith by unanimous decision at Bellator 233, outpointing her on the strength of her jab en route to a 30-27 sweep on the judges’ scorecards.
Blencowe (13-7 MMA, 6-3 BMMA) was narrowly edged out by current 145-pound champion Julia Budd nearly two years ago at Bellator 189 for the women’s featherweight title. It was her second loss to the champ.
Since then, Blencowe has won three in a row and thinks she’s done enough to get the next title shot against the winner of Budd and Cris Cyborg, who are set to fight for Budd’s title at Bellator 236 on Jan. 25.
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“Obviously, since my controversial split decision loss to Julia, I’ve just worked my way back into the next title shot,” Blencowe told MMA Junkie after her win over Smith. “I knew just getting wins is what I needed. I got two stoppage wins. I was hoping for a third win by stoppage, but we also knew that Leslie was a tough girl, so she doesn’t go down easy. But I definitely I think I’ve earned my spot to get another shot at the title.”
And while avenging her loss to Budd is definitely on her mind, a stylistic matchup against Cyborg is also something that interests her.
“To be honest, if it’s Julia, yeah, that would be awesome,” Blencowe said. “I’ve got some redemption to do there. But Cyborg’s another awesome fight. I’d love to stand in there and bang it out with her. I’ll just be sitting back in January, just excited to watch a good, quality fight, and I think both girls are going to be absolutely awesome.”
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