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Check out these photos highlighting the action from Bellator 287 in Milan, Italy.
Check out these photos highlighting the action from Bellator 287 in Milan, Italy. (Photos by Lucas Noonan–Bellator MMA)
Bellator 287 takes place Saturday in Italy, and you can join us for a live video stream and official results beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET.
Bellator 287 takes place Saturday, and you can join us for a live video stream and official results beginning at 12:30 p.m. ET (9:30 a.m. PT).
Bellator 287 takes place at Allianz Cloud Arena in Milan, Italy. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
In the main event, Adam Piccolotti (13-4 MMA, 9-4 BMMA) takes on Mansour Barnaoui (19-4 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) at lightweight. In the co-feature, Fabian Edwards (10-2 MMA, 6-2 BMMA), brother of UFC welterweight champion Leon Edwards, meets Conor McGregor teammate Charlie Ward (10-4 MMA, 7-1 BMMA).
Official Bellator 287 results include:
MAIN CARD (4 p.m. ET, Showtime)
PRELIMINARY CARD (12:30 p.m. ET, MMA Junkie)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 287.
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Luke Trainer made it look easy at Bellator 287.
[autotag]Luke Trainer[/autotag] made it look easy at Bellator 287.
Coming off the first loss of his career, Trainer rebounded in a big way with a first-round submission win over Lucas Alsina on Saturday at Allianz Cloud Arena in Milan, Italy.
Trainer (6-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) set the finishing sequence in motion after he landed a front kick to the face that stunned Alsina (11-4 MMA, 0-1 BMMA). At that moment, Trainer shot in for a takedown and swiftly transitioned to Alsina’s back. Trainer worked the neck until he eventually locked in a rear-naked choke to get the tap at the 1:54 mark.
Check out the finish in the video below:
"That was a masterpiece."
Luke Trainer made it look easy in his first fight coming off of a loss. #Bellator287pic.twitter.com/D4uS9lpHwU
— MMA Junkie (@MMAJunkie) October 29, 2022
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Trainer, 26, started his career 5-0 before losing a unanimous decision to Simon Biyong this past May. All six of the British fighter’s wins have come by finish, including three submissions.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 287.
Check out our staff members’ picks for the Bellator 287 main card in Milan, Italy.
| Piccolotti vs. Barnaoui |
Edwards vs. Ward |
Rogers vs. Wilde |
Fisher vs. Gonzales |
|
| MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 167-100 |
 Barnaoui (58%) |
 Edwards (73%) |
 Rogers (76%) |
 Gonzales (84%) |
| Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 179-93  2018 Champion |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 172-100 |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| Matthew Wells @MrMWells 170-102 |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 169-103 |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| Mike Bohn @MikeBohn 169-103 2014 Champion |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 166-106 |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| Simon Samano @SJSamano 165-107 |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| Brian Garcia @thegoze 159-113 2017 Champion |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| Nolan King @mma_kings 159-113 |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 152-120 |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
| Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 133-138 |
Barnaoui |
Edwards |
Rogers |
Gonzales |
Bellator is back in Italy this week with a lightweight matchup at the top of the lineup.
Bellator 287 takes place Saturday at Allianz Cloud Arena in Milan, Italy. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)
In the main event, [autotag]Adam Piccolotti[/autotag] (13-4 MMA, 9-4 BMMA) takes on promotional newcomer [autotag]Mansour Barnaoui[/autotag] (19-4 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) at lightweight. Barnaoui is a slight betting favorite around -150, and our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers have him as a near-unanimous pick at 10-1.
In the co-main event [autotag]Fabian Edwards[/autotag] (10-2 MMA, 6-2 BMMA) is one of our three unanimous picks on the main card in his middleweight fight against [autotag]Charlie Ward[/autotag] (10-4 MMA, 7-1 BMMA). Edwards is the brother of new UFC welterweight champ Leon Edwards; Ward is a teammate of Conor McGregor. Edwards is as much as a 6-1 favorite and an 11-0 pick from our staff members.
Also on the main card, [autotag]Saul Rogers[/autotag] (15-4 MMA, 3-2 BMMA) is a 4-1 favorite in his lightweight bout against [autotag]Tim Wilde[/autotag] (14-4-1 MMA, 2-1-1 BMMA). Rogers is our second unanimous pick on the main card.
And to open the main card, [autotag]Justin Gonzales[/autotag] (13-1 MMA, 2-1 BMMA) is nearly a 3-1 favorite in his featherweight bout against [autotag]Andrew Fisher[/autotag] (19-8-1 MMA, 2-2 BMMA). Gonzales is our third 11-0 pick
In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Barnaoui (58 percent), Edwards (73 percent), Rogers (76 percent) and Gonzales (84 percent) are the choices.
Check out all the picks above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 287.
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Check out the best photos from the Bellator 287 ceremonial weigh-ins and faceoffs in Milan, Italy.
Check out the best photos from the Bellator 287 ceremonial weigh-ins and faceoffs in Milan, Italy. (Photos via Lucas Noonan/Bellator MMA).
Check out the results from the official Bellator 287 fighter weigh-ins.
The weigh-ins for Bellator’s latest trip overseas are in the books, and all 34 fighters made weight without issue.
In the lightweight main event, Adam Piccolotti (13-4 MMA, 9-4 BMMA) takes on Mansour Barnaoui (19-4 MMA, 0-0 BMMA). Piccolotti weighed in at 155.2 pounds, while Barnaoui came in slightly under at 154.6.
In the co-feature, Fabian Edwards (10-2 MMA, 6-2 BMMA), the brother of UFC welterweight champ Leon Edwards, meets Conor McGregor teammate Charlie Ward (10-4 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) at middleweight. Edwards hit the scale at 185.4 pounds; Ward weighed in at 185.2.
The weigh-ins took place at the Bellator host hotel in Milan, Italy. The nearby Allianz Cloud Arena hosts Saturday’s event, which has a main card on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
The full Bellator 287 weigh-in results included:
MAIN CARD (4 p.m. ET, Showtime)
PRELIMINARY CARD (12:30 p.m. ET, MMA Junkie)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 287.
Check out a live video stream of the Bellator 287 ceremonial weigh-ins.
Bellator 287 ceremonial fighter weigh-ins take place Friday, and you can catch a live video stream of the proceedings here on MMA Junkie at 7 a.m. ET (4 a.m. PT).
The weigh-ins take place at the Bellator host hotel in Milan, Italy. The nearby Allianz Cloud Arena hosts Saturday’s event, which has a main card on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
In addition to the video stream above, you can check out the early and official Bellator 287 weigh-in results from earlier in the day.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 287.
Meet Bellator 287 headliner Mansour Barnaoui, a top lightweight finisher gunning to get your approval through nasty finishes.
[autotag]Mansour Barnaoui[/autotag] chose to sign with Bellator for the same reasons he chose to fight in Asia for much of his career.
“I had a lot of power and energy inside the cage (when competing in Asia),” Barnaoui recently told MMA Junkie through an interpreter. “I loved the respect they had for their fighters. I felt a lot of power and respect. This was also the reason why I chose Bellator, because there is respect for the fighters.”
Geographically, Barnaoui’s life journey is all over the map. Born in Tunisia, he moved to France at two weeks old. A neighbor introduced him to MMA and before long he entered professional competition. He competed in France, before he entered the United Kingdom scene for Cage Warriors.
Stops in Canada, Russia, and Poland followed before Barnaoui settled into a more permanent scene in South Korea, where he went 6-0 and won the Road FC lightweight championship.
In June, Bellator announced Barnaoui (19-4 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) signed an exclusive multifight deal. He will make his promotional debut Saturday when he headlines Bellator 287 vs. Adam Piccolotti (13-4 MMA, 9-4 BMMA) in Milan, Italy.
“I’m very happy to fight with Bellator. I chose Bellator because Bellator cares about the fighters,” Barnaoui said. “I’m sure it was a good choice because my first fight is a main event. I can’t ask more from Bellator. I made the right choice.”
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Barnaoui, 30, enters his Bellator debut on a seven-fight winning streak. Piccolotti is 4-2 in his most recent six and comes off a win over Georgi Karakhanyan from February.
The Bellator lightweight division is at the end of a rebuild phase with champion Patricky Freire and emerging contenders like Usman Nurmagomedov, Tofiq Musayev, and Alexander Shabliy.
It’s yet to be seen where he fits, but Barnaoui is focused on the title.
“Fans will be very surprised because I will win by KO or submissions every time,” Barnaoui said. “They will be very surprised. … I don’t care (where I fit in now). I just want to be a champion. I want to win at Bellator 287 and I want to win the lightweight grand prix. I’m here for that, the championship and the tournament.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 287.
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We want your predictions for Saturday’s Bellator 287 event in Milan, Italy.
We want your predictions for Saturday’s Bellator 287 event in Milan.
Our staff picks feature includes the consensus picks from MMA Junkie readers. Simply cast your vote for each bout below, and we’ll use the official tallies that are registered by Thursday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).
Those MMA Junkie reader consensus picks will be part of the Bellator 287 main card staff predictions we release Friday ahead of the event. Bellator 287 takes place Saturday at Allianz Cloud Arena in Milan, Italy. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
Make your picks for the fights below.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 287.
After snapping the only skid of his career, and in a big way, Fabian Edwards had his sights set pretty high.
After snapping the only skid of his career, and in a big way, [autotag]Fabian Edwards[/autotag] had his sights set pretty high.
Edwards started his career 9-0 before he dropped a split decision to Costello van Steenis in September 2020. In his follow-up at Bellator 259 eight months later, he dropped a decision to Austin Vanderford, who went on to a middleweight title shot against then-champ Gegard Mousasi.
When Edwards bounced back, he did it with a first-round knockout of former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida, one of the sport’s all-time greats, in May. He had a couple names in mind for his follow-up, but got a different option, instead.
Edwards (10-2 MMA, 6-2 BMMA) will return to action next week against Conor McGregor teammate Charlie Ward (10-4 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) at Bellator 287 in Milan, Italy.
“Personally, I didn’t want the matchup,” Edwards told MMA Junkie Radio. “I asked for John Salter because he was ranked in front of me at the time. I asked for the Mousasi fight. I never asked for the Charlie fight. I didn’t want the Charlie fight. I wanted those two fights. But that was what was put on the table for me – and I have to eat.”
On the positive side of things, though, as far as Edwards is concerned, is he thinks he might be able to get the feeling he was looking for when he beat Machida.
Edwards said snapping his two-fight skid came with a release – but that the stoppage was fast enough that he might have gotten a bigger rush if he’d have been able to just get a couple more punches off at the end.
If things go the way he has planned against Ward, maybe he’ll get that release, just a little delayed.
“I think with this fight, because Charlie’s a tough guy – or appears to be tough – I think I’ll be able to get a release in this fight,” Edwards said. “I feel like after the fight, I’m going to have had a well-deserved meal – I feel like I’m going to be like, ‘That’s the release I was after.’ Hopefully he can take what I’m giving him and keep coming forward.
“Charlie is a tough guy, but there’s only so far toughness can go. He got wobbled by a random kid in his last fight – the guy had Charlie on a little bit of (roller) skates. Personally, I could see it being like a second-round stoppage. Charlie’s there to be hit, and I’m going to be hitting hard.”
Check out the full interview with Edwards in the video above.
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