Bellator 295 – Syndication Server

Ali Abdelaziz: ‘Gifted’ Patchy Mix arguably the best bantamweight in the world

Ali Abdelaziz agrees with Bellator champ Patchy Mix’s claim to being the No. 1 bantamweight.

Ali Abdelaziz agrees with [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] claiming stake as the No. 1 bantamweight in the world.

Abdelaziz, of Dominance MMA, represents Mix (18-1 MMA, 7-1 BMMA), who captured the interim title by knocking out Raufeon Stots with a vicious knee in Round 1 at Bellator 295, winning the bantamweight grand prix and $1 million prize.

After the win, Mix declared himself as the best bantamweight in the sport –and Abdelaziz agrees.

“Right now, before Henry is competing (and he’s) back in the competition, I believe (Mix) is the best bantamweight on the planet,” Abdelaziz told The Schmo. “I see him training with guys. I seen what he do with guys. To welterweight, middleweight, featherweight, to flyweight. This guy, he’s so gifted. And he does one thing so well, you can’t stop it. He’s one of my hardest grapplers around and I grapple with many world champions. He’s just something special.

“And I think Bellator can claim now that they have the best 135-pounder in the world. They can. Because I think Patrick Mix is dangerous everywhere. And we seen what he did to Stots. Stots is one of the guys that’s hard to do things on and he knocked him out with a knee. This thing went viral and people finally realized that Patrick Mix arguably is the best bantamweight in the world.”

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Mix will face the winner of the bantamweight title fight on June 16 at Bellator 297 between champion Sergio Pettis and featherweight champ Patricio Freire, who will look to win a title in a third division when he drops to 135 pounds.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 295.

MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month for April: Featherweight contenders battle in Kansas City

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from April 2023.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from April 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Fight of the Month award for April.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.

Nominees

MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Month for April: Israel Adesanya exacts revenge on Alex Pereira

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from April 2023.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from April 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Month award for April.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice.

Video: Where does Bellator grand prix champ Patchy Mix rank among world’s bantamweights?

After a dominant run through Bellator’s grand prix, does Patchy Mix have a case as the world’s best bantamweight?

At Bellator 295 in Honolulu, [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] created the highlight of the weekend with his Knockout of the Year candidate against Raufeon Stots to win the bantamweight grand prix.

Mix is now $1 million richer and interim champ, setting up a unifier with the winner of [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag], who fight on June 16 at Bellator 297.

After his dominant run through the bantamweight tournament, Mix declared himself the best 135-pound fighter in the world. Is he? And if not, where does he stack up?

Our “Spinning Back Clique” panel of Brian “Goze” Garcia, “Gorgeous” George Garcia and Danny Segura answer those questions with host Mike Bohn. You can watch their discussion in the video above and check out this week’s full episode below.

“Spinning Back Clique” is released each Monday LIVE on MMA Junkie’s YouTube channel. You can watch this week’s episode in the video above.

USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, April 25: Patchy Mix takes big jump

Patchy Mix’s Bellator bantamweight grand prix win resulted in a big jump in this week’s divisional rankings.

After a busy combat sports weekend featuring a number of important fights, there were a few big statements made by rising contenders.

[autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] is one of those fighters who made an impact at Bellator 295, and is no longer just a contender, he’s an interim champion. Mix quickly knocked out Raufeon Stots in the Bellator bantamweight grand prix final, earning a piece of the division’s championship, and a $1 million to deposit in the bank. Entering the week at No. 15, Mix’s performance rises him up to the No. 10 spot in this week’s USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie bantamweight rankings.

UFC heavyweight [autotag]Sergei Pavolovich[/autotag] also turned heads this past weekend. After making quick work of Curtis Blaydes in the main event of UFC Fight Night 222, the powerful Russian could find himself next in line for a title shot. This week, he moves up one spot to claim No. 3 in the heavyweight division.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

Bellator 295 winner Bruna Ellen wants Keri Melendez fight rebooked

As far as Bruna Ellen is concerned, the sooner her fight with Keri Melendez gets rescheduled the better.

HONOLULU – [autotag]Bruna Ellen[/autotag] hopes her fight with [autotag]Keri Melendez[/autotag] gets rescheduled.

Ellen (7-4 MMA, 5-4 BMMA) was scheduled to face Melendez (5-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) at Bellator 292 in March, but the bout was scrapped when Melendez withdrew due to injury.

Ellen ended up getting booked one month later against Ilara Joanne in this past Saturday’s Bellator 295 event at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena. She won by unanimous decision and thinks rebooking her fight against Melendez makes sense.

“Keri Melendez, I was ready for her,” Ellen told MMA Junkie and other reporters at the post-fight news conference. “So, we can do that fight like next week if she can.”

Ellen made her flyweight debut once she signed with Bellator in 2016. The Brazilian has alternated wins and losses in her past seven fights but is ready to go on a run after Bellator 295.

“When I was in Brazil, I fought at 115,” Ellen said. “Now I’m 125, flyweight division, So I’m working on my skills, on my speed. I’m training with a lot of high-level girls right now, and I’m proving what I need to do. But I’m ready now just to put some wins. … Sometimes I thought I was too small for the division, but at the same time, I can hurt the girls. You saw it tonight, so I’m learning how to improve my skills for this division and see what can happen next.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 295.

Kai Kamaka wants quick turnaround after Bellator 295 win, suggests Weber Almeida next

Kai Kamaka is ready to jump straight back to action after Bellator 295.

HONOLULU – [autotag]Kai Kamaka[/autotag] is ready to jump straight back to action after Bellator 295.

Kamaka (11-5-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) defeated Adli Edwards by unanimous decision this past Saturday at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena.

Kamaka wants a ranked opponent or [autotag]Weber Almeida[/autotag] – who was booked to face Keoni Diggs on the same night before the fight was scrapped due to weight-cutting issues from Diggs’ side.

“Give me anybody, 7,8,9,” Kamaka told MMA Junkie and other reporters at the post-fight news conference. “Keoni Diggs missed weight. Give me Weber Almeida. Give me any of those guys. Just give me somebody and get me in quick. I’m healthy, I’m always getting better, I don’t take any shortcuts.

“I make weight. I don’t ask for catchweight. I do my part so the promotion, they’ve got to see that. I show up anywhere. I show up for people. A lot of times I show up for people that don’t show up, and I make weight every single time. That’s the main thing.”

Kamaka, who stopped Kevin Boehm in his past outing at Bellator 289, was hoping to finish Edwards but felt in control of the fight regardless.

“I feel like I let him stay in the fight longer than I should have,” Kamaka said. “I should have finished him. I should have seen my wife a lot earlier, but it was a lot easier, and I wanted to make it a fight. I came to do that, and I’ve seen everything in there. That’s how I know I made it easier. I slowed everything down. I could see it all, and I was just kind of making sure I’d seen it all. But time ran out before I could finish him.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 295.

Davion Franklin after Bellator 295 win: ‘All y’all heavyweights, I’m on your ass, bro’

Davion Franklin sent a stern message to the heavyweight division after rebounding at Bellator 295.

HONOLULU – [autotag]Davion Franklin[/autotag] sent a message to the heavyweight division after rebounding at Bellator 295.

Franklin (6-1 MMA, 6-1 BMMA) defeated Kasim Aras by unanimous decision this past Saturday at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena. An amped-up Franklin called out everybody from Daniel James, to Gokhan Saricam, to Marcelo Golm, and Tim Johnson.

“All y’all heavyweights, I’m on your ass, bro,” Franklin told MMA Junkie and other reporters at his post-fight news conference. “Y’all don’t want this as bad as me. I guarantee you: If I see any of y’all in the future, y’all know what’s up. Y’all know how I’m coming. Off with all y’all heads. I swear I’m crushing all of you, that’s facts. … I want all of y’all head tops, trust me. It ain’t sweet. Y’all don’t want this as bad as I do. None of y’all called anybody out. Y’all all just like, ‘Oh, whoever Bellator gives me.’ I’m putting a name on all of you. I will take all of you out. I swear to God.”

Prior to losing to Golm, Franklin was undefeated. He admits he felt a little pressure to have to bounce back against Aras.

“It was a little weird to me, because I’m not going to lie: My last fight, I was extremely confident,” Franklin said. “So for me to lose a fight that I was extremely confident in, it kind of messed with my mental a little bit to be honest with you.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 295.

MMA Junkie Radio #3355: UFC Fight Night 222 and Bellator Hawaii recap, Davis Vs Garcia, more

Check out the latest episode of MMA Junkie Radio with “Gorgeous” George and “Goze.”

Monday’s edition of MMA Junkie Radio with “Gorgeous” George and “Goze” is here.

On Episode 3,355, the fellas recap a very busy weekend of combat sports. From UFC Fight Night 222 and Gervonta Davis vs. Ryan Garcia in Las Vegas, to back-to-back Bellator shows in Hawaii, the guys discuss it all, and more. Tune in!

Stream or download this and all episodes of MMA Junkie Radio over at OmnyStudio. You can also catch it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and more. A new episode of the podcast is released every Monday and Thursday.

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Nominees

The defeated