Tag: Bellator 295

Bellator 295 weigh-in results: One fight canceled during session in Hawaii

Check out the results from the official Bellator 295 fighter weigh-ins.

HONOLULU – MMA Junkie was on scene and reporting live from Friday’s official Bellator 295 fighter weigh-ins.

The weigh-ins took place at the Bellator host hotel in Honolulu. The nearby Neal S. Blaisdell Arena hosts Saturday’s event, which has a main card on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie. It is the second of back-to-back shows in Honolulu.

Among those weighing in were interim bantamweight champion Raufeon Stots (19-1 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) and Patchy Mix (17-1 MMA, 6-1 BMMA), who meet in the main event. The fight also is the final in the $1 million grand prix. In the co-feature, Hawaii’s own Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (12-2 MMA, 11-2 BMMA), a former women’s flyweight champ, take on Kana Watanabe (11-1-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA).

It was far from a flawless session. Before it began, Bellator announced Ray Borg had experienced “weight management issues” and his flyweight bout with Kyoji Horiguchi was off. Additionally, the matchup between Weber Almeida and Keoni Diggs was also pulled from the lineup during the weigh-in window.

The full Bellator 295 weigh-in results include:

MAIN CARD (Showtime, 11 p.m. ET)

  • Interim champ Raufeon Stots (134.2) vs. Patchy Mix (135) – for interim bantamweight title; grand prix final
  • Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (126) vs. Kana Watanabe (125.6)
  • James Gonzalez (145.8) vs. Aaron Pico (145.6)
  • Charlie Leary (164.2) vs. Yancy Medeiros (162.4) – 165-pound contract weight

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 8 p.m. ET)

  • Mads Burnell (144.4) vs. Justin Gonzales (145.6)
  • Adli Edwards (145.6) vs. Kai Kamaka (145.4)
  • Veta Arteaga (125.8) vs. Sumiko Inaba (124.4)
  • Aalon Cruz (156) vs. Bobby King (155.4)
  • Kasim Aras (251.8) vs. Davion Franklin (259.2)
  • Bruna Ellen (125.6) vs. Ilara Joanne (125.4)
  • Masayuki Kikuiri (169) vs. Alexey Shurkevich (170.8)

Ray Borg vs. Kyoji Horiguchi scrapped from Bellator 295, Hawaii’s Yancy Medeiros moved to main card

Saturday’s second of back-to-back Bellator shows in Hawaii has lost a main card fight just hours before the official weigh-ins.

HONOLULU – Saturday’s second of back-to-back Bellator shows in Hawaii has lost a main card fight just hours before the official weigh-ins.

The flyweight bout between [autotag]Ray Borg[/autotag] (16-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) and [autotag]Kyoji Horiguchi[/autotag] (31-5 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) has been canceled, Bellator officials announced Friday. Although the promotion doesn’t officially have a flyweight division, the bout was going to be fought at 125 pounds to open the main card at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu.

Bellator officials did not announce a reason for the fight’s cancellation.

With that fight off, the 165-pound contract weight bout between Oahu native and resident [autotag]Yancy Medeiros[/autotag] (16-8 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) and [autotag]Charlie Leary[/autotag] (17-13-1 MMA, 3-4 BMMA) has been elevated to the main card. When Medeiros made his Bellator debut a year ago in Honolulu, he also had his fight moved from the prelims to the main card – but found out backstage during the event.

Borg was set to make his Bellator debut. He has 21 career fights – but also has nearly as many fights that have been scheduled, but canceled. This will be his 11th on-the-books fight cancellation since 2018. Horiguchi, a former Bellator bantamweight champion, was looking to extend a modest two-fight winning streak.

With the change, the Bellator 295 lineup now includes:

MAIN CARD (Showtime, 11 p.m. ET)

  • Interim champ Raufeon Stots vs. Patchy Mix – for interim bantamweight title; grand prix final
  • Ilima-Lei Macfarlane vs. Kana Watanabe
  • James Gonzalez vs. Aaron Pico
  • Charlie Leary vs. Yancy Medeiros

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 8 p.m. ET)

  • Mads Burnell vs. Justin Gonzales
  • Adli Edwards vs. Kai Kamaka
  • Veta Arteaga vs. Sumiko Inaba
  • Weber Almeida vs. Keoni Diggs
  • Aalon Cruz vs. Bobby King
  • Kasim Aras vs. Davion Franklin
  • Bruna Ellen vs. Ilara Joanne
  • Masayuki Kikuiri vs. Alexey Shurkevich

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

Kyoji Horiguchi hopes Bellator launches men’s flyweight division

Could a flyweight division be headed to Bellator MMA soon? Kyoji Horiguchi hopes so.

HONOLULU – [autotag]Kyoji Horiguchi[/autotag] wants flyweight as his permanent home in Bellator.

Bellator doesn’t currently have a men’s flyweight division, but Horiguchi (31-5 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) will face Ray Borg (16-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) in a 125-pound bout in Saturday’s Bellator 295 event at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Horiguchi returned to flyweight for the first time since 2017 when he defeated Hiromasa Ougikubo for a third time at the Rizin FF vs. Bellator event this past December in Japan. A former Bellator bantamweight champion and former UFC flyweight title challenger, Horiguchi wants to stay at 125 pounds, and hopes his fight with Borg can kickstart the launch of a new division.

“That sounds good,” Horiguchi told reporters including MMA Junkie at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “I want to fight in Bellator at flyweight, so I hope they open up this division.”

Horiguchi meets fellow former UFC flyweight title challenger Borg, who also has a wealth of experience against top-level competition. Horiguchi rates Borg’s skills highly, but sees himself as the more complete fighter.

“He has a good wrestling and boxing style,” Horiguchi said. “I do everything, so I will show up for an MMA fight… I can do MMA, he just has boxing and wrestling. I think everything, I’m better.”

[lawrence-related id=2607918,2607653,2635302]

Although almost half of his career finishes have come by knockout, Horiguchi will be content with any kind of stoppage win against Borg.

“Of course, I want to finish him,” Horiguchi said. “It doesn’t matter, submission or KO, but I will finish him.”

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

Video: Watch Friday’s Bellator 295 ceremonial weigh-ins live on MMA Junkie at 4 p.m. ET

Check out a live video stream of the Bellator 295 ceremonial weigh-ins.

HONOLULU – Bellator 295 ceremonial fighter weigh-ins take place Thursday, and you can catch a live video stream of the proceedings here on MMA Junkie at 4 p.m. ET (1 p.m. PT).

The weigh-ins take place at the Bellator host hotel in Honolulu. The nearby Neal S. Blaisdell 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 295 weigh-in results from earlier in the day.

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

Kai Kamaka puts past behind him: ‘You gotta get better or you’re gonna get weeded out’

Former UFC fighter Kai Kamaka will look to string together his first winning streak since 2020 at Bellator 295 in Honolulu.

HONOLULU – [autotag]Kai Kamaka[/autotag] looks to string together his first winning streak since 2020 at Bellator 295.

Kamaka (10-5-1 MMA, 4-1 BMMA) meets Adli Edwards (9-2 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) in a featherweight bout on Saturday at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Kamaka has had some mixed results lately. He won two of his past three, but had a majority draw and two split decision losses among his five most recent outings. A Hawaiian fighter, Kamaka will look to gain some consistency when he faces Edwards in his backyard.

“Winning is the most important thing in this sport, in sports in general,” Kamaka told reporters including MMA Junkie at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “I’ve got to do my part, and I feel like I’ve done my part all up until this point. I get 15 minutes of time to do so on Saturday.

“As much of a sore loser as I want to be on these split decisions, draws or whatever, you can’t do anything about it. You just have go to get better or you’re gonna get weeded out in this sport. You don’t get much chances, and I feel like I’m pretty damn close.”

[lawrence-related id=2604727,2635302,2635151]

Edwards has yet to prove himself on the big stage. He lost his Bellator debut against Aaron Pico on short notice, but was on a seven-fight win streak prior to that. Kamaka knows not to underestimate his opponent.

“I think it’s a good matchup,” Kamaka said. “It’s a fight, style-wise, where I can show a lot of my skills. He’s a tough guy. He’s a student of the game. Evidently, he’s got to be good to be at this level, so I’m excited.”

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

Kana Watanabe: Ilima-Lei Macfarlane ‘a really good grappler, but I’m also confident in my grappling’

“She’s a really good grappler, but I’m also confident in my grappling.”

HONOLULU – [autotag]Kana Watanabe[/autotag] isn’t afraid to hit the ground with [autotag]Ilima-Lei Macfarlane[/autotag].

Watanabe (11-1-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) meets former flyweight champion Macfarlane (12-2 MMA, 11-2 BMMA) in Saturday’s Bellator 295 co-main event at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Macfarlane ruled the flyweight division for two years with four title defenses. Despite her opponent’s experience, Watanabe says wherever the fight goes, she’ll be ready.

“She’s a really good grappler, but I’m also confident in my grappling,” Watanabe told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “If the fight turns into striking, that’s not a problem for me. … I’ve watched her past bouts a lot, and I’ve studied a lot her fighting styles and patterns, and I’m ready for it.”

Flyweight champion Liz Carmouche and her Bellator 294 title challenger DeAnna Bennett have expressed interest in fighting Watanabe. Carmouche and Watanabe already fought before. It took Carmouche just 35 seconds to score the TKO win at Bellator 261.

[lawrence-related id=475632,2635302,2634660]

Watanabe is happy to have her name linked to the title fight, and is ready to show her improvements when she faces Macfarlane.

“I’m very happy that Liz, the champion, is wishing for me to fight again with her,” Watanabe said. “I wasn’t able to show my own strength last time, so in the next match against her, I want to show my strength more… I’m planning to win this Saturday’s fight, so I’m very happy to fight whoever wins. It doesn’t matter if it’s Liz or DeAnna. I’m very happy to fight against the champion.”

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

Ray Borg: Beating Kyoji Horiguchi at Bellator 295 will throw me right in the title mix

“I don’t see why winning this fight wouldn’t throw me right in that mix.”

HONOLULU – [autotag]Ray Borg[/autotag] expects to emerge as a title contender with a win over [autotag]Kyoji Horiguchi[/autotag].

Borg (16-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) draws former champion Horiguchi (31-5 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) in a flyweight bout in his promotional debut at Saturday’s Bellator 295 event. The card takes place at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu with the main card on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Bellator doesn’t have a flyweight division, but it appears Borg’s sights are set on 135-pound gold. On the same night Borg competes, the Bellator bantamweight grand prix will be settled when interim champ Raufeon Stots meets Patchy Mix in the final. The winner of that fight will face champion Sergio Pettis or upcoming title challenger Patricio Freire.

Borg plans on entering the title discussions, too, if he’s victorious.

“I don’t see why winning this fight wouldn’t throw me right in that mix,” Borg told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a pre-fight news conference Wednesday. “I don’t know why winning this fight wouldn’t catapult me into the front of the line or at least close to the front of the line. There’s some good fights this weekend in terms of this division, but right now I have my eyes set on Horiguchi and we’ll worry about all that later.”

[lawrence-related id=2618788,2635302,2634660]

A former UFC flyweight title challenger, Borg wouldn’t have it any other way than to take on a stern test like Horiguchi right off the bat.

“I would’ve been kind of bummed if they didn’t give me someone like Horiguchi,” Borg said. “I’ve been in this sport a long time, I’ve fought some really high-level competition, and the fact that me and Horiguchi hadn’t fought in the past was surprising. I couldn’t have asked for a better opportunity to make my Bellator debut. He’s a great fighter, he’s been in the sport a long time, he’s a veteran as well. I just think it’s a great matchup.”

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

Aaron Pico explains why he was eager to take short-notice fight at Bellator 295

Aaron Pico was determined to fight at Bellator 295 at all costs

HONOLULU – [autotag]Aaron Pico[/autotag] just wants to resume his fighting career.

After suffering a gruesome shoulder injury back in October, which cost him a TKO loss by doctor’s stoppage to Jeremy Kennedy, Pico (10-4 MMA, 10-4 BMMA) is eager to return to the cage and pick back where he left off. He will get a chance to do so this Saturday on the main card of Bellator 295,which goes down at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena.

Pico fights short-notice replacement James Gonzalez (10-5 MMA, 1-0 BMMA). The 26-year-old didn’t hesitate to accept the fight on just a week’s notice after his original opponent Otto Rodrigues withdrew from the fight.

“I got a call from Ali (my manager) and I immediately knew it was going to be something,” Pico recalled the moment his original fight fell through, speaking with reporters at the Bellator 295 media day on Wednesday. “The first words I said were, ‘Otto is out, right?,’ and he’s like, ‘Yeah.’ I said yes to whoever asked me to fight because that’s pretty much my answer every time, Yes, yes, yes.’ I immediately sent that to Greg and Brandon and got to work.”

Pico was on a six-fight winning streak prior to the shoulder injury in October. He got shoulder surgery shortly after and immediately got back to work one he got the green light from the doctors.

The Bellator featherweight contender wasn’t going to waste a single second more than the required amount of time needed to recover from the surgery.

“I just called Ali when I got cleared with my shoulder, I said I want to fight as soon as possible, you know, that I can fight in April,” Pico said. “I’ve been in training camp and, you know, even after the surgery, I didn’t really take much time off. I was straight into rehab and, and lifting weights, eating good, so I feel like I’ve been in camp since my surgery. I didn’t take the time to, to get fat and just, you know, as a vacation, I really, really, rested and worked out. It would have sucked to not be able to fight.

I love doing this and, I’m really happy that Rodriguez stepped in and, it’s a tough opponent. I’m not taking him very lightly. He’s a southpaw. He’s under Matt Serra and I believe Ray Longo, those guys are great coaches, and I’m not a guy to take anything for granted. I’ve lost in this game. I’ve been humbled and, yeah, we’re not taking this guy lightly, but I felt I’ve fought southpaws, and I have finished a lot of the southpaws: John de Jesus and Aidan Lee. So we quickly went with the coaches and, and reviewed our notes and, and we’re ready.”

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

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=420030791]

[pickup_prop id=”33120″]

Bellator 295 pre-event facts: Ilima-Lei Macfarlane adds to records in Hawaii

Check out the numbers behind Bellator 295, where Hawaii’s own Ilima-Lei Macfarlane adds to her historic resume in Honolulu.

Bellator returns to Hawaii this weekend with two events in two nights, the second of which goes down Saturday at Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu and airs on Showtime following prelims streaming on MMA Junkie.

Bellator 295 marks the second half of the doubleheader, and the event is headlined by the conclusion of the promotion’s bantamweight grand prix. Reigning interim titleholder [autotag]Raufeon Stots[/autotag] (19-1 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) is set to take on [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 6-1 BMMA) in the finals of the eight-man tournament, with the winner getting a $1 million prize.

For more on the numbers behind the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts about Bellator 295.

Yancy Medeiros wants to continue to spread aloha – but don’t rule out title run after Bellator 295

It’s been a year already since Yancy Medeiros’ most recent fight, and he seems more than ready to get back to work at Bellator 295.

vHONOLULU – It’s been a year already since [autotag]Yancy Medeiros[/autotag]’ most recent fight, and he seems more than ready to get back to work.

Bellator 295 Born and raised on the Hawaiian island of Oahu, Medeiros means not just winning fights, but spreading his version of aloha to all the people.

“It’s always that love representing Hawaii,” Medeiros said Tuesday at an open workout session for fans and the media at Royal Hawaiian Center in Honolulu. “I am a product of my environment, and all these people around me made me get the choices I have today. I just love representing and giving back, and I always feel it when I’m traveling. But when I’m home, it’s even: ‘Truth is inevitable bro.'”

Medeiros (16-8 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) meets Charlie Leary (17-13-1 MMA, 3-4 BMMA) on Saturday’s Bellator 295 takes place Saturday at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Medeiros said a torn retina kept him from coming back sooner, but I’ll bet some of the locations we saw.

“The year off wasn’t ideal for me,” Medeiros, but it was I needed. You know, I had some injuries I needed to. 10, you know, um, I had a tour in Retina last year after that last fight. So the vision, the vision was com. I mean, the, the site was compromised, but the vision is clear.

“So, yeah, I’m ready. I’m ready to represent, man.”

Check out Medeiros’ full open workot

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

Check out Medeiros’ full open workout video in the video above.