Two of Bellator’s top European middleweight contenders will go head to head in Milan, Italy as Fabian Edwards and Costello van Steenis face off at Bellator Europe 8.
Two of the top middleweight talents on Bellator’s European roster are set to collide in Italy as England’s [autotag]Fabian Edwards[/autotag] puts his undefeated record on the line against Dutch contender [autotag]Costello van Steenis[/autotag].
The two 185-pound contenders will go head to head in the main event of Bellator Europe 8, which takes place Sept. 26 at the Allianz Cloud in Milan, Italy. Bellator officially confirmed the matchup Tuesday.
The fight marks Edwards’ (9-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) return to action for the first time since his split-decision victory over fellow countryman Mike Shipman at Bellator Europe 6 last November. That victory capped off a successful year for the Birmingham native, who went 4-0 inside the Bellator cage in 2019 following a stint with UK promotion BAMMA.
He’ll be facing van Steenis (12-2 MMA, 4-1 BMMA), who is looking to bounce back after his decision defeat to John Salter at Bellator 233 last November.
After that fight, “The Spaniard” was booked to face Edwards at Bellator’s May 16 event in London, but that show was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now the pair have been rebooked and are set to face off at Bellator Europe 8, with the winner set to move a big step closer to a possible shot at the Bellator 185-pound strap.
Also confirmed on the card are two more middleweight matchups, as Ireland’s Will Fleury takes on England’s Kent Kauppinen, while Italy’s Pietro Penini faces the aforementioned Shipman.
If you’ve got nearly six hours to kill, here you go with some classic Bellator action.
Since its first event held in 2009, Bellator has given us some of the most memorable fights in MMA history.
While events remain on hold because of coronavirus pandemic, Bellator has put 20 of its greatest bouts – “fire” fights, if you will – all in one place, which you can watch in the video above.
The complete list, which goes for nearly six hours, includes:
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.
At age 35, John Salter headlined his first Bellator card. He defeated Costello van Steenis in a three-round battle.
[autotag]John Salter[/autotag] has a lot of momentum behind him.
A top Bellator middleweight contender, Salter (17-4 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) has won nine of his most recent 10 fights. His lone loss came to future Bellator middleweight champion Rafael Lovato Jr. in September 2018.
Salter’s most recent fight took place at Bellator 233 in November 2019. In his first Bellator main event, Salter squared off with rising Dutch contender [autotag]Costello van Steenis[/autotag].
At the time, van Steenis was undefeated in the Bellator cage, having defeated Steve Skrzat, Kevin Fryer, Chris Honeycutt and Mike Shipman en route to his matchup vs. Salter.
Despite being eight years younger than Salter, van Steenis was a slight betting underdog. The oddsmakers were proved correct. It took him three rounds, but Salter got the job done by unanimous decision. All three judges scored the fight 29-28 in Salter’s favor.
Salter was recently scheduled to fight May 16 against Fabian Edwards at Bellator Europe 8. However, due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and its subsequent logistical ramifications, the promotion postponed its May events.
No rescheduled date has been announced at this time.
Check out John Salter’s Bellator 233 win over Costello van Steenis in the video above.
An battle of European middleweight contenders has been booked for the co-main event at Bellator Europe 8 in London.
Hot on the heels of the main event announcement, Bellator Europe 8’s co-main attraction has been confirmed.
Birmingham middleweight contender [autotag]Fabian Edwards[/autotag] will look to star in the co-main event showcase when he takes on fellow European contender [autotag]Costello van Steenis[/autotag] in a pivotal bout at 185 pounds.
For Edwards (9-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA), the bout represents the step up in competition he called for after his victory over fellow Brit Mike Shipman in London at Bellator Europe 6 in November 2019. The Netherlands’ van Steenis (12-2 MMA, 4-1 BMMA) is a protege and training partner of former Bellator middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi, and is looking to bounce back into the win column after dropping a unanimous decision to American contender John Salter at Bellator 233.
Edwards and van Steenis will provide support to the bantamweight main event between Ireland’s James Gallagher and England’s Cal Ellenor at the SSE Arena, Wembley on May 16.
Also set to feature on the card is the MMA debut of former England rugby star James Haskell, who will swap sports and step into the Bellator cage for the first time against an opponent to be confirmed at a later date.
The event will be streamed live on Bellator’s official YouTube channel at 5 p.m. ET, with the action being broadcast live in the U.K. on Channel 5 from 10 p.m. BST.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from November 2019.
With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best fights from November 2019: Here are the four nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s “Fight of the Month” award for November.
At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting on your choice.
* * * *
The Nominees
Stephen Thompson def. Vicente Luque at UFC 244
In case there were any doubters — and going in, there sure seemed to be — [autotag]Stephen Thompson[/autotag] (18-6-1 MMA, 11-2 UFC) proved he’s still very much a factor in the UFC welterweight division against [autotag]Vicente Luque[/autotag] (17-6-1 MMA, 10-2 UFC).
The two time title challenger returned to vintage “Wonderboy” form as he picked apart one of the division’s hottest fighters in Luque over the course of three rounds. The judges’ scores at New York’s Madison Square Garden were 30-26, 30-26, and 29-27 as Thompson won by unanimous decision.
[autotag]Jorge Masvidal[/autotag] (35-13 MMA, 12-6 UFC) became the UFC’s “Baddest Mother(expletive)” after defeating [autotag]Nate Diaz[/autotag] (20-12 MMA, 15-10 UFC) in their highly anticipated welterweight matchup.
Masvidal continued the most stellar run of his career, and perhaps wrapped up his claim to “Fight of the Year,” when he picked Diaz apart to claim the “BMF” belt. Unfortunately the end came in an anticlimactic matter, with “Gamebred” winning by doctor stoppage TKO in the third round after multiple cuts on Diaz’s face.
John Salter def. Costello van Steenis at Bellator 233
Prior to his encounter with [autotag]Costello van Steenis[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 4-1 BMMA) in their middleweight main event, [autotag]John Salter[/autotag] (17-4 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) never went the distance in 20 pro mixed martial arts fights, win or lose.
Finally, that changed. Salter dominated the first two rounds in his bout with van Steenis, which was enough to win out over a later rally as he earned a unanimous decision. The judges’ scores were 29-28 across the board, putting Salter back in contention in Bellator’s 185-pound division.
Zabit Magomedsharipov def. Calvin Kattar at UFC on ESPN+ 21
[autotag]Zabit Magomedsharipov[/autotag] (18-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) was made to work for it, but the Dagestani featherweight contender picked up arguably the most important win of his UFC career against [autotag]Calvin Kattar[/autotag] (20-4 MMA, 4-2 UFC).
The matchup was rearranged from their original booking at UFC on ESPN 6 in October, with the matchup kept as a three-round affair despite headlining status. And after three entertaining rounds, it was Kattar who was in the ascendency, but Magomedsharipov who was ahead on the scorecards to take a unanimous decision.
On a night in which the president of the United States and Hollywood superstar Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson were both in the house, New York State Athletic Commission Chief Medical Officer Nitin K. Sethi apparently decided he wanted to be the star of the show.
Masvidal and Diaz delivered as advertised through the first three rounds of their main event for the “BMF” title. Diaz, however, was cut above and below his right eye, and while Diaz has fought his way through plenty worse in his career, Sethi took a cursory glance at Diaz between rounds and decided to call off the fight, much to the chagrin of the capacity crowd at New York’s Madison Square Garden.
It went in the books as a TKO stoppage at 5:00 of the third round, but Masvidal, for his part, made it clear he was unsatisfied with the stoppage and was ready to run things back as soon as possible.
[lawrence-related id=459344,459430]
“For a fact, you gave me the love I’ll give you the love,” Masvidal told Diaz. “I don’t like to leave the ring like this with my opponent still conscious. We have to run it back.”
Masvidal was sharp from the fight’s outset, firing heavy hands with malicious intent. What turned out to be the bout’s most important sequence occurred early in the first round. Masvidal caught Diaz with a wicked elbow off the break, then landed a sneaky head kick which dropped Diaz to the mat. Somewhere in that flurry, Diaz was busted open around his right eye.
Masvidal was cautious about going to the mat with Diaz, which enabled Diaz to recover, but he continued to outwork Diaz in the standup throughout the first and into the second.
Diaz likes to stalk his foes, use pressure, and turn up the volume. But every time it appeared Diaz was going to turn up the heat, Masvidal managed to escape and reset.
[lawrence-related id=459532,459479]
Diaz is a cardio machine known for coming on in the late rounds. While Masvidal also won the third round, the round was also Diaz’s best, as he started to show signs he was getting it together, landing effective combos.
That built the anticipation for the championship rounds, but that’s when the doctor decided it was a good idea to step in and end the fight.
“The Rock” came in and placed the specially made “BMF” belt around Masvidal’s waist, and while Masvidal accepted it, he made it clear he wants a rematch. Diaz, for his part, let everyone know he’s down.
“I’m going back for this mother(expletive), right back,” Diaz said. “Let me heal this up and go again.”
