Tag: Daniel James

PFL heavyweight Daniel James fails third drug test, suspended 10 months

PFL heavyweight Daniel James has failed a drug test once again. This marks the third time in 2.5 years he’s been suspended.

Heavyweight [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] has been handed another drug test suspension.

PFL anti-doping partner USADA announced a 10-month suspension for James (15-7-1) after he tested positive for bis-(4-cyanophenyl) methanol, a metabolite of letrozole, during an out-of-competition drug test May 8.

James, 42, has now been suspended three times since early 2022 for failed drug tests. The previous two failures were through Bellator’s independent drug-testing run by Association of Boxing and Combat Sports Commissions (ABC) president Mike Mazzulli, so this failure was not marked a secondary or tertiary offense.

In April 2022, James was pulled from a bout vs. Davion Franklin suspended for an undisclosed banned substance. In 2023, James’ November 2022 win was overturned due to the detection of a banned anabolic substance.

James most recently competed in April when he finished Marcelo Golm with strikes. He missed weight for the bout. He was then scheduled to rematch Tyrell Fortune in June, but withdrew from the bout for undisclosed reasons.

Photos: UFC, Bellator stars throw out first pitch at MLB games

Check out these photos highlighting UFC stars past and present who threw out the first pitch at MLB games – and hopefully didn’t embarrass themselves.

Check out these photos highlighting UFC and Bellator stars past and present – including Jon Jones, Anderson Silva, Francis Ngannou, Stipe Miocic, Paige VanZant, and more – who threw out the first pitch at MLB games … and hopefully didn’t embarrass themselves.

Continuation of PFL’s heavyweight season gets two changes in Connecticut

The PFL’s return next month, and debut at Bellator’s former East Coast home base, has seen a pair of changes at heavyweight.

The PFL’s return next month, and debut at Bellator’s former East Coast home base, has seen a pair of changes at heavyweight.

[autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] (15-7-1) is out of his fight against [autotag]Tyrell Fortune[/autotag] (13-2) on the main card. Fortune now will take on [autotag]Marcelo Golm[/autotag] (10-5). And [autotag]Marcelo Nunes[/autotag] (11-2) is out of his bout against [autotag]Oleg Popov[/autotag] (17-1). Popov now will take on replacement [autotag]Davion Franklin[/autotag] (6-2).

A Bellator official informed MMA Junkie of the new matchups Monday. The start of the PFL’s second half of the regular season takes place June 13 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. (ESPN/ESPN+), and features heavyweights and women’s flyweights who will attempt to qualify for the four-person postseason.

Fortune was supposed to fight Golm this past November at UFC 301 in Chicago, but Fortune became sick on fight day after the event started and the bout was scrapped. Fortune also was supposed to fight James to open the regular season, but had to withdraw. Consequently, he has no points in the standings, which are led by Valentin Moldavsky with 6 points. Golm lost his opening bout of the regular season.

Popov has 5 points after a second-round stoppage in his first fight of the season. Franklin will be fighting for the first time in the regular season.

With the changes, the PFL Week 4 lineup now includes:

MAIN CARD (ESPN, 9 p.m. ET)

  • Valentin Moldavsky vs. Linton Vassell
  • Dakota Ditcheva vs. Chelsea Hackett
  • Tyrell Fortune vs. Marcelo Golm
  • Liz Carmouche vs. Kana Watanabe

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN+, 5:30 p.m. ET)

  • Sergey Bilostennyi vs. Denis Goltsov
  • Jena Bishop vs. Taila Santos
  • Davion Franklin vs. Oleg Popov
  • Ilara Joanne vs. Shanna Young
  • Danilo Marques vs. Gokhan Saricam
  • Lisa Mauldin vs. Juliana Velasquez
  • Sumiko Inaba vs. Saray Orozco
  • Melissa Balic vs. Kristina Katsikis

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Sept. 11-17)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by the promotions from Sept. 11-17.

Bellator 297 results: Gokhan Saricam spoils Chicago homecoming for Daniel James

Minutes after a deafening cheer, the boos rained down in Chicago following the conclusion of Gokhan Saricam vs. Daniel James.

CHICAGO – [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] received a hero’s welcome on his way to the cage Friday at Wintrust Arena, but it was [autotag]Gokhan Saricam[/autotag] who walked away with a smile

On the Bellator 297 main card, Saricam (8-3 MMA, 4-3 BMMA) defeated James (15-7-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) with a wrestle-heavy game plan, much to the displeasure of those in attendance.

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After a few big exchanges in the opening round, Saricam planted an aggressive James to the canvas and remained heavy on top. The fighters got up with both pressing the other against the fence.

The two visuals of cage-pushing and Saricam on top on the ground repeated throughout the bout. In Round 3, James mustered up the most success he found in the fight, as he pressed Saricam and threatened a front choke. But it was too little too late.

The boos rained down upon the final bell and Saricam was declared the victory in enemy territory.

James, 41, rode a five-fight winning streak into the contest that included back-to-back victories over Tyrell Fortune and Marcelo Golm.

Saricam, 32, gets back on track after a unanimous decision loss to Oleg Popov in February.

The up-to-the-minute Bellator 297 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 297.

40 years in the making: Behind the scenes at Daniel James’ Wrigley Field first pitch before Bellator 297

After more than 40 years as a Chicagoan, Daniel James finally went inside one of the city’s most iconic landmarks before Bellator 297.

CHICAGO – After more than 40 years as a Chicagoan, [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] finally went inside one of the city’s most iconic landmarks.

James, a Bellator heavyweight, never had been to Wrigley Field, the longtime home of the Chicago Cubs and a historic ballpark that is more than 100 years old. But Wednesday, he made his first visit – and threw out a ceremonial first pitch.

That’s not too shabby for a Wrigley debut.

Friday, James (15-6-1 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) fights Gokhan Saricam (8-2 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) to open the main card at Bellator 297 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie. A win for James could have him in position to challenge for the heavyweight title his next time out.

Ahead of the fight, take a journey with James from the Chicago Loop to Wrigley Field for his first pitch in the video above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 297.

Daniel James’ ceremonial first pitch at Wrigley Field before Bellator 297: Best photos

Check out photos from Daniel James’ ceremonial first pitch at the Chicago Cubs vs. Pittsburgh Pirates game at Wrigley Field.

Check out these photos of Bellator heavyweight and Chicago native [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] throwing out the ceremonial first pitch Wednesday, June 14, 2023, at Wrigley Field in Chicago. James fights at Bellator 297 Friday in front of his home fans. (Photos by Matt Erickson–MMA Junkie)

Bellator 297 video: Why Yoel Romero ‘faced off’ with Vadim Nemkov virtually from his hotel bed

Bellator’s headlining champs and challengers had their first faceoffs of fight week Wednesday 1,350 feet in the air – absent one key player.

CHICAGO – Bellator’s headlining champs and challengers had their first faceoffs of fight week Wednesday 1,350 feet in the air … absent one key player, though.

Light heavyweight champion [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (16-2 MMA, 8-0 BMMA) puts his title on the line against [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (15-6 MMA, 2-1 BMMA) in the Bellator 297 main event.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag] (35-5 MMA, 23-5 BMMA) chases history when he tries to add the bantamweight title to his current featherweight belt. He challenges 135-pound champ [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] (22-5 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) in the co-feature, and a win will make him the first fighter in Bellator history to have titles in three different divisions.

Wednesday, the fighters took questions from the media at a press conference at the Skydeck at Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower), Chicago’s tallest building. At 1,451 feet, the Willis Tower is the 23rd tallest building in the world, third tallest in the U.S. and has the tallest public viewing area of any building in the country.

But Romero elected to stay at the host hotel in downtown Chicago rather than go to the 99th floor of the building. Romero, he said, is afraid of heights. He joined the press conference through a video feed in his hotel room. That meant no faceoff for the main event, but there were three others.

Check out the highlights from the co-main event faceoff in the video above, as well as the faceoff between [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] (17-6 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) and former light heavyweight champion [autotag]Phil Davis[/autotag] (24-6 MMA, 11-3 BMMA) and an appearance from Chicago’s own [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] (15-6-1 MMA, 3-0 BMMA), a heavyweight contender who opens the main card against Gokhan Saricam (8-2 MMA, 4-2 BMMA).

Bellator 297 takes place Friday at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 297.

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Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (April 10-16)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie from April 10-16

Cincinnati, Penn State and Toledo each land commitment from a 3-star cornerback

The pieces are beginning to fall in place for the class of 2024.

The pieces are beginning to fall in place for the class of 2024. This past weekend saw a surge of recruiting in this cycle, including five different quarterbacks making their college commitments.

Then on Monday, a few schools all had the same idea: recruit three-star cornerback prospects from this class with similar builds. Here’s who they are and where they committed.

Zachary Rogers: Wylie E. Groves (Mich.) – Toledo

According to On3, Rogers (6-foot-0, 170 pounds) is ranked No. 27 in the state of Michigan and No. 105 among cornerbacks in his class. 12 other programs made offers, including Central Michigan, Western Michigan and Michigan State.

Antoine Belgrave-Shorter: Mandarin (Fla.) – Penn State

Going by the consensus rankings, Belgrave-Shorter (6-foot-0, 180 pounds) is currently No. 87 overall in Florida. He had 18 other offers on the table, including Florida Atlantic, Miami, UCF, USF and Florida State.

Daniel James: McEachern (Ga.) – Cincinnati

And last but not least, James (5-foot-11, 175 pounds) ranks No. 64 overall in the state of Georgia, according to 247Sports. He had 23 offers all together, including Georgia Tech, Georgia Southern and Georgia State.

More football stories

College football recruiting watchlist: USA TODAY Sports college wires weigh in on Class of 2023

Georgia adds third five-star recruit to their class of 2025

Four-star CB Selman Bridges says he “really likes Texas”