Darrion Caldwell – Page 2 – Syndication Server

Ryan Bader to defend heavyweight title vs. Valentin Moldavsky at Bellator 273

Ryan Bader will finally defend his Bellator heavyweight championship again for the first time in more than two years.

[autotag]Ryan Bader[/autotag] will finally defend his Bellator heavyweight championship again for the first time in more than two years.

On Monday, the promotion announced that Bader will put his title on the line against top contender and Fedor Emelianenko pupil [autotag]Valentin Moldavsky[/autotag] at Bellator 273 on Jan. 29 at Footprint Center in Phoenix. The event will air on Showtime following prelims streamed on YouTube.

Bader (28-7 MMA, 6-2 BMMA) hasn’t competed at heavyweight since Sept. 7, 2019 when he retained his title in a no contest with Cheick Kongo after an accidental eye poke ended the fight in the first round. Since then, Bader has focused on light heavyweight.

Upon Bellator resuming events after a hiatus because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Bader lost his 205-pound title to Vadim Nemkov at Bellator 244 in August 2020. Rather than defend his heavyweight title following the loss, Bader instead opted to enter the Bellator light heavyweight grand prix where he defeated Lyoto Machida by unanimous decision before most recently losing to Corey Anderson by first-round TKO in the semifinals this past October.

Now Bader will turn his attention back to heavyweight and Moldavsky (11-1 MMA, 6-0 BMMA). During a six-fight Bellator winning streak, Moldavsky has defeated the likes of Linton Vassell, Javy Ayala, Roy Nelson, and most recently Tim Johnson this past June. Five of Moldavsky’s six wins during his streak have been unanimous decisions.

In addition to the heavyweight title headliner, Bellator also announced a bantamweight bout between former champion [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] and UFC veteran [autotag]Enrique Barzola[/autotag].

Caldwell (15-5 MMA, 12-5 BMMA) will look to snap a two-fight losing streak, which includes a first-round submission against featherweight champ A.J. McKee in the promotion’s grand prix in November 2020. Caldwell returned to bantamweight this past May at Bellator 259 where he lost a split decision in a rematch with Leandro Higo.

For Barzola (16-5-2 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), the fight will be his promotional debut following his exit from the UFC where he went 6-3-1 from November 2015 to March 2020. Barzola closed out his UFC tenure with a majority draw against Rani Yahya.

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqvpne7c1q486dvv player_id=none image=https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[listicle id=1808060]

Bellator 259 faceoff video highlights: Cris Cyborg, Leslie Smith have one last faceoff before rematch

Check out the ceremonial weigh-in faceoffs ahead of Bellator 259 at Mohegan Sun.

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Bellator makes its return Friday and the women’s featherweight title will be on the line.

Bellator 259 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena with the main card airing on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie. Atop the bill is [autotag]Cris Cyborg[/autotag] (23-2 MMA, 2-0 BMMA), who defends her title against [autotag]Leslie Smith[/autotag] (12-8-1 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) in the main event. The fight is a rematch of the two fighters’ 2016 bout, which Cyborg won by first-round TKO.

The co-main event also features a rematch. Former Bellator bantamweight champion [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] (15-4 MMA, 12-3 BMMA) returns to the division he once sat upon the throne of. He faces [autotag]Leandro Higo[/autotag] (20-5 MMA, 3-3 BMMA), who missed weight by 1.5 pounds ahead of the bout.

Following Thursday’s official Bellator 259 weigh-ins, the athletes came face to face for some traditional pre-fight staredowns.

Check out the faceoffs below, including Cyborg vs. Smith, Caldwell vs. Higo, [autotag]Austin Vanderford[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Fabian Edwards[/autotag], [autotag]Valerie Loureda[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Hannah Guy[/autotag], and more.

Bellator 259 predictions: What are our three unanimous picks on the main card?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the Bellator 259 main card, featuring Cris Cyborg vs. Leslie Smith.

	Cyborg vs. Smith	Caldwell vs. Higo	Edwards vs. Vanderford	Mandonca vs. Willis	Edwards vs. Parrish
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2021: 66-45	Cyborg (86%)	Caldwell (77%)	Vanderford (70%)	Willis (85%)	C. Edwards (83%)
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 2021: 68-43	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Willis	C. Edwards
John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2021: 68-43	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Willis	C. Edwards
Nolan King @mma_kings 2021: 66-45	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Mendonca	C. Edwards
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2021: 66-45 2018 Champion	Cyborg	Caldwell	F. Edwards	Willis	C. Edwards
Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2021: 65-46 2014 Champion	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Willis	C. Edwards
Brian Garcia @thegoze 2021: 65-46 2017 Champion	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Willis	C. Edwards
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2021: 65-46	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Willis	C. Edwards
Simon Samano @SJSamano 2021: 65-46	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Willis	C. Edwards
Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2021: 63-48 2020 Champion	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Willis	C. Edwards
Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2021: 62-49	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Willis	C. Edwards
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2021: 61-50	Cyborg	Caldwell	F. Edwards	Willis	C. Edwards
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2021: 60-51	Cyborg	Caldwell	Vanderford	Mendonca	C. Edwards
BetMGM Betting Favorites	Cyborg -1400	Caldwell -350	Vanderford -225	Mendonca -125	C. Edwards -650

Bellator is back this week with a title fight at the top of the card.

Bellator 259 takes place Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. 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, women’s featherweight champion [autotag]Cris Cyborg[/autotag] (23-2 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) puts her title on the line in a rematch with challenger [autotag]Leslie Smith[/autotag] (12-8-1 MMA, 2-2 BMMA). Cyborg is a huge favorite at -1400 at BetMGM, so it’s no surprise she’s one of three unanimous picks on the main card from our editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers.

In the co-feature, former bantamweight champ [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] (14-4 MMA, 11-3 BMMA) takes on [autotag]Leandro Higo[/autotag] (20-5 MMA, 3-3 BMMA). Caldwell is a -350 favorite, and he’s a 12-0 unanimous pick from our staff members.

Also on the main card, [autotag]Fabian Edwards[/autotag] (9-1 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) takes on [autotag]Austin Vanderford[/autotag] (10-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) in a middleweight bout. Vanderford is a -225 favorite, but two of our pickers are taking Edwards in an upset.

[autotag]Maycon Mendonca[/autotag] (11-4 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) is a slight favorite at -125 in his welterweight bout against [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] (14-2 MMA, 2-0 BMMA). But it’s Willis with a big 10-2 picks lead.

Unfortunately, the bout expected to open the main card, which saw [autotag]Christian Edwards[/autotag] (4-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) as a big -650 favorite at light heavyweight against [autotag]Ben Parrish[/autotag] (4-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), was called off following the day’s official weigh-ins. Edwards was our third unanimous pick.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Cyborg (86 percent), Caldwell (77 percent), Vanderford (70 percent), Willis (85 percent) and Christian Edwards (83 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

[vertical-gallery id=391998]

Video: What Bellator 259 fight is flying most under the radar?

From current and former champions to rising hot prospects, Bellator 259 has a little bit of everything.

Bellator 259 fight week is upon us.

With women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg (23-2 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) defending her title in a rematch against Leslie Smith (12-8-1 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) atop the card, a lot of undercard fights aren’t necessarily getting the proper shine they deserve.

This is a solid card, top to bottom, with athletes ranging from current and former champions to undefeated hot prospects. Outside of the main event, what is the fight on the card that is flying the most under-the-radar and perhaps not getting the respect it deserves?

That’s the question “Spinning Back Clique” host John Morgan asked the panel of “Gorgeous” George Garcia, Brian “Goze” Garcia, and Nolan King.

You can watch their discussion in the video above, and this week’s full episode below.

https://youtu.be/zzPLt_QAYVQ

Bellator 259 pre-event facts: Cris Cyborg meets Leslie Smith in rare rematch

Check out all the facts and figures about Bellator 259, which takes place Friday with a Cris Cyborg vs. Leslie Smith title-fight headliner.

Bellator returns from a one-week hiatus on Friday with Bellator 259 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Women’s MMA legend and reigning Bellator women’s featherweight champion Cris Cyborg (23-2 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) returns to action in the main event. She’s set to rematch Leslie Smith (12-8-1 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) in a fight from UFC 198 in May 2016, which the Brazilian won swiftly by TKO in just 81 seconds.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as other notable bouts on the card, check below for 15 pre-event facts about Bellator 259.

Darrion Caldwell back to bantamweight, meets Leandro Higo in rematch at Bellator 259

Former bantamweight champion Darrion Caldwell will return to the weight class next month after a three-fight stint at featherweight.

Former bantamweight champion [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] will return to the weight class next month after a three-fight stint at featherweight.

Caldwell (14-4 MMA, 11-3 BMMA) is set to take on [autotag]Leandro Higo[/autotag] (20-5 MMA, 3-3 BMMA) in a rematch at Bellator 259. MMA Junkie confirmed the booking with a Bellator official following an initial report from MMAFighting.com.

Bellator 259 takes place May 21 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

[lawrence-related id=605032,600597,600097]

Caldwell won the bantamweight title at Bellator 184 in 2017 with a decision over Eduardo Dantas. In his first title defense, he took on Higo at Bellator 195 and submitted him with a guillotine choke midway through the first round.

After a one-off featherweight win over Noad Lahat, he challenged Kyoji Horiguchi for RIZIN’s 135-pound title and was submitted in the third round. In June 2019, Horiguchi slid over to Bellator to fight Caldwell for his belt and took it from him in their rematch.

Later that year, Caldwell found himself back at 145 pounds for Bellator’s tournament. He beat Henry Corrales in the opening round, then Adam Borics in the quarterfinals. But in the semifinals, he was tapped out by A.J. McKee this past November with one of the year’s most talked-about submissions.

After Higo’s loss to Caldwell in March 2018, he was stopped by Aaron Pico with a first-round TKO. But after a year off, he bounced back with a submission over Shawn Bunch in 2019 and one over Ricky Bandejas this past October for his second straight win.

With the addition, the Bellator 259 lineup now includes:

Champ Cris Cyborg vs. Leslie Smith – for women’s featherweight title
Fabian Edwards vs. Austin Vanderford
Brett Johns vs. Matheus Mattos
Hannah Guy vs. Valerie Loureda
Alfie Davis vs. Alexander Shabliy
Tyree Fortune vs. Grant Neal
Christian Edwards vs. Ben Parrish
Georgi Karakhanyan vs. Adam Piccolotti
Nate Andrews vs. Saad Awad
Sean Felton vs. Aviv Gozali
Janay Harding vs. Leah McCourt
Darrion Caldwell vs. Leandro Higo

[vertical-gallery id=447100]

Bellator 253 results: A.J. McKee neck cranks Darrion Caldwell, advances to grand prix finals

A.J. McKee made it look easy and now he’s one fight away from $1 million and a title.

In case there was any doubt left at all, [autotag]A.J. McKee[/autotag] is legit. And you can remove the phrase “prospect” before his name once and for all.

McKee (17-0 MMA, 17-0 BMMA) found himself facing both a former Bellator bantamweight champion and an NCAA champion wrestler in [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] in the main event of Bellator 253 on Thursday night.

And the undefeated McKee wasted little time showing he was up to the biggest challenge of his career in Bellator’s featherweight grand prix in the finals. A textbook neck crank got the job done in just 1:11 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

That puts McKee in the finals against the winner of the other semifinal, between champion Patricio Freire and Emmanuel Sanchez, which will be held at a date TBD.

[lawrence-related id=567564,567928,567889]

Caldwell (14-4 MMA, 11-3 BMMA) went to his wrestling early in the fight and scored a takedown, but McKee didn’t panic. He slipped one arm under Caldwell’s, got him to move his head where he wanted it, wrapped up a body triangle, and it was a mere formality from that point on.

“He popped his head off to the side and I locked up the body triangle and I hooked him up deep and that’s all she wrote,” McKee said.

The featherweight bout was the main event of Bellator 253, which was held Thursday night at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. It was a semifinal bout in the Bellator featherweight grand prix.

McKee, whose previous tourney wins were over Georgi Karakhanyan and Derek Campos, had his ninth career first-round finish. Caldwell had a two-fight win streak snapped.

Compete Bellator 253 results:

A.J. McKee def. Darrion Caldwell via submission (neck crank) — Round 1, 1:11 — featherweight grand prix semifinal
Jeremy Johnson def. Benson Henderson via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27. 30-27)
Jeremy Kennedy def. Matt Bessette via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
Jaleel Willis def. Mark Lemminger via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Jay Jay Wilson def. Sergio DeBari via KO (punches) — Round 1, 0:20
Kaheem Murray def. Kevin Ferguson Jr. via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Sullivan Cauley def. Jason Markland via KO (punches) — Round 1, 0:28

[vertical-gallery id=567549]

Twitter reacts A.J. McKee’s 71-second submission of Darrion Caldwell at Bellator 253

See the top Twitter reactions to A.J. McKee’s quick submission win over Darrion Caldwell in their Bellator 253 tournament semifinal.

[autotag]A.J. McKee[/autotag] advances to the finals of the featherweight grand prix on Thursday when he beat [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] in the Bellator 253 main event.

McKee (17-0 MMA, 17-0 BMMA) secured a position in the final round of the 16-man tournament with a 71-second submission win over ex-champ Caldwell (15-4 MMA, 12-3 BMMA) in the 145-pound headliner, which took place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

Check below for the top Twitter reactions to McKee’s victory over Caldwell at Bellator 253.

4 burning questions heading into Bellator 253

MMA Junkie’s Simon Head takes a look at the storylines to follow ahead of Bellator 253 in Uncasville, Conn.

The Bellator featherweight grand prix will crown its first finalist at Bellator 253 as the promotion prepares to host its latest fight night at the Mohegan Sun Arena on Thursday night.

Once again, the featherweight tournament will take center stage, with the semifinal clash between former bantamweight champion [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] and undefeated phenom [autotag]A.J. McKee[/autotag] headlining the event, while former WEC and UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Benson Henderson[/autotag] returns to action against welterweight contender [autotag]Jason Jackson[/autotag] in the night’s co-headliner.

Undefeated prospects [autotag]Joey Davis[/autotag] and [autotag]Jay Jay Wilson[/autotag] are also set for action in as they bid to extend their perfect professional records, while bantamweight contenders [autotag]Keith Lee[/autotag] and [autotag]Raufeon Stots[/autotag] will face off as they attempt to progress toward a shot at championship gold at 135 pounds.

Bellator 253 takes place Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Here are four burning questions ahead of fight night.

Fight Game on the ‘Gram: Darrion Caldwell’s best posts before Bellator 253

Check out some of Darrion Caldwell’s most popular Instagram posts ahead of Bellator 253.

Social media is part of life in the fight game for most fighters. Many of them turn to Instagram to keep their fans and followers informed and entertained since (for now) its reputation is less vitriolic than some of its contemporaries.

Ahead of his featherweight tournament semifinal fight against A.J. McKee (16-0 MMA, 16-0 BMMA), check out some of the most popular Instagram posts from former bantamweight champion [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] (14-3 MMA, 11-2 BMMA) over the past year.

Caldwell and McKee headline Bellator 253, which takes place Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network/DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.