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Check out all the facts and figures from Bellator 264, which took place Friday in Uncasville, Conn.
Bellator 264 took place this past Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.
[autotag]Gegard Mousasi[/autotag] (48-7-2 MMA, 6-1 BMMA) defended his Bellator middleweight title in the main event when he picked up a third-round TKO of [autotag]John Salter[/autotag] (18-5 MMA, 8-2 BMMA).
For more on the numbers, check below for 22 pre-event facts to come out of Bellator 264.
It took Davion Franklin just 21 seconds to stay unbeaten and take out an opponent in a very familiar way.
It took [autotag]Davion Franklin[/autotag] just 21 seconds to stay unbeaten and take out an opponent in a very familiar way.
Franklin (4-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) drilled [autotag]Everett Cummings[/autotag] (15-1 MMA, 2-1 BMMA) with a front kick to the right oblique and buckled his leg. A moment later, Franklin threw a right kick to the head and further stunned Cummings, and when he hit the canvas, it took Franklin just a few punches to get the stoppage.
After Cummings got back to his feet, he was limping thanks to the front kick. Then he had to take a stool. The kick was the same kind former UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones, a Franklin training partner in New Mexico, has used throughout his career.
Heavy hands, All Day!@DavionGoAllDay moves to 4️⃣-0️⃣ with this epic 21 second KO.#Bellator264 is LIVE now on @SHOsports. pic.twitter.com/wjiYru7MrD
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) August 14, 2021
“I was just thinking about putting him out – taking him out in the first round,” Franklin said in his post-fight interview. “That was my goal this whole time.”
Then Franklin made a major callout: Cheick Kongo, who headlines Bellator 265 next week against Serghei Karitonov.
“Cheick Kongo, step up,” Franklin said in reference to a Kongo social media post predicting Cummings would submit Franklin. “You’ll get done the same way – if not, worse.”
Franklin’s heavyweight win over Cummings was part of the Bellator 264 main card at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card aired on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.
Competing on his first main card, Everett Cummings is looking to secure a full-time roster spot at Bellator 264.
UNCASVILLE, Conn. – [autotag]Everett Cummings[/autotag] spoke to MMA Junkie on Wednesday ahead of his fight at Bellator 264.
Cummings (15-0 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) discussed his matchup with Davion Franklin (3-0 MMA, 3-0 BMMA), wanting to become a full-time Bellator fighter with a win, competing on his first main card, and more.
Bellator 264 takes place Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena. The main card airs on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.
Check out the full interview with Cummings in the video above.
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Check out our staff members’ picks for the Bellator 264 main card, which features middleweight champ Gegard Mousasi vs. John Salter.
| Mousasi vs. Salter |
Homasi vs. Koreshkov |
Magomedov vs. Stots |
Cummings vs. Franklin |
Bestaev vs. Gwerder |
|
| MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2021: 120-72 |
 Mousasi (82%) |
 Koreshkov (85%) |
 Magomedov (76%) |
 Cummings (51%) |
 Bestaev (64%) |
| John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2021: 119-73 |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
 Stots |
 Franklin |
Bestaev |
| Simon Samano @SJSamano 2021: 118-74 |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Stots |
Franklin |
Bestaev |
| Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2021: 118-74  2018 Champion |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Magomedov |
Franklin |
 Gwerder |
| Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2021: 115-77 2020 Champion |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Magomedov |
Franklin |
Gwerder |
| Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2021: 114-78 2014 Champion |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Magomedov |
Franklin |
Bestaev |
| Nolan King @mma_kings 2021: 114-78 |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Magomedov |
Cummings |
Gwerder |
| Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2021: 113-79 |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Magomedov |
Cummings |
Bestaev |
| Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2021: 112-80 |
Mousasi |
 Homasi |
Magomedov |
Cummings |
Gwerder |
| Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 2021: 112-80 |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Magomedov |
Cummings |
Gwerder |
| George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2021: 112-80 |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Stots |
Cummings |
Gwerder |
| Brian Garcia @thegoze 2021: 110-82 2017 Champion |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Magomedov |
Cummings |
Gwerder |
| Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2021: 108-84 |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Magomedov |
Cummings |
Gwerder |
| Matthew Wells @MrMWells 2021: 43-33 |
Mousasi |
Koreshkov |
Magomedov |
Cummings |
Gwerder |
Bellator is back in Connecticut this week, and the middleweight title is on the line.
Bellator 264 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, middleweight champion [autotag]Gegard Mousasi[/autotag] (47-7-2 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) puts his title up against challenger [autotag]John Salter[/autotag] (18-4 MMA, 8-1 BMMA). Mousasi is fighting for the first time since he recaptured the 185-pound title in October 2020 against Douglas Lima, and all 13 of our editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers are picking him to defend the belt.
In the co-feature, [autotag]Sabah Homasi[/autotag] (15-9 MMA, 4-3 BMMA) takes on former welterweight champion [autotag]Andrey Koreshkov[/autotag] (23-4 MMA, 13-4 BMMA). Our staff members are picking the ex-champ by a wide margin at 12-1.
Also on the main card, [autotag]Magomed Magomedov[/autotag] (18-1 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) is a runaway pick in his bantamweight fight against [autotag]Raufeon Stots[/autotag] (16-1 MMA, 4-0 BMMA). Magomedov has a 10-3 lead in the picks.
Our most contentious fight is at heavyweight between [autotag]Everett Cummings[/autotag] (15-0 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) and [autotag]Davion Franklin[/autotag] (3-0 MMA, 3-0 BMMA). The top five pickers in our standings all like Franklin. But the lower eight all are going with Cummings.
And to open the main card, [autotag]Khadzhi Bestaev[/autotag] (10-4 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) takes on [autotag]Ty Gwerder[/autotag] (5-2 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) in a middleweight bout. Hawaii’s Gwerder has a sizable 9-4 edge in the picks from our staff members.
In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Mousasi (82 percent), Koreshkov (85 percent), Magomedov (76 percent), Cummings (51 percent) and Bestaev(64 percent) are the choices.
Check out all the picks above.
One final time before Bellator 264, Gegard Mousasi, John Salter and the rest of the card went face to face at the ceremonial weigh-ins.
UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Bellator makes its return Friday, and the promotion’s middleweight title will be on the line.
Bellator 264 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena with the main card airing on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie. Atop the card, 185-pound titleholder [autotag]Gegard Mousasi[/autotag] (47-7-2 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) defends his championship against surging contender [autotag]John Salter[/autotag] (18-4 MMA, 8-1 BMMA).
Also, former welterweight champion [autotag]Andrey Koreshkov[/autotag] (23-4 MMA, 13-4 BMMA) takes on [autotag]Sabah Homasi[/autotag] (15-9 MMA, 4-3 BMMA), and bantamweight contenders Magomed Magomedov (18-1 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) and [autotag]Raufeon Stots[/autotag] (16-1 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) meet in a pivotal clash.
Following Thursday’s Bellator 264 official weigh-ins, the fighters came face to face for some traditional pre-fight staredowns.
Check out the faceoffs below, including Mousasi vs. Salter, Koreshkov vs. Homasi, and Magomedov vs. Stots.
All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were broken 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 July 19-25:
