(EDITOR’S NOTE: This story was updated at 3:20 p.m. ET on Dec. 27 to clarify that Silva vs. Gozali will serve as a grappling match rather than an MMA bout)
In the midst of a massive losing streak, [autotag]Antonio Silva[/autotag] is back for another contest.
The former UFC title challenger has booked a return against ex-Bellator fighter [autotag]Haim Gozali[/autotag] in a grappling match at a Brave CF event on March 9 in Tel Aviv, Israel.
Both fighters confirmed the matchup online, but the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Neither competitor revealed details of the grappling match. Silva (19-14 MMA) has competed all his career at heavyweight, and Gozali (15-6 MMA) has been fighting at welterweight and most recently middleweight, so there should be a significant size disparity.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CmqYf8oIDri/
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Silva hasn’t won a fight since stopping Soa Palelei at UFC 190 in 2015. The Brazilian has competed 10 times since – six in MMA and once each in kickboxing, boxing, and bareknuckle boxing – and has lost all 10 bouts by stoppage. The 43-year-old is 1-12 in his past 13 combat sports competitions.
Gozali, 49, on the other hand, has not suffered a loss since his Bellator career came to an end when he dropped a decision to Ryan Couture at Bellator 209 in 2018. Gozali has won seven consecutive MMA bouts by submission and one bare-knuckle boxing bout by stoppage under the BKFC banner in 2021.
A full recap of Bellator’s most significant footnotes and milestones from the events, fights and individual performances of 2019.
Bellator had its biggest and busiest year to date in 2019, with 24 numbered events that helped raise the promotion’s profile to a true position of prominence in MMA. During that time, many records were set and a host of historic moments were produced.
Now that the year has come to a close, here are some of 2019’s most significant fights and individual performances.
* * * *
GENERAL
Bellator president Scott Coker
Bellator held 24 numbered events (not including full European series shows) in 14 different cities across six countries and three continents. The 24 events are the most for the organization in a calendar year.
Those events had 128 main card fights across 11 different weight classes (not including catchweight bouts).
Those 128 main card fights combined for a total cage time of 19:48:08.
The longest event of the year (main card fights only) was Bellator 223 (1:49:02).
The shortest event of the year (main card fights only) was Bellator 214 (20:07).
Eight fighters missed weight for main card bouts. Those fighters went 4-3, while one bout was canceled.
Seven main or co-main event bouts were canceled due to a variety of reasons.
Betting favorites went 82-26 during Bellator main card fights. 14 fights had no odds available while three fights had even odds, and three ended in a no contest.
Six cards saw all the betting favorites win.
No fight cards had more underdogs win than favorites.
Bellator 225 was the first event in company history to have every fight end in a stoppage.
CHAMPIONSHIP FEATS
Ryan Bader
[autotag]Ryan Bader[/autotag] became the first simultaneous two-division champion in company history when he captured the heavyweight title at Bellator 214.
Bader joined Joe Warren as the second fighter in company history to win titles in two weight classes.
[autotag]Rory MacDonald[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Jon Fitch[/autotag] at Bellator 220 marked the first title fight in company history to end in a draw.
[autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag] became the second simultaneous two-division champion in company history when he captured the lightweight title at Bellator 221.
Freire became the third fighter in company history to win titles in two weight classes, joining Bader and Warren in that exclusive club.
[autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] became the first in company history to suffer five losses in title fights when he was defeated at Bellator 221.
Kyoji Horiguchi
[autotag]Kyoji Horiguchi[/autotag] became the first fighter in history to earn titles in Bellator and Rizin FF when he won the Bellator bantamweight title at Bellator 222.
Bader became the first champion in company history to register title defenses in two weight classes when he retained his heavyweight belt at Bellator 226.
Freire set a new mark for most championship-fight victories in company history with his eighth when he won at Bellator 228.
[autotag]Douglas Lima[/autotag] became the second fighter in company history to have three title reigns in a single weight class when he reclaimed the welterweight belt at Bellator 232. Chandler also accomplished the feat.
[autotag]Ilima-Lei Macfarlane[/autotag] became the second champion in company history to earn four consecutive title defenses when she won at Bellator 236. Ben Askren also accomplished the feat.
INDIVIDUAL FEATS
Matt Mitrione vs. Sergei Kharitonov at Bellator 215
[autotag]Matt Mitrione[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Sergei Kharitonov[/autotag] at Bellator 215 marked the third shortest no-contest in Bellator/UFC/WEC/Strikeforce/PRIDE combined history at just 15 seconds. Only Marius Zaromskis vs. Waachim Spiritwolf (six seconds) at Strikeforce Challengers 12 and Kevin Casey vs. Antonio Carlos Junior (11 seconds) at UFC Fight Night 80 were faster.
[autotag]Michael Page[/autotag] became the second fighter in history to earn a 10-fight Bellator winning streak when he won at Bellator 216. A.J. McKee also accomplished the feat.
[autotag]David Rickels[/autotag] became the third fighter in history to reach 15 Bellator victories when he won at Bellator 219. Patricio Freire and Chandler have also accomplished the feat.
[autotag]Jordan Young[/autotag] became the first fighter in company history to earn five consecutive victories by submission when he won at Bellator 224.
[autotag]Aviv Gozali[/autotag], 18, became the youngest fighter to earn a Bellator victory when he won at Bellator 225.
Gozali’s 11-second victory at Bellator 225 marked the fastest submission in company history.
Patricio Freire
Freire set a new mark for most victories in company history with his 18th when he won at Bellator 228.
[autotag]Haim Gozali[/autotag], 46, became the oldest fighter in Bellator history to earn a submission victory when he won at Bellator 234.
[autotag]Frank Mir[/autotag] earned his first non-UFC victory since August 2001 when he won at Bellator 231.
Lima became the first fighter in company history to claim three separate tournaments victories when he won the welterweight grand prix at Bellator 232.
[autotag]Saad Awad[/autotag] became the first in history to suffer 10 Bellator defeats when he lost at Bellator 232.
[autotag]Patrick Mix[/autotag] earned the first Suloev stretch submission finish in company history when he won at Bellator 232.
[autotag]Muhammed Lawal[/autotag] retired from MMA competition following his loss at Bellator 233.
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane
Macfarlane became the third fighter in history to earn a 10-fight Bellator winning streak when she won at Bellator 236. Page and McKee also accomplished the feat.
McKee extended his company record winning streak to 16 fights when he earned a victory at Bellator 236.
McKee set a new record for most stoppages in featherweight history with his 11th when he won at Bellator 236.
Chandler set a new record for most stoppages in company history with his 12th when he won at Bellator 237.
Check out all the facts and figures from Bellator 234, which took place Thursday in Tel Aviv, Israel.
Bellator hosted its latest oversees event Thursday with Bellator 234, which aired Friday via tape delay on Paramount from Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv, Israel.
An upset occurred in the heavyweight headliner of the card when [autotag]Linton Vassell[/autotag] (19-8 MMA, 8-5 BMMA) stopped [autotag]Sergei Kharitonov[/autotag]’s (29-7 MMA, 3-2 BMMA) unbeaten streak with a second-round TKO for his first win in the weight class since moving up from light heavyweight.
For more on the numbers behind the main event, as well as the rest of the card, check below for 20 post-event facts to come out of Bellator 234.
* * * *
General
Betting favorites went 2-1 on the main card. Betting odds weren’t available for two fights.
Betting favorites fell to 12-7 (with two no contests and one draw) in Bellator main events this year.
Total fight time for the six-bout main card was 43:23.
Main card
Vassell improved to 1-1 since he moved up to the heavyweight division in March.
Vassell has earned 15 of his 19 career victories by stoppage.
Vassell earned his first knockout victory since Feb. 27, 2015 – a span of 1,721 days (nearly five years) and eight fights.
Kharitonov has suffered six of his seven career losses by stoppage.
Kharitonov has suffered both of his Bellator losses by knockout.
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[autotag]Roger Huerta[/autotag] (24-12-1 MMA, 1-5 BMMA) fell to 0-3 since he returned to Bellator for a second stint in April 2018. He hasn’t earned a victory with the promotion since April 2010.
Huerta fell to 4-11 in his past 15 fights dating back to August 2008.
[autotag]Aviv Gozali[/autotag] (4-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA), 18, is the youngest fighter to reach four Bellator wins.
Gozali has earned all four of his career victories by submission.
[autotag]Haim Gozali[/autotag] (12-6 MMA, 4-3 BMMA) has earned all 12 of his career victories by stoppage.
Gozali has earned all four of his Bellator victories by first-round submission.
[autotag]Artur Pronin[/autotag] (16-4 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) has suffered all four of his career losses by stoppage.
[autotag]Grachik Bozinyan[/autotag] (10-4 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) suffered the first decision loss of his career.
Preliminary card
[autotag]Sinead Kavanagh[/autotag] (6-4 MMA, 3-4 BMMA) improved to 2-3 since she moved up to the Bellator women’s featherweight division.
Kavanagh has earned all of her career stoppage victories by knockout.
[autotag]Olga Rubin[/autotag] (6-2 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) has suffered consecutive losses after starting her career 6-0.
Rubin has suffered both of her career losses by knockout.
Check out the results from Bellator 234, where Linton Vassell got back in the win column in a big way.
[autotag]Linton Vassell[/autotag] is back in the win column – and in a big way.
In his return to heavyweight, Vassell, a former two-time light heavyweight title challenger, defeated [autotag]Sergei Kharitonov[/autotag] via second-round TKO on Thursday. The fight between Vassell (20-8 MMA, 8-5 BMMA) and Kharitonov (30-8 MMA, 3-2 BMMA) served as the headliner for Bellator 234, which took place at Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv, Israel, and aired on Paramount/DAZN on Friday via tape delay.
The fight opened with Kharitonov stalking Vassell, who was content to circle on the outside during the opening couple of minutes of Round 1 before shooting in for a takedown. It was initially stuffed, but Vassell managed to complete it despite Kharitonov’s initial grabbing of the fence. Vassell spent the second half of the round controlling from top position with composed ground-and-pound until the horn sounded.
Round 2 opened the same way as the first, but Vassell mixed things up with a high kick that was blocked before shooting for another takedown. This time, Vassell completed it on his first attempt, and the two men crashes to the canvas. It didn’t take long for Vassell to control Kharitonov’s back. At one point, Vassell sunk in a rear-naked choke that he released in favor of throwing punches from a back mount. All Kharitonov could do was turtle up, forcing the stoppage midway through the round.
With the victory, Vassell snapped a three-fight losing streak that consisted of losses to champion Ryan Bader, former champ Phil Davis and highly touted prospect Valentin Moldavsky. Kharitonov, meanwhile, suffered his first defeat in eight fights dating back to March 2017.
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Gozalis earn victories, leading to Haim’s retirement
Father and son had a successful night at home one last time.
First, 46-year-old [autotag]Haim Gozali[/autotag] (12-6 MMA, 4-3 BMMA) was victorious, defeating [autotag]Artur Pronin[/autotag] (16-4 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) by first-round heel hook submission. Then, in the night’s next bout, 18-year-old [autotag]Aviv Gozali[/autotag] (4-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) won with his own first-round submission, using an anaconda choke to finish [autotag]Zaka Fatullazade[/autotag] (14-9 MMA, 0-1 BMMA).
Afterward, as expected, Haim, affectionately known as “Batman,” announced his retirement after more than 21 years as a professional fighter.
Batman as left the cage thanks to @bellatormma to give me opportunity to fight in the biggest organisation in the world.
And thanks to all my fans that give me the strength to continue.
And to all my fans I love you!!!
and to all the haters I love you too!!!
His son replied:
Love you pops good luck on your new way I’m here to continue the Legacy
Vanderford remains undefeated
[autotag]Austin Vanderford[/autotag] (9-0 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) still has a perfect record.
Vanderford, who made his debut with Bellator earlier this year, won his third fight with the promotion, earning a unanimous decision over [autotag]Grachik Bozinyan[/autotag] (10-4 MMA, 0-1 BMMA).
Vanderford, the husband of UFC star Paige VanZant, has gotten off to a good start in Bellator since being denied a UFC contract last year following a submission win on “Dana White’s Contender Series.” He’s 3-0 with the promotion and 9-0 overall.
Complete Bellator 234 results include:
Linton Vassell def. Sergei Kharitonov via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 3:15
Bellator is back in Israel this week, and a pair of heavyweight standouts are atop the bill.
Bellator 234 takes place Thursday at Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv, Israel. The main card airs on Paramount and streams on DAZN on Friday via tape delay.
In the main event, [autotag]Sergei Kharitonov[/autotag] (30-7 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) takes on [autotag]Linton Vassell[/autotag] (18-8 MMA, 7-5 BMMA) in a heavyweight fight. Kharitonov is just a -175 favorite, but our 13 MMA Junkie editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers are picking him almost unanimously. Only one picker is taking Vassell in an upset.
In the co-main event, [autotag]Sidney Outlaw[/autotag] (13-3 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) is a 5-1 favorite against [autotag]Roger Huerta[/autotag] (24-11-1 MMA, 1-4 BMMA) in their lightweight fight. And like in the main event, it’s a huge picks lead for the favorite. Only one picker is taking Huerta to pull the upset.
Also on the main card, [autotag]Aviv Gozali[/autotag] (3-0 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) is one of two unanimous picks. He takes on [autotag]Zaka Fatullazade[/autotag] (14-7 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) in a lightweight fight, and he’s a 13-0 pick to stay unbeaten.
The other unanimous pick belongs to [autotag]Austin Vanderford[/autotag] (8-0 MMA, 2-0 BMMA), who is more than a 6-1 favorite at some sports books in his middleweight fight against [autotag]Grachik Bozinyan[/autotag] (10-3 MMA, 0-0 BMMA).
And [autotag]Haim Gozali[/autotag] (11-6 MMA, 3-3 BMMA) will fight likely for the last time on the same card as his son, Aviv. He takes on [autotag]Artur Pronin[/autotag] (16-3 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) at welterweight. But unlike his son, who is a unanimous pick from our staff members, Haim Gozali is down 10-3 in the picks to Pronin.
In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Kharitonov (89%), Outlaw (61 percent), Aviv Gozali (69 percent), Pronin (71 percent) and Vanderford (87 percent) are the choices.
MMA Junkie highlights the burning questions that need answering ahead of Bellator 234 in Tel Aviv, Israel.
The Bellator cage lands in Tel Aviv, Israel for Bellator 234, with a pivotal heavyweight bout headlining the card, a returning veteran in search of a much-needed victory, and an Israeli father-son combination looking to follow in the footsteps of Bellator’s McKee family by securing a double celebration on fight night.
Here are our five burning questions ahead of Bellator 234:
Can ‘The Paratrooper’ drop himself into a title fight?
[autotag]Sergei Kharitonov[/autotag] may be as little as one win away from a shot at the Bellator heavyweight title, but he needs to eliminate any lingering doubts about his status as the top contender before he’ll get his opportunity.
Kharitonov (30-7 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) is undefeated since his flash knockout at the hands of Javy Ayala back at Bellator 163 in 2018, and you have to go as far back as the summer of 2011 for his last defeat before that. In short, “The Paratrooper” has been on some solid form over the last eight years.
Standing in his way is a British powerhouse looking to make an impact in a new weight class, [autotag]Linton Vassell[/autotag]. Two-time light heavyweight title challenger Vassell (18-8 MMA, 7-5 BMMA) has moved up a division to take advantage of his powerful frame, and while he lost out on the scorecards on his return to heavyweight, “The Swarm” looks to be in prime condition ahead of one of the toughest tests of his career.
If Vassell can take Kharitonov off his feet and work his ground and pound, the Brit could walk away with a big win and upset the heavyweight applecart. But Kharitonov knows that a shot at glory could be just one solid punch away, and you can bet he’ll be looking to connect early in a bid to score a quick KO and deliver a statement to the division.
Who will prevail – the power-punching former kickboxer, or the British former light heavyweight contender?
We want your predictions for Bellator 234 in Israel, featuring Sergei Kharitonov vs. Linton Vassell.
We want your predictions for this week’s Bellator 234 event in Israel.
Our staff picks feature includes the consensus picks from MMA Junkie readers. Simply cast your vote for each bout below, and we’ll use the official tallies that are registered by Wednesday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).
Those MMA Junkie reader consensus picks will be part of the Bellator 234 event staff predictions we release Thursday ahead of the event. Bellator 234 takes place Thursday at Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv, Israel. The main card airs on Paramount and streams on DAZN on Friday via tape delay.
Make your picks for all five main card fights inside:
