Tag: Jaleel Willis

2024 PFL Playoffs 1 video: UFC vet Anthony Ivy continues career U-turn with comeback finish of Jaleel Willis

Anthony Ivy lost five in a row – and has since won seven straight by finish.

The improbable career turnaround for [autotag]Anthony Ivy[/autotag] continues.

At 2024 PFL Playoffs 1, Ivy (15-7) mounted a comeback vs. [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] (16-7) and finished the fight with a rear-naked choke at 4:49 of Round 2. The showcase bout Friday at Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn., was a 173-pound catchweight due to weight misses from both fighters.

Ivy, 34, extended his winning streak to seven – with all finishes. The stretch of success marks the extension of an unusual career rebound, as Ivy had lost five in a row and was finished three times prior to his current streak.

One of the attributes that’s allowed him to turn things around has been his toughness, which was on full display as he survived a knockdown in Round 1 and a near arm-triangle choke submission in Round 2.

With the defeat, Willis falls to 1-5 in his most recent six and could be on the cutting block. Willis is a former LFA welterweight champion who was imported from Bellator during the 2023 acquisition by PFL.

The up-to-the-minute 2024 PFL Playoffs 1 results include:

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for 2024 PFL Playoffs 1.

Bellator Champions Series results: Cedric Doumbe makes quick work of Jaleel Willis to set up Anthony Pettis showdown

Cedric Doumbe walked out to the cage with a vacuum to remind everyone that his first MMA defeat was a fluke then went out and proved it.

[autotag]Cedric Doumbe[/autotag] walked out to the cage with a vacuum and cleaned the floor to remind everyone that his first MMA defeat was a fluke. Then he went out and proved just that.

Doumbe made quick work of [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] on Friday at Bellator Champions Series: Paris, winning by TKO with a flurry of punches at the 3:33 mark of Round 1. The finish sequence came when Doumbe instigated a furious exchange between the two men and landed a right hook that dropped Willis, causing him to cover up on the canvas. From there, Doumbe swarmed him with a flurry of punches that forced referee Mike Beltran to stop the fight, sending the French fans at Accor Arena into a frenzy.

Afterward, Doumbe (6-1) and Willis (16-6), who had a heated and physical faceoff at the ceremonial weigh-ins, embraced each other with a hug. Doumble said Willis had a good game plan, but he figured it out as the fight wore on.

Doumbe’s victory surely erased memories of a controversial defeat in his previous bout, which was caused by a splinter in the cage. The win also sets up a showdown with former UFC and WEC champion Anthony Pettis, who was sitting cageside and entered the cage for a faceoff.

“I loved it, bro,” Pettis said of Doumbe’s performance. “I wanna fight him here in Paris. Pete (Murray), let’s set it up here.”

Doumbe’s reaction? “This guy must be crazy,” he said.

Up-to-the-minute Bellator Champions Series: Paris results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator Champions Series: Paris.

Bellator Champions Series video: Chaos erupts after Jaleel Willis shoves Cedric Doumbe BEFORE stepping on scale

The Bellator Champions Series: Paris ceremonial weigh-ins were nothing short of chaotic thanks to Cedric Doumbe and Jaleel Willis.

The Bellator Champions Series: Paris ceremonial weigh-ins were nothing short of chaotic thanks to [autotag]Cedric Doumbe[/autotag] and [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag], who were raring to go at each other.

In front of a raucous crowd of French fans, a tense scene played out as Doumbe and Willis had to be restrained by Dan Hardy and security on multiple occasions. It all started when Willis couldn’t even wait for Doumbe to step on the scale before approaching him. The two fighters were heated as they came nose to nose before Willis delivered a hard shove to Doumbe.

From that point on, all hell broke loose. Watch in the video below (via X):

BCS: Paris takes place Friday at Accor Arena and streams live on Max, with Doumbe vs. Willis serving as the co-main event. A bantamweight title fight between Bellator champion Patchy Mix and Magomed Magomedov headlines the card.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event page for Bellator Champions Series: Paris.

Video: Bellator Champions Series: Paris ceremonial weigh-ins, faceoffs live stream

Watch a live stream of the Bellator Champions Series: Paris ceremonial fighter weigh-ins Thursday.

Bellator Champions Series: Paris ceremonial fighter weigh-ins take place Thursday, and you can catch a live video stream of the proceedings here on MMA Junkie at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).

The weigh-ins take place at Accor Arena in Paris, which hosts Friday’s event (Max, MMA Junkie).

A bantamweight championship fight headlines the event as [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] (19-1) will look to notch his first title defense in a rematch against [autotag]Magomed Magomedov[/autotag] (20-3). In the co-main event, French superstar [autotag]Cedric Doumbe[/autotag] (5-1) takes on [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] (16-5).

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event page for Bellator Champions Series: Paris.

Bellator Champions Series: Paris weigh-in results: Title fight official, one fighter misses weight

Check out the results from the official Bellator Champions Series: Paris fighter weigh-ins in France.

The official weigh-ins for Bellator Champions Series: Paris are in the books, and all but one fighter hit their marks.

In the main event, [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] (19-1) defends his bantamweight title in a rematch against [autotag]Magomed Magomedov[/autotag] (20-3). Both fighters made championship weight at 135 pounds.

In the co-headliner, French superstar [autotag]Cedric Doumbe[/autotag] (5-1) takes on [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] (16-5) in a 175-pound catchweight bout. Doumbe weighed in at 175.5, whereas Willis came slightly under at 174.6.

[autotag]Thibault Gouti[/autotag] (17-6) was the only fighter who missed weight. Gouti takes on [autotag]Archie Colgan[/autotag] (9-0) at lightweight, but weighed in at 157.7 pounds and will be fined a percentage of his purse. Colgan was on weight at 154.9.

The weigh-ins took place at the Bellator host hotel. Accor Arena in Paris hosts Friday’s event (Max, MMA Junkie).

The full Bellator Champions Series: Paris weigh-in results included:

MAIN CARD (Max, 3 p.m. ET)

  • Champ Patchy Mix (135) vs. Magomed Magomedov (135) – for bantamweight title
  • Cedric Doumbe (175.5) vs. Jaleel Willis (174.6)
  • Gregory Babene (185.7) vs. Costello van Steenis (185.8)
  • Jonas Bilharinho (145.9) vs. Yves Landu (145.4)
  • Archie Colgan (154.9) vs. Thibault Gouti (157.7)*
  • Louis Sutherland (265.9) vs. Slim Trabelsi (239.5)

PRELIMINARY CARD (Max, noon ET)

  • Mansour Barnaoui (153.7) vs. Yusuke Yachi (155.3)
  • Steven Hill (184.3) vs. Mike Shipman (185.9)
  • Aspen Ladd (145.8) vs. Katerina Shakalova (144.2)
  • Asael Adjoudj (145.9) vs. Bruno Fontes (145.4)

*Gouti missed the lightweight limit and will be fined a percentage of his purse.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event page for Bellator Champions Series: Paris.

Cedric Doumbe gets new opponent for Bellator Champions Series in Paris

Kickboxing star Cedric Doumbe takes on a 4-3 Bellator veteran in the co-main event of the promotion’s upcoming Paris show.

In a week that included both a fight booking announcement and cancellation news in a two-day stretch, [autotag]Cedric Doumbe[/autotag] is officially back on the schedule on Day 3.

With Derek Anderson out, Doumbe (5-1) now faces former LFA champion [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] (16-5) at Bellator Champions Series: Paris, the promotion announced Wednesday. The event takes place May 17 at Accor Arena in Paris.

Willis, 32, has a 4-3 record in Bellator. A proud representative of Memphis, Tenn., Willis worked his way into the promotion in 2020 after 15 fights on the regional scene. After back-to-back wins over Mark Lemminger and Maycon Mendonca, Willis lost consecutive fights by submission to Mukhamed Berkhamov and Sabah Homasi. He bounced back with a win over Kyle Crutchmer before he was knocked out by Ramazan Kuramagomedov in June.

Doumbe, 31, looks to get back in the win column after a controversial loss to Baysangur Chamsoudinov in March. The defeat came when Doumbe allegedly stepped on a splinter in the cage and tried to signal referee Marc Goddard that something was wrong. The sequence lead to confusion and Goddard waved off the fight. The loss was Doumbe’s first and came after a massive nine-second knockout win in his PFL debut against Jordan Zebo in September.

With the change, the Bellator Champion Series: Paris lineup includes:

  • Patchy Mix vs. Magomed Magomedov – for bantamweight title
  • Cedric Doumbe vs. Jaleel Willis
  • Gregory Babene vs. Costello van Steenis
  • Jonas Bilharinho vs. Yves Landu
  • Archie Colgan vs. Thibault Gouti

PRELIMINARY CARD:

  • Louis Sutherland vs. Slim Trabelsi
  • Mansour Barnaoui vs. Yusuke Yachi
  • Imamshafi Aliev vs. Mike Shipman
  • Aspen Ladd vs. Katerina Shakalova
  • Asael Adjoudj vs. Bruno Fonte

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator Champions Series: Paris.

Bellator 297 post-event facts: Vadim Nemkov achieves rare feat in dominant title defense

Check out all the facts from Bellator 297, where Vadim Nemkov took another step toward arguably the greatest resume in Bellator history.

Bellator’s lone event of the month went down Friday with Bellator 297 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, and it was arguably the promotion’s biggest show of the year thus far.

Two championship bouts topped the card, and both men who entered the cage with belts, lefts with them, too. [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (16-2 MMA, 9-0 BMMA) handily defeated [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (15-7 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) by unanimous decision in the headliner to retain the light heavyweight strap, while [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] (23-5 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) kept hold of bantamweight gold with a unanimous decision over [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag] (35-6 MMA, 22-6 BMMA).

For more on the numbers, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from Bellator 297.

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Bellator 297 video: Ramazan Kuramagomedov blasts Jaleel Willis with pinpoint knee for KO

The Bellator 297 prelims saw some nasty violence as Ramazan Kuramagomedov landed a brutal knee knockout in his debut.

CHICAGO – [autotag]Ramazan Kuramagomedov[/autotag] has officially arrived in Bellator.

After being at top of the international welterweight talent prospect pool for years, Kuramagomedov (11-0 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) finally made his promotional debut in style Friday at Winstar Arena when he knocked out [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] (16-5 MMA, 4-3 BMMA) at 1:24 of Round 1.

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The finish began with a beautifully brutal and perfectly-timed knee in the clinch. When Kuramagomedov landed, Willis crashed to the canvas. Kuramagomedov pounded away until referee Rob Madrigal intervened.

Kuramagomedov, 26, preserves his perfect record with his second career knockout. On the flip side of the equation, Willis has now lost three of his most recent four.

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

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

Bellator 297 weigh-in results: Patricio Freire lighter than necessary for bantamweight debut

Check out the results from the official Bellator 297 fighter weigh-ins in Chicago.

CHICAGO – MMA Junkie was on scene at Friday’s official Bellator 297 fighter weigh-ins, which took place at the Bellator host hotel in Chicago.

The nearby Wintrust Arena hosts Friday’s event, which has a main card on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Among those who weighed in were light heavyweight champion [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (16-2 MMA, 8-0 BMMA) and challenger [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (15-6 MMA, 2-1 BMMA), who meet in the main event. Both fighters made weight. Nemkov was first of all the fighters to take the scale and weighed 203.8. Minutes later, Romero weighed 205 with a towel, which created a comedic moment with Bellator fighter operations’ Burt Watson.

Bantamweight champ [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] (22-5 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) and featherweight titleholder [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag] (35-5 MMA, 23-5 BMMA), who is trying for Bellator history with a title in a third division, also took to the scales.

Much buzz was made about Freire’s move to bantamweight, but Friday he proved any doubters wrong when he came in lighter than needed – at 134.2 pounds. Pettis affirmed his reputation as a professional when he came in even lighter, at 134 pounds.

The weigh-ins were rapid-fire to start, as 29 athletes weighed in during the first 15 minutes of the one-hour window. Welterweight [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] (16-4 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) was the lone fighter outside of the initial burst, but he made 171 with the towel.

The full Bellator 297 weigh-in results include:

MAIN CARD (Showtime (9 p.m. ET)

  • Champ Vadim Nemkov (203.8) vs. Yoel Romero (205) – for light heavyweight title
  • Champ Sergio Pettis (134) vs. Patricio Freire (134.2) – for bantamweight title
  • Corey Anderson (205) vs. Phil Davis (206)
  • Daniel James (265) vs. Gokhan Saricam (246)

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 6 p.m. ET)

  • Wladmir Gouvea (264) vs. Gabriel Sayeg (261)
  • Kyle Crutchmer (171) vs. Bobby Nash (171)
  • Pieter Buist (156) vs. Gadzhi Rabadanov (156)
  • Ramazan Kuramagomedov (170) vs. Jaleel Willis (171)
  • Mike Hamel (155) vs. Shamil Nikaev (156)
  • Norbert Novenyi Jr. (185) vs. Kamil Oniszczuk (186)
  • Archie Colgan (155) vs. Emmanuel Sanchez (155)
  • Karl Moore (205) vs. Alex Polizzi (204)
  • Timur Khizriev (145) vs. Richie Smullen (145)
  • Jordan Newman (186) vs. Matthew Perry (184)
  • Edwin Chavez (146) vs. Cody Law (145)

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

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