Tag: Jaleel Willis
Bellator 253: Jaleel Willis Pre-fight Interview
Raufeon Stots vs. Keith Lee, ‘Baby Slice’ return among five fights added to Bellator 253
Five fights have been added to next week’s Bellator 253 lineup.
The Bellator 253 lineup is filling out.
On Monday, a promotion official informed MMA Junkie of five fights including [autotag]Raufeon Stots[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Keith Lee[/autotag] and the return of “Baby Slice” [autotag]Kevin Ferguson Jr.[/autotag], son of the late combat sports legend Kimbo Slice.
Bellator 253 takes place Thursday, Nov. 19 at Mohegan Sun Arena. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network after prelims on MMA Junkie.
Stots (14-1 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) vs. Lee (7-3 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) will take place on the main card, after Ferguson (3-2 MMA, 3-2 BMMA) battles [autotag]Kaheem Murray[/autotag] in a lightweight fight on the prelims. The matchup was first reported by MMA reporter James Lynch on Sunday.
Stots, 31, most recently competed at Bellator 242 in July when he submitted previously-undefeated Cass Bell by third-round rear-naked choke. Seven weeks later at Bellator 245, Lee defeated Vinicius Zani by unanimous decision.
Ferguson and Murray (3-3 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) were scheduled to fight at Bellator 241 in March 2020. However, the event was canceled hours prior to its scheduled start time due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak.
Also on the prelims, [autotag]Gaston Bolanos[/autotag] (5-3 MMA, 5-3 BMMA) fights [autotag]Johnny Soto[/autotag] (3-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) at a 140-pound contract weight, [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] (13-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) fights [autotag]Mark Lemminger[/autotag] (11-2 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) at welterweight, and [autotag]Marcus Surin[/autotag] (6-2 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) takes on [autotag]Ricardo Seixas[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) at lightweight.
With the additions, the Bellator 253 lineup includes:
- Darrion Caldwell vs. A.J. McKee
- Joey Davis vs. Bobby Lee
- Keith Lee vs. Raufeon Stots
- Matt Bessette vs. Jeremy Kennedy
- Lance Gibson Jr. vs. Shane Krutchen
- Kevin Ferguson Jr. vs. Kaheem Murray
- Gaston Bolanos vs. Johnny Soto
- Mark Lemminger vs. Jaleel Willis
- Ricardo Seixas vs. Marcus Surin
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Bellator 249 predictions: Who’s picking Arlene Blencowe to upset Cris Cyborg?
Check out our staff members’ picks for the Bellator 249 main card in Connecticut.
| Cyborg vs. Blencowe |
Freire vs. Willis |
Bandejas vs. Higo |
Awad vs. Nallo |
|
| MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2020: 120-76 |
 Cyborg (68%) |
 Freire (72%) |
 Bandejas (68%) |
 Nallo (51%) |
| Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2020: 130-66 |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Nallo |
| Nolan King @mma_kings 2020: 130-66 |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Nallo |
| Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2020: 129-67 |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
 Awad |
| Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 2020: 128-68 |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Awad |
| Dave Doyle @davedoylemma 2020: 127-69 |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Nallo |
| Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2020: 126-70  2014 Champion |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Nallo |
| Brian Garcia @thegoze 2020: 126-70 2017 Champion |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Nallo |
| Simon Head @simonhead 2020: 125-71 2019 Champion* |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Nallo |
| Simon Samano @SJSamano 2020: 124-72 |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Nallo |
| George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2020: 121-75 |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Awad |
| Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2020: 121-75 2018 Champion |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Awad |
| John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2020: 118-78 |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Nallo |
| Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2020: 117-79 |
Cyborg |
Freire |
Bandejas |
Nallo |
| Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2020: 79-117 |
 Blencowe |
 Willis |
 Higo |
Awad |
Bellator is back Stateside this week for a Thursday event – which will be the promotion’s new normal – with the women’s featherweight title on the line.
Bellator 249 takes place Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network 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 145-pound champion [autotag]Cris Cyborg[/autotag] (22-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) puts her title on the line against Australian challenger [autotag]Arlene Blencowe[/autotag] (13-7 MMA, 6-3 BMMA). Cyborg is a heavy 9-1 favorite in the fight, and just one of our 14 editors, writers, videographers and radio hosts is picking Blencowe in an upset.
In the co-feature, [autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag] (23-9 MMA, 14-7 BMMA), brother of Bellator featherweight and lightweight dual champ Patricio Freire, takes on [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] (13-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA). Only one of our staff members is taking Willis, who is making his return to Bellator on the heels of an LFA welterweight title win in August.
Also on the main card, [autotag]Ricky Bandejas[/autotag] (13-4 MMA, 3-3 BMMA) meets [autotag]Leandro Higo[/autotag] (19-5 MMA, 2-3 BMMA) in a bantamweight bout. Just like the top two bouts, only one picker is taking Higo to win.
And to open the main card, we have our most contentious fight from a picking standpoint. [autotag]Saad Awad[/autotag] (23-13 MMA, 11-10 BMMA) takes on [autotag]Mandel Nallo[/autotag] (7-1 MMA, 2-1 BMMA) at lightweight. Awad has some picking support, but Nallo still has a sizable 9-5 lead.
In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Cyborg (68 percent), Freire (72 percent), Bandejas (68 percent) and Nallo (51 percent) are the choices.
Check out all the picks above.
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Bellator 249’s Jaleel Willis on his MMA fate and return to Bellator
Bellator 249’s Jaleel Willis on his MMA fate and return to Bellator
Bellator 249’s Jaleel Willis on his MMA fate and return to Bellator
Patricky Freire booked to fight LFA champ Jaleel Willis in Bellator 249 co-headliner
Patricky Freire will welcome LFA welterweight champion Jaleel Willis to Bellator on October 15.
[autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag] is back.
The former Bellator lightweight title challenger and brother of Bellator double champion Patricio, Freire (23-9 MMA, 14-7 BMMA) has been booked to return Oct. 15 at Bellator 249 against LFA welterweight champion [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag], who is making his debut. The fight, which will be contested at lightweight, will serve as the card’s co-main event.
Multiple sources, including a promotion official, recently informed MMA Junkie of the booking.
Bellator 249 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network after prelims on MMA Junkie.
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Freire, 34, has won five consecutive fights under the Bellator banner and is 8-1 overall in his last nine. He most recently competed on New Year’s Eve in Saitama, Japan as part of RIZIN’s lightweight grand prix. After defeating Luiz Gustavo in the semifinals, Freire dropped a unanimous decision to Tofiq Musayev in the final.
Willis (13-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) fights out of Memphis. In 13 professional victories, Willis has finished five fights – all by TKO or knockout. His two losses have come to former LFA champ Harvey Park and former UFC welterweight Kyle Stewart.
With the addition, the Bellator 249 lineup includes:
- Cris Cyborg vs. Arlene Blencowe – for Bellator women’s featherweight title
- Patricky Freire vs. Jaleel Willis
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Bellator signs LFA welterweight champion Jaleel Willis to multi-fight deal
Another LFA champion is headed to Bellator.
Another LFA champion is headed to Bellator.
LFA welterweight champion [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] has signed a multi-fight deal with Bellator, a promotion official told MMA Junkie. No opponent or date has been scheduled for his debut.
Willis’ signing comes less than a month after LFA featherweight champion Justin Gonzales made the same jump. LFA light heavyweight champion Alex Polizzi also signed with Bellator earlier this year.
On Aug. 21, Willis (13-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) fought in the LFA 88 main event and won the 170-pound title with a unanimous decision over highly touted Brazilian Vinicius de Jesus. The win marked Willis’ fourth in as many fights.
Willis, 28, fights out of Memphis. In October 2016, Willis fought on the Bellator 162 undercard. He defeated then-undefeated Omar Johnson by unanimous decision.
Outside of LFA, Willis has also competed for WSOF, Summit FC, V3 Fights and Attitude MMA Fights. In 13 pro victories, Willis has finished five fights – all by TKO or knockout. His two pro losses have come to former LFA champion Harvey Park and former UFC welterweight Kyle Stewart.
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LFA announces second string of four events in four weeks starting Aug. 21 in South Dakota
LFA is ready to keep rolling with closed-door events.
LFA is ready to keep rolling with closed-door events.
On Tuesday, the promotion announced that it will return Aug. 21 with LFA 88 and four consecutive weeks of events at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.
In addition to LFA 88, the promotion also will host LFA 89 (Aug. 28), LFA 90 (Sept. 4), and LFA 91 (Sept. 11). All four events will stream live on UFC Fight Pass.
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Sanford Pentagon was the site of LFA’s July return from hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The promotion crowned four new champions during that run. In this second phase of events, two title fights have been booked. Only main events were announced for its next four shows, except for LFA 91, which is expected at a later date.
The three other headliners include:
LFA 88
- [autotag]Vinicius de Jesus[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Jaleel Willis[/autotag] – for vacant welterweight title
LFA 89
- [autotag]Joe Giannetti[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Brant Moore[/autotag]
LFA 90
- [autotag]Zviad Lazishvili[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Ricky Steele[/autotag] – for vacant bantamweight title
On the Doorstep: 5 fighters who could make MMA big leagues with March wins
For those who make it to the highest stage, the journey starts long before they strap on UFC or Bellator gloves.
Every champion in MMA history started out somewhere.
For those who make it to the highest stage, the journey starts long before they strap on UFC or Bellator gloves. Modern-era fighters progress through the regional ranks with hopes of accomplishing the highest accolades. Many will try, but few will succeed.
This month, five fighters on the verge of achieving major-promotion notoriety return to the cage for what could be their stepping stone fights. There are dozens of fighters inches away from making the jump in the coming weeks, but these five are particularly exemplary.
This month:
- An undefeated Oklahoma finisher who’s stepping into the LFA cage for the first time.
- A young English champion looks to keep his finishing streak alive in his first Cage Warriors title defense.
- A Tennessean whose MMA journey kicked off in an unlikely fashion hopes to extend his win streak to three.
- Flying under-the-radar, a slick Texas-based striker takes on arguably his toughest test to date.
- A CFFC champion from Brazil hopes his first title defense will punch his ticket into the UFC.