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Bellator 238 post-event facts: Cris Cyborg achieves MMA’s first quadruple crown

Check out all the facts and figures from Bellator 238, which took place Saturday and saw Cris Cyborg beat Julia Budd in the main event.

The first Bellator event of the year unfolded Saturday with Bellator 238, which went down at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif., with a main card that streamed on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.

In the main event, [autotag]Cris Cyborg[/autotag] (22-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) enhanced her legacy with another championship belt when she scored a fourth-round TKO of [autotag]Julia Budd[/autotag] (13-3 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) to claim the women’s featherweight belt.

The card also featured a quarterfinal bout in the ongoing Bellator featherweight grand prix, as well as some other notable results. For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for 30 post-event facts about Bellator 238.

General

Betting favorites went 4-2 on the main card (5-2 overall in fights where odds were available).

Total fight time for the six-bout main card was 41:59.

Main card

Cyborg became the first in history to win titles in Bellator, UFC, Invicta FC and Strikeforce.

Cyborg became the second in history to win titles in Bellator and UFC. Eddie Alvarez also accomplished the feat.

Cyborg has earned 18 of her 22 career victories by knockout.

Budd had her 11-fight winning streak snapped for her first defeat since November 2011.

Budd has suffered all three of her career losses by stoppage.

Budd suffered her first knockout loss since Jan. 7, 2011 – a span of 3,306 days (more than nine years) and 14 fights.

[autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] (15-3 MMA, 12-2 BMMA) improved to 6-0 in Bellator featherweight competition. He’s 8-0 in the weight class during his career.

Caldwell’s six-fight Bellator winning streak in featherweight competition is the second longest active streak in the division behind A.J. McKee (16).

Caldwell’s six submission victories in Bellator competition are tied for second most in company history behind Goiti Yamauchi (seven).

[autotag]Adam Borics[/autotag] (14-1 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) had his 14-fight winning streak snapped for the first defeat of his career.

[autotag]Juan Archuleta[/autotag] (24-2 MMA, 6-1 BMMA) has earned four of his six Bellator victories by decision.

[autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] (19-5 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) earned his first submission victory since Sept. 28, 2013 – a span of 2,311 days (more than six years) and 15 fights.

[autotag]Alfred Khashakyan[/autotag] (11-5 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) earned the first submission victory of his career.

[autotag]Raymond Daniels[/autotag] (2-1 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) improved to 2-0 since he returned to MMA competition from a nearly 11-year layoff in May.

Daniels has earned both of his career victories by knockout.

[autotag]Jason King[/autotag] (8-6 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) has suffered five of his six career losses by stoppage. He’s suffered all those defeats by knockout.

[autotag]Emilee King[/autotag] (4-4 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) is on a four-fight winning streak after starting her career 0-4.

[autotag]Ava Knight[/autotag] (1-1 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) suffered the first loss of her career.

Preliminary card

[autotag]Aaron Pico[/autotag] (5-3 MMA, 5-3 BMMA) improved to 5-2 since he dropped to the featherweight division in September 2017.

Pico has earned all of his career victories by knockout.

Pico’s five knockout victories in Bellator featherweight competition are third most in divisional history behind A.J. McKee (six) and Patricio Freire (six).

[autotag]Adel Altamimi[/autotag] (8-7 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) has suffered six of his seven career losses by stoppage.

Altamimi suffered the first submission loss of his career.

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Bellator 238 predictions: Is anyone picking champ Julia Budd to beat Cris Cyborg?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the Bellator 238 main card in California, featuring Julia Budd vs. Cris Cyborg.

	Budd vs. Cyborg	Borics vs. Caldwell	Archuleta vs. Corrales	Khashakyan vs. Pettis	Daniels vs. J. King	E. King vs. Knight
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2020: 3-1	Cyborg (57%)	Borics (55%)	Archuleta (79%)	Pettis (82%)	Daniels (62%)	Knight (71%)
Brian Garcia @thegoze 2020: 4-0 2017 Champion	Cyborg	Borics	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Simon Samano @SJSamano 2020: 4-0	Cyborg	Borics	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Simon Head @simonhead 2020: 3-1 2019 Champion*	Cyborg	Borics	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Nolan King @mma_kings 2020: 3-1	Cyborg	Caldwell	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2020: 3-1	Cyborg	Borics	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2020: 3-1	Cyborg	Borics	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2020: 3-1	Cyborg	Caldwell	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2020: 3-1 2014 Champion	Cyborg	Caldwell	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2020: 3-1	Cyborg	Borics	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Dave Doyle @davedoylemma 2020: 3-1	Cyborg	Caldwell	Corrales	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 2020: 3-1	Cyborg	Borics	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2020: 2-2 2018 Champion	Cyborg	Borics	Archuleta	Khashakyan	Daniels	Knight
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2020: 2-2	Cyborg	Caldwell	Corrales	Pettis	Daniels	Knight
Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2020: 2-2	Budd	Caldwell	Archuleta	Pettis	Daniels	Knight

Bellator’s first event of the new year goes down Saturday, and a dominant champion puts her title on the line against a legend.

Bellator 238 takes place Saturday at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. The main card streams on DAZN 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]Julia Budd[/autotag] (13-2 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) defends her belt against [autotag]Cris Cyborg[/autotag] (21-2 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), a former UFC and Strikeforce champ who is making her Bellator debut. Cyborg, regarded by many as the greatest women’s fighter in history, is a 4-1 favorite from the oddsmakers, and she’s nearly a unanimous pick from our 14 MMA Junkie editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers. Only one picker is taking Budd to retain her title in an upset.

In the co-main event, [autotag]Adam Borics[/autotag] (14-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) meets [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] (13-3 MMA, 10-2 BMMA) in a quarterfinal fight in Bellator’s ongoing featherweight tournament. The fight nearly is a pick’em from the oddsmakers, and it’s close with our pickers, as well. Borics has just an 8-6 lead.

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In another featherweight fight, [autotag]Juan Archuleta[/autotag] (23-2 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) is more than a 2-1 favorite against [autotag]Henry Corrales[/autotag] (17-4 MMA, 5-4 BMMA). Both fighters are looking to rebound from losses in the tournament’s opening round. Archuleta has a big 12-2 advantage from our staff members.

Former UFC fighter [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] (18-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) makes his Bellator debut at bantamweight against [autotag]Alfred Khashakyan[/autotag] (11-4 MMA, 0-0 BMMA). He’s nearly a 3-1 favorite, and all but one of our pickers is taking him to get off on the right foot in the promotion.

We have two unanimous picks on the main card. [autotag]Raymond Daniels[/autotag] (1-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) has the support of all 14 of our pickers in his welterweight bout against [autotag]Jason King[/autotag] (8-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA).

And to open the main card, boxing standout [autotag]Ava Knight[/autotag] (1-0 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) is a unanimous pick against [autotag]Emilee King[/autotag] (3-3 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) in their women’s strawweight fight, which is Knight’s second pro MMA bout.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Cyborg (57 percent), Borics (55 percent), Archuleta (79 percent), Pettis (82 percent), Daniels (62 percent) and Knight (71 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

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5 burning questions heading into Bellator 238

MMA Junkie’s Simon Head looks ahead to Bellator 238 as the action returns to The Forum in Inglewood, Calif.

The Forum in Inglewood, Calif., will play host to the first big Bellator card of 2020 when the organization’s biggest signing in years gets set to make her eagerly anticipated debut.

Cris Cyborg’s title challenge against defending champion Julia Budd forms the headline act on a packed card of fights, with strong support provided by a fascinating clash in the Bellator featherweight grand prix. Throw a host of interesting matchups into the mix, including the return of Aaron Pico, and it all adds up to a solid card of fights on the West Coast.

Here are five burning questions ahead of fight night on Saturday:

Can “The Jewel” turn back the challenge of Cyborg?

Former UFC, Strikeforce and Invicta featherweight champion [autotag]Cris Cyborg[/autotag] has won almost everything there is to win in the sport of MMA. Now she gets the opportunity to add another belt to her growing trophy cabinet when she takes on Bellator’s 145-pound women’s champion, [autotag]Julia Budd[/autotag].

Cyborg (21-2 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) lost her UFC featherweight title in spectacular fashion to Amanda Nunes, and her quest to get back to the top of the promotion ended somewhat acrimoniously. The Brazilian eventually left the UFC as a free agent. Scott Coker and Bellator wasted no time in snapping up Cyborg’s services, and the promoter who helped guide the Brazilian to the top of women’s MMA during their time with Strikeforce has offered her a shot at championship gold in her first fight for the promotion.

But to label this fight as simply a coronation exercise would be to disrespect the current champion. Budd (13-2 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) hasn’t lost since she was armbarred in only hour fourth professional fight by a young Ronda Rousey back in Strikeforce nine years ago. Since then, “The Jewel” has gone from strength to strength as she has risen the ranks to become Bellator’s reigning 145-pound queen. She won the title with a TKO finish, and two of her three title defenses to date have also ended in stoppages. A similar finish over Cyborg would cement her status as Bellator’s most dominant female fighter.

Cyborg is heading into the fight with a point to prove and a chip on her shoulder. She wants to show the world her loss to Nunes was a rare aberration, and will be looking to serve up the sort of dominant display we’ve seen from her countless times over the years.

But against Budd, she faces a prodigious athlete who is likely to be every bit as strong as she is. Budd is a live underdog against Cyborg, but then again, so was Nunes at UFC 232 …

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At Bellator 238, can Raymond Daniels top his highlight-reel spinning one-punch knockout?

Bellator’s resident “human highlight reel” Raymond Daniels says he’s ready to unleash another spectacular finish at Bellator 238 on Jan. 25.

LOS ANGELES – [autotag]Raymond Daniels[/autotag] isn’t shy of setting his sights sky-high.

The former kickboxing ace is looking to make his mark as a mixed martial artist and, 11 years after a loss on his professional MMA debut, he returned to the sport with one of the most replayed knockouts in recent memory as he starched Wilker Barros with a stunning 720-degree punch that has earned more than five million views on YouTube. The finish catapulted Daniels (1-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) to MMA stardom, but the American striker is taking it all in his stride.

“I was talking to my coach about that,” he told MMA Junkie ahead of his bout with [autotag]Jason King[/autotag] at Bellator 238 on Saturday night at The Forum. “People don’t understand that was me after a failed attempt from me 10 or 11 years ago. So if you were in my immediate circle you knew that was going to come to fruition. That was 10 or 11 years of built-up … I’ve got to get that one back! So that was awesome, and I was talking to my coaches and I’m like: ‘Man, how am I going to top that one?'”

Incredibly, Daniels’ spectacular finish from Bellator Europe 2 in Birmingham, England isn’t his best knockout. Even more remarkably, he described the finish as “basic.”

“I think that one was in my Top 5 knockouts that I’ve done,” he said. “But I just go out there and for me it’s a very basic thing, because I’ve been training it. But to other people it seems spectacular and it seems these are crazy moves, and it’s just mostly because you just don’t see anybody doing anything like that on a regular basis.”

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Daniels said that merely picking up the win against King (8-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) won’t be enough for him. Instead, he plans on producing another magic moment inside the Bellator cage that he hopes will outstrip the other big-name performers – not just in his own sport, but in others as well.

“I’m always planning on getting the win. Getting the win is already expected for me and for what it is that I do,” he said. “I plan on finishing it quickly and in a style that people haven’t seen before. I love the fact it’s (Cris) Cyborg’s debut. I love the fact that Conor (McGregor) fought last weekend. So therefore I can go out and show the world this is what I do, no one has a highlight reel knockout succession like I do, and no one has the knockouts in the ways and the fashions that I do.

“I love to have these big-name fighters on the card before me, or after me. I love that the Super Bowl is coming up, because I’m like: ‘OK, let’s see if I can go and go out-view the Super Bowl!’ But at the end of the day I like to go out there and have a good time.”

Another spectacular win will see Daniels catapult up the rankings in Bellator’s talent-filled welterweight division, and a string of victories could see him position himself for a shot at the division’s big names. He paid tribute to current 170-pound champion Douglas Lima, and said he’d love to one day share the cage with the man he believes is an “ideal champion” for the organization.

“As of right now I know people say I’m not there, and I know I don’t think I deserve that shot right at this moment,” he said. “But I will be (deserving) in the near future.”

Before he gets to Lima, he may find himself facing off against arguably the only other 170 pounder whose highlight-reel resume could compare to his own, British star Michael “Venom” Page.

When asked if a matchup with “MVP” interested him, he smiled: “Everybody always asks me that, and I think it’s because Mike and I both come from the same background. To be honest, I actually enjoy watching Mike, we’re actually really good friends. I wouldn’t necessarily go and call Mike out, but if we had to cross paths, Mike and I have fought each other before and we both know that we’re both competitors.

“I would love if we did fight for it to be a title fight or something like that, because it just makes it all the more exciting. But in the meantime there’s a lot of fighters for Mike to go there and fight, and a lot for me to go out there and fight. It would be interesting to see the difference in our styles in a new atmosphere, because what we did back in the day was a sport karate thing. This is a different arena, so I’m sure Mike wouldn’t turn down the opportunity. If it makes dollars, it makes sense!”

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But before he can set his sights on the likes of Page and Lima, Daniels says he needs a little more seasoning, and hopes to put himself within striking distance of the division’s best by the end of the year.

“Any organization that I’ve competed in, I’ve always risen to the top, I’ve always challenged for the title,” he said. “So I’m looking forward to rising to the top here. Now I’m actually having fun, and that’s when it gets scary … when I start to figure out the process.

“Even though I’m figuring this out, give me this fight (then) give me about two more fights, and I’m going to start coming for what I call the Top 10 of Bellator. The creme de la creme.

“I think the Bellator welterweight division is one of the strongest, toughest divisions in the world. I honestly get goosebumps thinking about how excited I am about having the opportunity to take a part in it.”

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Raymond Daniels returns at Bellator 238 for first fight since ‘KO of the Year’ candidate

Can Raymond Daniels top his wild spinning knockout in his Bellator debut?

Those who didn’t know what [autotag]Raymond Daniels[/autotag] was all about learned in a hurry last year when he made his Bellator debut at Bellator Birmingham.

The Southern California native has long been a kickboxing star, but not every MMA fan follows kickboxing, so some were unaware of what he can do.

Turns out, his fight against Wilker Barros last May was quite an introduction: a ridiculous, flashy knockout.

Now, Daniels is ready for his Bellator return. The company announced Monday that Daniels, who is based out of Long Beach, will head up I-405 to Inglewood and compete on the company’s first major event of 2020, Bellator 238 in Inglewood.

There, Daniels (1-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA), will meet [autotag]Jason King[/autotag]. The Tennessee-based King (7-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) has primarily competed in Valor Fighting Challenge and will make his Bellator debut. King has only gone the distance once in his career, with all seven of his career victories inside the distance, including a first-round TKO of Brian Jackson in his last fight Nov. 1.

Bellator 238 is headlined by the debut of former UFC, Strikeforce, and Invicta featherweight champion Cris Cyborg, who will look to add a Bellator belt to her collection when she meets 145-pound champ Julia Budd in the main event at The Forum.

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The current Bellator 238 lineup includes:

Champ Julia Budd vs. Cris Cyborg – for women’s featherweight title
Adam Borics vs. Darrion Caldwell
Alfred Khashakyan vs. Sergio Pettis
Dillon Danis vs. Kegan Gennrich
Juan Archuleta vs. Henry Corrales
Aaron Pico vs. Daniel Carey
Mario Navarro vs. Jay Jay Wilson
Khonry Gracie vs. Hector Saldana
David Pacheco vs. Craig Plaskett
Brandon Bender vs. Joshua Jones
Dominic Clark vs. Ricardo Seixas Filho
Tyler Beneke vs. Jarrett Connor
AJ Agazarm vs. Adel Altamimi
Curtis Millender vs. Moses Murrietta
Chris Avila vs. Anthony Taylor
Raymond Daniels vs. Jason King

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