Tag: Jay Jay Wilson

Bellator 265 weigh-in results: Jay Jay Wilson misses again, co-main event vs. Adam Borics scrapped

Check out the results from the official Bellator 265 fighter weigh-ins.

The weigh-ins are in the books for Bellator 265, where the heavyweight headliners are set – but there was one key major miss.

In the co-main event, [autotag]Adam Borics[/autotag] (17-1 MMA, 8-1 BMMA) was on the featherweight mark at 145.6 pounds. But his opponnent, [autotag]Jay Jay Wilson[/autotag] (8-0 MMA, 7-0 BMMA), missed weight for the third time in four fights. And this time, it was his biggest miss yet. Wilson came in at 150.4 pounds, more than 4 pounds heavier than the featherweight non-title maximum of 146.

As a result, the Borics-Wilson fight has been scrapped, a Bellator official told MMA Junkie. Borics will be paid his show money, the official said. The welterweight fight between Dante Schiro and Logan Storley will be elevated to the co-main event and the main card will go on with four fights on the broadcast instead of five.

In the main event, Cheick Kongo (30-11-2 MMA, 12-3 BMMA) weighed in at 247 pounds. His opponent, Sergei Kharitonov (23-8 MMA, 3-2 BMMA), was 264.8 – just shy of the heavyweight max.

The weigh-ins took place at the Bellator host hotel in Sioux Falls, S.D. The Sanford Pentagon hosts Friday’s event. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

The full Bellator 265 weigh-in results included:

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

  • Cheick Kongo (247) vs. Sergei Kharitonov (264.8)
  • Adam Borics (145.6) vs. Jay Jay Wilson (150.4)*
  • Dante Schiro () vs. Logan Storley (170.4)
  • Marcelo Golm () vs. Billy Swanson (265.6)
  • Keith Lee (140) vs. Jornel Lugo (137.4)

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

  • Fabio Aguiar (184.6) vs. Taylor Johnson (185.8)
  • Mike Hamel (155.4) vs. Bryce Logan (155.8)
  • Archie Colgan (169) vs. Ben Simons (170.4)
  • Deven Fisher (184.4) vs. Duane Johnson (185)
  • Kory Moegenburg (214.8) vs. Bailey Schoenfelder (224)

*Wilson missed the featherweight limit. His fight vs. Borics was canceled as a result.

Bellator 257 video: Jay Jay Wilson’s spinning backfist signals TKO finish of Pedro Carvalho

Jay Jay Wilson wasted no time in the second round.

[autotag]Jay Jay Wilson[/autotag] keeps rising up the Bellator ranks.

The promising featherweight picked up his seventh Bellator win on Friday night at Bellator 257 in Uncasville, Conn. Wilson (8-0 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) stopped SBG Ireland’s Pedro Carvalho by second-round TKO in the preliminary card opener of the night.

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Wilson scored a finish to remember, as he caught Carvalho with a spinning backfist right off the bat in the second round and then swarmed him with punches and ground-and-pound to pick up the stoppage victory. The 23-year-old Wilson is quickly becoming one of the hottest prospects in Bellator at 145 pounds.

Below you can check out Wilson’s finish of Carvalho (via Twitter):

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Bellator 257: Make your predictions for Vadim Nemkov vs. Phil Davis

We want your predictions for Bellator 257, featuring champ Vadim Nemkov vs. Phil Davis in a title fight and light heavyweight tourney bout.

We want your predictions for Friday’s Bellator 257 event in Connecticut.

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 Wednesdday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).

Those MMA Junkie reader consensus picks will be part of the Bellator 257 main card staff predictions we release Thursday ahead of the event. Bellator 257 takes place Friday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Make your picks for the fights below.

Pedro Carvalho vs. Jay Jay Wilson added to Bellator 257

A fight between ranked Bellator featherweights has been added to next week’s card.

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – [autotag]Pedro Carvalho[/autotag] has his first Bellator fight booked following his unsuccessful title defense at Bellator 252 in November.

Team SBG’s Carvalho (11-4 MMA, 4-1 BMMA) will face [autotag]Jay Jay Wilson[/autotag] in a featherweight fight on the preliminary card of Bellator 257 on April 16, multiple people with knowledge of the booking told MMA Junkie on Tuesday.

Bellator 257 takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena. The main card airs on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.

Carvalho won six in a row prior to his first-round knockout loss to featherweight champion Patricio Freire. The fight took place as a featherweight grand prix quarterfinal after Carvalho defeated Sam Sicilia by second-round submission in the opening round of the tournament.

In seven fights, New Zealand’s Wilson (7-0 MMA, 6-0 BMMA) has accumulated an undefeated professional record with six finishes. Following a split decision win against Tywan Claxton in July, Wilson scored a violent knockout of Sergio DeBari in November.

With the addition, the Bellator 257 lineup now includes:

  • Champion Vadim Nemkov vs. Phil Davis – for light heavyweight title, grand prix quarterfinal
  • Corey Anderson vs. Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov – grand prix quarterfinal
  • Paul Daley vs. Sabah Homasi
  • Veta Arteaga vs. Desiree Yanez
  • Julia Budd vs. Dayana Silva
  • Pedro Carvalho vs. Jay Jay Wilson
  • Lance Gibson Jr. vs. Marcus Surin
  • Grachnik Bozinyan vs. Demarques Jackson
  • John de Jesus vs. Alfred Khashakyan

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Top 10 Bellator dark horses to watch in 2021

MMA Junkie fight analyst Dan Tom takes a look at his top 10 Bellator dark horses to watch in 2021.

Despite being held to just 18 events in 2020 due to the global pandemic, Bellator was able to keep the proverbial ball rolling in regards to fostering new names and cultivating homegrown talent.

Sure, it’s been easy to get excited about big-name signings like Yoel Romero or Anthony Johnson, but I think the promotion carries a quiet value with the offerings that are often found on their undercards. So, with that in mind, I decided to steer away from mainstream names or past grand prix competitors in order to focus on the dark horses whom I see either making their marks or (in some cases) taking a stab at a title in 2021.

Without further ado, here are the top 10 dark horses that I think you need to be familiar with this year.

Bellator253 video: Jay Jay Wilson wrecks Sergio DeBari

If Jay Jay Wilson keeps it up, he won’t be on the prelims much longer.

The biggest question about bantamweight [autotag]Jay Jay Wilson[/autotag] at this point is this: Why does Bellator still have him on the undercard?

Wilson (7-0 MMA, 6-0 BMMA) has already proven himself a finisher, with a string of submissions in the company’s cage. But on Thursday night he also proved he can throw some leather.

“I’ve been envisioning this for the past week,” Wilson said during his post-fight interview. “I’ve been lying in my bed thinking about this, I’ve been envisioning this into reality.

Wilson used an overhand right at the outset of his Bellator 253 prelim chard to drop Sergio DeBari. A series of right hands after de Bari hit the mat put an end to things at just the 20-second mark of the opening around at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

With that, the undefeated Wilson now has five first-round finishes in his career.

You can check out his handiwork below:

Up to the minute Bellator 253 results:

  • Jay Jay Wilson def. Sergio DeBari via KO (punches) — Round 1, 0:20
  • Kaheem Murray def. Kevin Ferguson Jr. via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
  • Sullivan Cauley def. Jason Markland via KO (punches) — Round 1, 0:28

4 burning questions heading into Bellator 253

MMA Junkie’s Simon Head takes a look at the storylines to follow ahead of Bellator 253 in Uncasville, Conn.

The Bellator featherweight grand prix will crown its first finalist at Bellator 253 as the promotion prepares to host its latest fight night at the Mohegan Sun Arena on Thursday night.

Once again, the featherweight tournament will take center stage, with the semifinal clash between former bantamweight champion [autotag]Darrion Caldwell[/autotag] and undefeated phenom [autotag]A.J. McKee[/autotag] headlining the event, while former WEC and UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Benson Henderson[/autotag] returns to action against welterweight contender [autotag]Jason Jackson[/autotag] in the night’s co-headliner.

Undefeated prospects [autotag]Joey Davis[/autotag] and [autotag]Jay Jay Wilson[/autotag] are also set for action in as they bid to extend their perfect professional records, while bantamweight contenders [autotag]Keith Lee[/autotag] and [autotag]Raufeon Stots[/autotag] will face off as they attempt to progress toward a shot at championship gold at 135 pounds.

Bellator 253 takes place Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Here are four burning questions ahead of fight night.

Bellator 242 highlights: Relive the best of the action as Bellator emerged from COVID-19 lockdown

Recap the best of the action from Bellator 242 as the promotion staged its first event since the COVID-19 pandemic hit the U.S.

Bellator are back, and they have a bantamweight contender ready to make his bid for the vacant 135-pound title.

The promotion emerged from its COVID-19 lockdown with its first event since the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic as Bellator 242 took place at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. Friday night.

The event saw former UFC flyweight contender [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] register his second win in two Bellator fights as the Milwaukee man outpointed Ricky Bandejas to position himself for a possible shot at the promotion’s vacant bantamweight title.

The event also saw a big win for Florida-based welterweight [autotag]Jason Jackson[/autotag], who welcomed Jordan Mein to the promotion by handing him a unanimous decision defeat in the night’s co-main event.

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The main card battle of featherweight prospects went [autotag]Jay Jay Wilson[/autotag]’s way, despite “The Maori Kid” missing weight by 1.9 pounds at Thursday’s weigh-ins.

It was also a big night for another of Bellator’s most promising 145-pounders, as [autotag]Aaron Pico[/autotag] registered the first submission victory of his career with a first-round rear-naked choke of Solo Hatley Jr.

Check out the official highlights of the night, courtesy of Bellator, via the video above.

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