Tag: Jornel Lugo

Bellator 290 gains: What all 28 fighters weighed on fight night

Find out how much weight all 28 fighters at Bellator 290 gained from the Friday morning official weigh-ins to Saturday night’s fights.

At Bellator 290 on Feb. 4 in Inglewood, Calif., 16 of the 28 fighters on the card gained more than 10 percent of their weight back. Two of those 16 exceeded the 15 percent threshold.

MMA Junkie obtained a list of fight-night weights Monday from California State Athletic Commission executive director Andy Foster.

In California, fighters have their weights checked on fight day – not solely when they have to hit their marks on the scale. The extra procedure was instituted in 2017 as part of the commission’s efforts to cut back on excessive weight cutting. Within those rules was a cap on how much a fighter could gain from the official weigh-ins to the fight.

If a fighter gains more than 10 percent back before the bout, the commission can make a recommendation they move to a higher weight class. If a fighter gains more than 15 percent, the commission can potentially cancel their fight.

Check out the weight gains and percentages for all 28 fighters on the card at Kia Forum.

Bellator 290: Best photos from Inglewood

Check out these photos from Bellator 290, which took place at Kia Forum in Inglewood, Calif.

Check out these photos from Bellator 290, which took place at Kia Forum in Inglewood, Calif. (Photos courtesy of Lucas Noonan, Bellator MMA)

Bellator 290 post-event facts: Ryan Bader keeps perfect rematch record

The attention was on Fedor Emelianenko after Bellator 290, but Ryan Bader continued to show he’s elite in a rematch setting.

The first Bellator event of 2023, Bellator 290, went down Saturday at Kia Forum in Inglewood, Calif., and it marked a monumental occasion for both the promotion and the sport.

In addition to being the organization’s debut showcase on CBS, the card marked the retirement fight of legendary former PRIDE champion [autotag]Fedor Emelianenko[/autotag] (40-7 MMA, 4-3 BMMA), who suffered a first-round TKO loss to heavyweight titleholder [autotag]Ryan Bader[/autotag] (31-7 MMA, 9-2 BMMA) in their main event rematch.

The co-headliner saw middleweight champion [autotag]Johnny Eblen [/autotag](13-0 MMA, 9-0 BMMA) remain undefeated with a unanimous decision win over [autotag]Anatoly Tokov[/autotag] (31-3 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) for his first title defense.

For more on the numbers behind the title bouts, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from Bellator 290.

Bellator 290 salaries: Ryan Bader, Johnny Eblen lead disclosed purses

Check out the disclosed pay for all 28 fighters on Bellator 290, according to the California State Athletic Commission.

INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Twenty-eight fighters competed Saturday at Bellator 290 with the titleholders leading all disclosed payouts.

California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) executive director Andy Foster released a full list of fighter payouts Saturday to MMA Junkie. The amounts reflect the disclosed payouts only and do not include any off-contract bonuses, sponsor payments, or discretionary bonuses.

One of five fighters who pocketed six-figure disclosed paydays, [autotag]Ryan Bader[/autotag] and [autotag]Johnny Eblen[/autotag] topped the list with $150,000. Legendary MMA fighter [autotag]Fedor Emelianenko[/autotag] and welterweight Sabah Homasi each made $100,000, despite losses.

Scroll below to see what the 28 fighters on Bellator 290 were paid – disclosed amounts only.

Jornel Lugo ready to rebound from Sabatello loss at Bellator 290

Jornel Lugo had to go through the experience of his first loss nine months ago. Now he wants to show Jaylon Bates that same feeling.

LOS ANGELES – [autotag]Jornel Lugo[/autotag] had to go through the experience of his first loss nine months ago.

Now the bantamweight would be more than happy to give that experience to Jaylon Bates.

Lugo (8-1 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) and Bates (6-0 MMA, 6-0 BMMA) meet in a fight between a pair of highly touted Bellator up-and-coming 135-pounds on the Bellator 290 prelims Saturday.

Lugo lost a decision to Danny Sabatello in April 2022 and was bounced from the bantamweight grand prix, of which Sabatello reached the final. That setback forced him to take his preparation to a new level.

“It’s all about being diligent,” Lugo said at Thursday’s Bellator 290 media day. “In any craft that you’re in, you want to read all the books. You want to take the seminars. You want to take the classes and be the best at your craft. It’s the same in MMA: You can’t just show up to train and go home. You’ve got to study. You’ve got to study your own footage, other people’s footage. You have to get inspiration and new techniques. I’m just trying to be the best I can possibly be in my sport because it’s my job.”

Against Bates, Lugo sounds like he wants to show more than just the ability to bounce back from a loss.

He wants a statement.

“I want to come out here and I want to stop him,” Lugo said. “I’m definitely looking to finish everybody that I fight from this fight forward. … It’s going to be a war. It’s going to be cats and dogs in there. You know the little smoke things in the cartoons when they’re fighting? That’s going to be us.”

Check out Lugo’s full media day interview above.

Bellator 290 takes place Saturday at Kia Forum in Inglewood, Calif. The main card airs on CBS following prelims on MMA Junkie.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 290.

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Jaylon Bates out to set blueprint on how to beat Jornel Lugo at Bellator 290: ‘I’m coming to finish him’

Jaylon Bates wants to set the blueprint on how to beat Jornel Lugo at Bellator 290 in Los Angeles.

LOS ANGELES – [autotag]Jaylon Bates[/autotag] wants to do more than just get past his next opponent.

The bantamweight is scheduled to clash against fellow prospect [autotag]Jornel Lugo[/autotag] on Saturday at Bellator 290. Bates (6-0 MMA, 6-0 BMMA) does not only want to add another win to his undefeated record, but wants to set the blueprint on how to beat Lugo (8-1 MMA, 5-1 BMMA).

Lugo is coming off a unanimous decision loss to top contender Danny Sabatello in April 2022, and Bates thinks he can do a better job than Sabatello and put away Lugo.

“He definitely showed some things that Lugo lacked, but I don’t think it was a blueprint because he didn’t finish him,” Bates told MMA Junkie at Thursday’s Bellator 290 media day. “I’m coming to finish him, and when I finish him, that will be the blueprint.”

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Bates and Lugo originally were scheduled to fight this past November, but the bout was scrapped. Bates said an injury forced him out, but he’s good now and ready to compete.

Bates likes that Bellator kept the matchup intact and thinks this won’t be the only time he meets Lugo.

“Absolutely, (I like the matchup). I believe after this, after I win, it will be Bates vs. Lugo 2 down the road.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 290.

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Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Dec. 12-18)

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 Dec. 12-18.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (Oct. 3-9)

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 Oct. 3-9.

Bellator 278 pre-event facts: Can Liz Carmouche do what she couldn’t with UFC?

Check out all the facts and figures about Bellator 278, which takes place Friday with a Juliana Velasquez vs. Liz Carmouche title fight.

Bellator kicks off its weekend doubleheader on Friday with Bellator 278, which takes place at Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu and airs on Showtime following prelims streamed on MMA Junkie.

The first of three championship fights for the promotion on the weekend headlines the event. Women’s flyweight titleholder [autotag]Juliana Velasquez[/autotag] (12-0 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) returns to action when she puts her belt up for grabs for the first time against former UFC title challenger [autotag]Liz Carmouche[/autotag] (16-7 MMA, 3-0 BMMA), who looks to claim gold at 38 years old.

For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s pre-event facts about Bellator 278.

Bellator adds two wild card bouts, four fighters to bantamweight grand prix

Bellator’s bantamweight grand prix has been altered in the wake of Sergio Pettis and James Gallagher withdrawing.

The Bellator bantamweight grand prix took two big hits this week, leaving the promotion to scramble for a solution that has been found. The original eight-man tournament has become a 10-man tournament.

Thursday, Bellator announced two “wild card” bouts that feature four new fighters, which will take place April 22 at Bellator 278 in Honolulu. In one wild-card matchup, [autotag]Jornel Lugo[/autotag] meets [autotag]Danny Sabatello[/autotag]. On the other side of the bracket, a previously booked matchup between [autotag]Enrique Barzola[/autotag] and [autotag]Josh Hill[/autotag] becomes a wild-card bout. The winner of each fight will advance to the quarterfinals.

The winner of Lugo (8-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) vs. Sabatello (11-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) will move on to fight Leandro Higo, while the winner of Barzola (17-5-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) vs. Hill (21-4 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) will advance to face Magomed Magomedov.

The tournament shakeup comes on the heels of injury withdrawals from champion Sergio Pettis and James Gallagher earlier this week. Pettis had been booked to defend his title against Raufeon Stots, who now will meet former champ Juan Archuleta April 23 at Bellator 279. Gallagher had yet to be officially booked but was expected to be paired with Magomedov in a quarterfinal matchup.

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With the tournament additions, here is the latest Bellator 278 lineup:

  • Champ Juliana Velasquez vs. Liz Carmouche – for women’s flyweight title
  • Jornel Lugo vs. Danny Sabatello – bantamweight grand prix wild card
  • Enrique Barzola vs. Josh Hill – bantamweight grand prix wild card
  • Cee Jay Hamilton vs. Jared Scoggins

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