Tag: Karl Albrektsson

Changes hit PFL’s Utah debut: Salt Lake City gets ‘El Dirte’ Sanchez

The lineup for the PFL’s event a month from now in Utah has been adjusted and once again is complete.

The lineup for the PFL’s event a month from now in Utah has been adjusted and once again is complete.

Former UFC fighter [autotag]Andrew Sanchez[/autotag] (14-7), who won Season 23 of “The Ultimate Fighter” against Khalil Rountree, will step in to give [autotag]Karl Albrektsson[/autotag] (14-5) his third opponent of the card. First, Ibragim Chuzhigaev pulled out, and now “El Dirte” Sanchez is in for [autotag]Laurynas Urbonavicius[/autotag].

The PFL makes it’s debut in Salt Lake City on June 21 at Huntsman Center. The card is headlined by a lightweight showdown between [autotag]Clay Collard[/autotag] and [autotag]Mads Burnell[/autotag]. Along with lightweights, light heavyweights are on tap trying to get to the 2024 postseason.

Sanchez went 5-5 over more than five years in the UFC, and along with the “TUF” title, had a Performance of the Night bonus for his only finish in the promotion, a knockout of Wellington Turman in August 2020.

After a two-fight skid, Sanchez won a fight under the Eagle FC banner, then stepped in on short notice a year ago for his PFL debut and took a split decision from Taylor Johnson.

With the changes, the PFL Week 5 lineup includes:

MAIN CARD (ESPN, 8 p.m. ET)

  • Mads Burnell vs. Clay Collard
  • Impa Kasanganay vs. Jakob Nedoh
  • Bruno Miranda vs. Patricky Pitbull
  • Josh Silveira vs. Rob Wilkinson
  • Simon Biyong vs. Dovlet Yagshimuradov
  • Antonio Carlos Jr. vs. Alex Polizzi

PRELIMINARY CARD (ESPN, 5 p.m. ET)

  • Brent Primus vs. Solomon Renfro
  • Tom Breese vs. Sadibou Sy
  • Elvin Espinoza vs. Gadzhi Rabadanov
  • Michael Dufort vs. Adam Piccolotti
  • Sergio Cossio vs. Anthony Romero
  • Karl Albrektsson vs. Andrew Sanchez
  • Julian Ruiz vs. Brayhan Zurcher

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for PFL 2024, Week 5.

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 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.

Defying the odds: The 10 biggest MMA betting upsets of 2022

Check out the top 10 MMA betting upsets of 2022, according to the oddsmakers, across Bellator, the UFC, PFL and more.

Who doesn’t love a good upset?

In 2022, MMA saw its fair share of underdogs who defied the odds in the UFC, Bellator and beyond. While everyone has an opinion of who should win and who should lose, the oddsmakers (and how the betting public responds) largely get the final say on what history reflects.

This year, with the help of MMA database Tapology, MMA Junkie has compiled the top 10 betting upsets of 2022. Fights that were eligible were those that multiple major online sportsbooks recognized, and that Tapology recorded prior to the close of the betting line.

Promotions eligible include UFC, Bellator, PFL, KSW, DWCS, Road to UFC, Eagle FC, and One Championship.

Check out the top 10 MMA betting upsets of 2022 below. Only major MMA promotions were included in the tally.

Bellator 285 post-event facts: Yoel Romero makes history with late knockout

Check out the numbers behind Bellator 285, where Yoel Romero added to one of the most unique records in MMA.

Bellator returned from a six-week hiatus on Saturday with Bellator 285, which went down at 3Arena in Dublin and featured a 13-fight lineup on the card.

The main event featured a dominant performance from former UFC and WEC lightweight champion [autotag]Benson Henderson[/autotag] (30-11 MMA, 7-6 BMMA), who shut down Ireland’s [autotag]Peter Queally[/autotag] (13-7 MMA, 2-3 BMMA) over the course of five rounds to win a unanimous decision and begin his late-career push toward the title.

For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the event, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from Bellator 285.

Bellator 285 preliminary stream and live results

Watch the preliminary stream and keep up with live and official results of Bellator 285 in Dublin, Ireland.

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Bellator 285 takes place Friday, and you can join MMA Junkie for the preliminary live stream and official results.

The event takes place at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

In the main event, [autotag]Benson Henderson[/autotag] (29-11 MMA, 6-6 BMMA) steps into the backyard of Ireland’s [autotag]Peter Queally[/autotag] (13-6-1 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) for a lightweight showdown.

The co-feature will see [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (14-6 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) take on [autotag]Melvin Manhoef[/autotag] (32-15-1 MMA, 4-4 BMMA) in a light heavyweight bout.

Official Bellator 285 results include:

MAIN CARD (Showtime, 4 p.m. ET)

  • Benson Henderson def. Peter Queally via unanimous decision (49-45, 49-45, 49-45)
  • Yoel Romero def. Melvin Manhoef via knockout (elbows) – Round 3, 3:34
  • [autotag]Leah McCourt[/autotag] def. [autotag]Dayana Silva[/autotag] via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
  • [autotag]Pedro Carvalho[/autotag] def. [autotag]Mads Burnell[/autotag] via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-29, 29-28)
  • [autotag]Ciaran Clarke[/autotag] def. [autotag]Rafael Hudson[/autotag] via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 2:50
  • [autotag]Karl Moore[/autotag] def. [autotag]Karl Albrektsson[/autotag] via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:36

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 1 p.m. ET)

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 285.

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Bellator 285: Best photos from Dublin

Check out these photos from the fights at Bellator 285 which took place at 3Arena in Dublin.

Check out these photos from the fights at Bellator 285 which took place at 3Arena in Dublin. (Photos courtesy of Lucas Noonan, Bellator MMA)

Bellator 285 adds Albrektsson vs. Moore, Poclit vs. Schiro to Dublin lineup

The lineup for Bellator’s return to Ireland this fall continues to grow with the addition of two more fights.

The lineup for Bellator’s return to Ireland this fall continues to grow with the addition of two more fights.

Sweden’s [autotag]Karl Albrektsson[/autotag] (13-3 MMA, 2-1 BMMA) will take on Ireland’s [autotag]Karl Moore[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) in a light heavyweight bout at Bellator 285. And at welterweight, [autotag]Dante Schiro[/autotag] (8-3 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) will take on [autotag]Luca Poclit[/autotag] (6-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), an SBG Ireland fighter who will make his Bellator debut on his home turf. The promotion announced the two new matchups Thursday.

Bellator 285 takes place Sept. 23 at 3Arena in Dublin. The main card will air on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Albrektsson will bring a four-fight winning streak to the bout. He has toggled back and forth between Superior Challenge in Sweden and Bellator for those bouts. His two Bellator wins are decisions over Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov this past October and Viktor Nemkov in April 2021. The three losses in Albrektsson’s career have all been to either former champions or future champions: former Bellator titleholder Phil Davis (2019), current UFC champ Jiri Prochazka (2017) and then-future interim Bellator champ Valentin Moldavsky (2016).

Moore is a former Cage Warriors champion who return to the Bellator cage for his first fight in three years. His most recent bout came at Bellator 227 in front of his home-country fans in Dublin in September 2019. HE took a split decision from Lee Chadwick in that bout, but hasn’t fought since then.

With the additions, the Bellator 285 lineup now includes:

MAIN CARD (Showtime, 4 p.m. ET)

  • Benson Henderson vs. Peter Queally
  • Melvin Manhoef vs. Yoel Romero
  • James Gallagher vs. Brett Johns
  • Mads Burnell vs. Pedro Carvalho
  • Leah McCourt vs. Dayana Silva

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 12:30 p.m. ET)

  • Ciaran Clarke vs. Georges Sasu
  • Brian Moore vs. Arivaldo Lima Silva
  • Karl Albrektsson vs. Karl Moore
  • Darragh Kelly vs. Kye Stevens
  • Georgi Karakhanyan vs. Kane Mousah
  • Alex Bodnar vs. Kenny Mokhonoana
  • Luca Poclit vs. Dante Schiro

Bellator 268 salaries: Vadim Nemkov, Corey Anderson among five six-figure paydays

Five fighters pocketed more than $100,000 at Bellator 268 in Phoenix, according to documents obtained by MMA Junkie.

Bellator 268 featured two light heavyweight grand prix matchups, and the fighters involved were four of the five highest-paid athletes on the card.

Light heavyweight champion [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] and fellow grand prix finalist [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] led all paydays, as they pocketed six figures as a result of their wins Oct. 16 at Footprint Center in Phoenix.

Grand prix participants [autotag]Julius Anglickas[/autotag] and [autotag]Ryan Bader[/autotag], who lost in the semfinals, and former UFC lightweight champion [autotag]Benson Henderson[/autotag], also took home six figures.

On Monday, MMA Junkie acquired a full list of Bellator 268 salaries from the Arizona Department of Gaming, which oversaw the event.

Check out a full list below.