Tag: Leandro Higo

Confident weight issue behind him, Bellator 249’s Leandro Higo sends message to James Gallagher

Leandro Higo says he’s sick of chasing James Gallagher.

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – [autotag]Leandro Higo[/autotag] entered Bellator 249 on a mission to show he’s turned a career corner.

Thursday, he submitted Ricky Bandejas via rear-naked choke in Round 2 to top off a dominant performance. After the fight, Higo (20-5 MMA, 3-3 BMMA) discussed what he’s calling a successful start to his “alter ego.”

“I told you in the (pre-fight) interview this week – alter ego,” Higo said. “I’m happy for this good performance tonight. … I came in as a prospect. I fought the best. I had a big promise when I came in – that was to become a world champion. This division is on fire. Put me in the fire against anybody.”

If there was a blemish on Higo’s performance Thursday, it was his weight miss on the scales Wednesday. Higo came in three pounds over the bantamweight limit, which he attributes to his travel delays in getting to the fight.

“There were a couple of complications in the weight cut, which has to have perfection,” Higo said. “I was in the airport for about three days. So to come here and go into quarantine, there were some mistakes that were made that won’t be made again. That’s what happened. There were some obstacles that I had to overcome. It wasn’t ideal. For a big weight cut, I need an ideal situation. It’s not going to happen again. We’ll correct these mistakes and be ready for the next one.”

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Higo doesn’t think a title shot is out of the question, but if he fights again before he gets one, there’s a name that interests him. The rivalry between his team, Pitbull Brothers, and Team SBG Ireland was building prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. With fights back and travel bans slowly being eased, Higo is interested in a fight against SBG Dublin’s [autotag]James Gallagher[/autotag].

“I’ve been chasing this mother(expletive) ever since he’s coming into Bellator. If he’s really good at jiu-jitsu, you’ve seen my jiu-jitsu skills in my last two fights. Let’s go, James Gallagher.”

Bellator 249 took place Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena. The main card aired on CBS Sports Network after prelims on CBSsports.com.

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Bellator 249 results: Leandro Higo finishes Ricky Bandejas in second round

Leandro Higo made the most of his time in the co-feature spotlight on Thursday night.

[autotag]Leandro Higo[/autotag] was bumped up to the co-feature bout Thursday night on CBS Sports Network when Patricky Freire vs. Jaleel Willis was canceled, and he made the most of his turn in the spotlight.

The Brazilian competitor served notice to the bantamweight division that he’s a force to be reckoned with, as he scored a one-sided victory over [autotag]Ricky Bandejas[/autotag]. A rear-naked choke got the tapout at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. at the 2:32 mark of the second round.

Higo (20-5 MMA, 3-3 BMMA) was the aggressor from the outset, as he pushed forward and landed repeated leg kicks on Bandejas (13-5 MMA, 3-4 BMMA), who seemed gun shy from the outset. Higo eventually earned a takedown around the round’s midpoint and worked to improve his position from there. By the final minute of the round, Higo had Bandejas pinned against the cage with his right arm isolated and landed right hands to Bandejas’ head, but the round expired before Higo could go for the finish.

In the second, Higo, who missed weight by three pounds on Wednesday, wasted little time going right back to the takedown, although this time, after shooting the double, Higo turned it into a slam. The end was an inevitability at this point, as Higo got his back, then a body lock, then perfectly applied the RNC for the finish.

With his sixth career rear-naked choke finish, Higo has now won two straight. American Top Team’s Bandejas has now lost two straight and four of his past six.

Up-to-the-minute Bellator 249 results:

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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		 cyborg2020
Cyborg
(68%)		 freire2020
Freire
(72%)		 bandejas2020
Bandejas
(68%)		 nallo2020
Nallo
(51%)
Dan Tom
@DanTomMMA
2020: 130-66		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 nallo2020
Nallo
Nolan King
@mma_kings
2020: 130-66		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 nallo2020
Nallo
Farah Hannoun
@Farah_Hannoun
2020: 129-67		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 awad2020
Awad
Danny Segura
@dannyseguratv
2020: 128-68		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 awad2020
Awad
Dave Doyle
@davedoylemma
2020: 127-69		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 nallo2020
Nallo
Mike Bohn
@MikeBohnMMA
2020: 126-70
trophy copy 2014 Champion		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 nallo2020
Nallo
Brian Garcia
@thegoze
2020: 126-70
trophy copy 2017 Champion		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 nallo2020
Nallo
Simon Head
@simonhead
2020: 125-71
trophy copy 2019 Champion*		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 nallo2020
Nallo
Simon Samano
@SJSamano
2020: 124-72		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 nallo2020
Nallo
George Garcia
@MMAjunkieGeorge
2020: 121-75		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 awad2020
Awad
Ken Hathaway
@kenshathaway
2020: 121-75
trophy copy 2018 Champion		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 awad2020
Awad
John Morgan
@MMAjunkieJohn
2020: 118-78		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 nallo2020
Nallo
Abbey Subhan
@kammakaze
2020: 117-79		 cyborg2020
Cyborg		 freire2020
Freire		 bandejas2020
Bandejas		 nallo2020
Nallo
Matt Erickson
@MMAjunkieMatt
2020: 79-117		 blencowe2020
Blencowe		 willis2020
Willis		 higo2020
Higo		 awad2020
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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After ‘rebirth,’ Leandro Higo intends to show new ‘alter ego’ at Bellator 249

Leandro Higo claims he’s a completely different man with a new skillset heading into Bellator 249.

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – [autotag]Leandro Higo[/autotag] spoke to MMA Junkie on Tuesday ahead of his fight with Ricky Bandejas at Bellator 249.

Higo (19-5 MMA, 2-3 BMMA) discussed his bantamweight bout with Bandejas (13-4 MMA, 3-3 BMMA), using the coronavirus pandemic to put in training camps with Henry Cejudo and Chan Sung Jung, the plan to debut his new “alter ego” inside the cage, and more.

Watch the complete interview in the video above.

Bellator 249 takes place Thursday at Mohegan Sun Arena. The main card airs on CBS Sports Network following prelims on MMA Junkie.

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Bellator 249’s Leandro Higo excited to show his new alter-ego

Bellator 249’s Leandro Higo excited to show his new alter-ego

Bellator 249’s Leandro Higo excited to show his new alter-ego

Ricky Bandejas vs. Leandro Higo, Saad Awad vs. Mandel Nallo round out Bellator 249 main card

The Bellator 249 main card is set with four fights.

The Bellator 249 four-fight main card has been finalized.

[autotag]Ricky Bandejas[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Leandro Higo[/autotag] and [autotag]Saad Awad[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Mandel Nallo[/autotag] will round out the Bellator 249 main card.

Multiple people with knowledge of the situation recently confirmed the bookings to MMA Junkie but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.

The event takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. It streams on CBS Sports Network after prelims on MMA Junkie.

Bandejas (13-4 MMA, 3-3 BMMA) returns to action looking to bounce back from a unanimous decision loss to Sergio Pettis in July at Bellator 242. Prior to the defeat, Bandejas had won back-to-back fights against Frans Mlambo and Ahmet Kayretli.

Higo (19-5 MMA, 2-3 BMMA) has gone 2-2 in his most recent four outings. At Bellator 228 in September 2019, Higo snapped a two-fight skid with a second-round submission win over Shawn Bunch. He joins teammate Patricky Freire on the card.

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Awad (23-13 MMA, 11-10 BMMA) is currently on a four-fight losing streak. The skid followed a four-fight winning streak Awad went on from April 2017 to October 2018. In his most recent fight at Bellator 232 in October 2019, Awad was finished with punches by Paul Daley.

Nallo (7-1 MMA, 2-1 BMMA) is coming off the first loss of his professional career. After ending his first two Bellator outings against Alec Williams and Carrington Banks with violent knockout strikes, Nallo was finished with leg kicks by Killys Mota at Bellator 231 in October 2019.

With the addition, the Bellator 249 lineup includes:

  • Cris Cyborg vs. Arlene Blencowe – for Bellator women’s featherweight title
  • Patricky Freire vs. Jaleel Willis
  • Ricky Bandejas vs. Leandro Higo
  • Saad Awad vs. Mandel Nallo

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