Levan Chokheli – Syndication Server

Bellator adds Lorenz Larkin, Raufeon Stots to San Diego event

Bellator is set to hold its first domestic event of 2024, and some notable names are on the bill.

Bellator is headed back to San Diego this fall and is bringing some notable names with it.

The Bellator Champions Series event takes place Sept. 7 at Pechanga Arena with the main card on MAX after prelims on MMA Junkie.

In the co-main event, [autotag]Raufeon Stots[/autotag] battles rising Brazilian fighter [autotag]Marcos Breno[/autotag] in a bantamweight affair. Also on the card, former UFC standout [autotag]Lorenz Larkin[/autotag] (26-8) faces Georgian [autotag]Levan Chokheli[/autotag] (13-2).

Those two bouts were first reported by the OC Register and confirmed to MMA Junkie by a promotion official.

Stots bounced back from his first Bellator loss, a knockout against Patchy Mix, when he for the second time defeated rival Danny Sabtello by unanimous decision in November.

Breno also most recently competed against Sabatello. In April, Sabatello submitted him by rear-naked choke. The fight was his second in Bellator after a unanimous decision win over Josh Hill.

Larkin competed in June when he defeated Alan Dominguez by first-round knockout. The victory bounced him back into the win column after a split decision defeat to Andrey Koreshkov.

Chokheli has not competed since September 2023 when he extended his winning streak to three with a highlight reel kick knockout against Sabah Homasi.

With the additions, the Bellator Champions Series: San Diego lineup includes:

Champion Usman Nurmagomedov vs. Alexander Shabliy
Marcos Breno vs. Raufeon Stots
Levan Chokheli vs. Lorenz Larkin

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator Champions Series: San Diego.

MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Month for September: Cedric Doumbe’s nine-second stunner

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from September 2023.

With another action-packed month of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie looks at the best knockouts from September 2023: Here are the five nominees, listed in chronological order, and winner of MMA Junkie’s Knockout of the Month award for September.

At the bottom of the post, let us know if we got it right by voting for your choice.

Nominees

Bellator 299 video: Levan Chokheli sleeps Sabah Homasi with nasty front kick to the face

Levan Chokheli put Sabah Homasi’s lights out to kick off the Bellator 299 main card.

[autotag]Levan Chokheli[/autotag] kicked off the Bellator 299 main card in devastating fashion.

The Bellator welterweight scored a nasty front head-kick knockout over veteran [autotag]Sabah Homasi[/autotag] in the opening bout of the Showtime portion of Bellator 299 on Saturday at 3Arena in Dublin.

After a few exchanges, Chokheli (13-2 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) had Homasi (17-12 MMA, 6-6 BMMA) backed up against the cage. Then out of nowhere, Chokheli threw a front kick right to Homasi’s chin, putting him out instantly. It took a few minutes for Homasi to get back to his feet following the KO, but he eventually walked off on his own power.

You can watch the video of Chokheli’s KO win below:

INSANE 𝗙𝗥𝗢𝗡𝗧 𝗞𝗜𝗖𝗞 KO! 😱@LevanChokheli2 may have just stolen the show with this incredible knockout!#Bellator299 LIVE on @SHOsports 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/TcwU4G4gHJ

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) September 23, 2023

KO of the year contender from @LevanChokheli2! 👀 #Bellator299 LIVE on @SHOsports 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/vj7ImXTRza

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) September 23, 2023

Chokheli is now on a three-fight winning streak since his submission loss to Goiti Yamauchi in 2022.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=420030791]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 299.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (May 29-June 4)

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 or officially announced by a promotion from May 29-June 4.

Levan Chokheli eyes Michael Page or Neiman Gracie after Bellator 294 win

Levan Chokheli is targeting two former title challengers after his Bellator 294 win.

HONOLULU – [autotag]Levan Chokheli[/autotag] is targeting two former title challengers after his Bellator 294 win.

Chokheli (12-2 MMA, 3-2 BMMA) strung together his first winning streak with Bellator after he scored a unanimous decision win over Michael Lombardo this past Friday at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena.

The Georgian fighter is ready for a step up in competition and wants either [autotag]Michael Page[/autotag] or [autotag]Neiman Gracie[/autotag] next.

“I was in top 10, and then they changed it,” Chokheli told MMA Junkie and other reporters at the post-fight news conference. “But now I know I’m going to be top 10 guaranteed, and I want to fight with Neiman Gracie and MVP. I know they are up on the top, but I want more, top fight. I want to fight with Neiman. I respect Neiman. I respect MVP, but I want to fight with them.”

Chokheli started to tire in Round 3, but overall things went according to plan for the 27-year-old.

“That was my plan, my team’s plan,” Chokheli said. “Control every round, smash this guy. Mix it, strike with hands, punching, kicking, low kick, upkick, body kick, high kick. I have a lot of stuff with my hands, with my legs, everything. And mix it, end of round, take him down. Make some ground and pound. It is what it is. That was my plan. That was my game.”

[lawrence-auto-related count=4 category=420030791]

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 294.

Bellator 294 post-event facts: Liz Carmouche crafting strong stats during title reign

Liz Carmouche is making her footprint on the Bellator record books after recording another title defense at Bellator 294.

The first half of Bellator’s doubleheader in Hawaii went down Friday with Bellator 294, which took place at Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu and saw a champion defend her title in the main event.

[autotag]Liz Carmouche[/autotag] (19-7 MMA, 6-0 BMMA) recorded a second consecutive defense of her women’s flyweight title when she rallied from a 3-0 deficit on the scorecards to submit [autotag]DeAnna Bennett[/autotag] (13-8-1 MMA, 3-2 BMMA) with an arm-triangle choke in the fourth frame of their rematch.

For more on the numbers behind Carmouche’s win, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts form Bellator 294.

Bellator 288 post-event facts: Usman Nurmagomedov makes history with title win

Check out all the facts and figures from Bellator 288, which saw Usman Nurmagomedov move to 16-0 while claiming gold.

The penultimate Bellator event of 2022 went down Saturday with Bellator 288 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.

With two title fights on the card, one champ defended while another belt changed hands.

[autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (15-2 MMA, 8-0 BMMA) earned a unanimous decision win over [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] (16-5 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) to defend light heavyweight gold in the main event, while [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (16-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) outpointed [autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag] (24-11 MMA, 15-9 BMMA) on the scorecards to claim the lightweight strap.

For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from Bellator 288.

Roman Faraldo before Bellator 288: I’m ‘way better’ than Levan Chokheli ‘in every facet’

Roman Faraldo is confident, but he’s trying not to be arrogant heading into Bellator 288.

CHICAGO – [autotag]Roman Faraldo[/autotag] acknowledges that [autotag]Levan Chokheli[/autotag] is a step up in competition but expects to have no issues.

Faraldo (8-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) meets Chokheli (10-2 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) in Friday’s Bellator 288 main card opener at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

The unbeaten knockout artist has produced some viral moments throughout his career, and training at famed American Top Team gives him confidence that he will deliver once again.

“I think the experts still got it wrong saying that the odds are even,” Faraldo told reporters at Wednesday’s media day. “I think I’m way better than this guy in every facet of the game, and that confidence comes from my training partners and who I’m working with consistently and how I feel and what I’m doing and what I’m capable of.”

Although Faraldo’s early finishes wind up on highlight reels, he knows he still has some work to do. But he expects a win over Chokheli to advance his career.

“So I think it’ll be another great performance on my end, but title contention – I haven’t fought anybody from the top 10,” Faraldo said. “Levan isn’t ranked in the top 10, so for me to press that I think is a little arrogant. But we’ll get through him, we’ll beat a couple of top-10 guys, and then the belt should be – we’ll at least be in contention.”

He continued, “I’m asking for it more than anything and if I continue to produce, why wouldn’t you? Especially people want to see me, I put on great fights. Yeah, end of 2023, definitely in title contention for sure.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 288.

Bellator 288 predictions: Nemkov or Anderson, Freire or Nurmagomedov in Chicago title fights?

Check out our staff members’ picks for the Bellator 288 main card in Chicago, which features light heavyweight and lightweight title fights.

	Nemkov vs. Anderson	Freire vs. Nurmagomedov	Khizriev vs. Weichel	Fortune vs. James	Chokheli vs. Faraldo
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 180-106	Anderson (57%)	Nurmagomedov (87%)	Khizriev (75%)	Fortune (91%)	Faraldo (90%)
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 190-101 2018 Champion	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 182-109	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Weichel	Fortune	Faraldo
Matthew Wells @MrMWells 182-109	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 179-112	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Weichel	Fortune	Faraldo
Mike Bohn @MikeBohn 178-113 2014 Champion	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 176-115	Anderson	Freire	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Simon Samano @SJSamano 175-116	Anderson	Freire	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Nolan King @mma_kings 170-121	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Weichel	Fortune	Faraldo
Brian Garcia @thegoze 169-122 2017 Champion	Anderson	Freire	Weichel	Fortune	Faraldo
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 157-134	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo
Danny Segura @dannyseguratv 142-149	Anderson	Nurmagomedov	Khizriev	Fortune	Faraldo

Bellator makes its return to Chicago this week with a pair of title fights leading the card in the “Windy City.”

Bellator 288 takes place Friday at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, light heavyweight champion [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (15-2 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) puts his title on the line against [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] (16-5 MMA, 3-0 BMMA). The fight is a rematch from an April title fight that ended in a no contest after an accidental clash of heads left Nemkov with too deep of a cut to continue. The fight also is the $1 million final of Bellator’s light heavyweight tournament. Anderson was the underdog in the first fight, but now is a -230 favorite at Tipico Sportsbook; the comeback on Nemkov is +175. Our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers have Anderson as one of three unanimous picks at 11-0.

In the co-feature, lightweight champion [autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag] (24-10 MMA, 15-8 BMMA) puts his belt up for the first time when he takes on the unbeaten [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (15-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA). Usman is the biggest favorite on the main card at a whopping -750, but he’s not a unanimous pick. Three of our staff members are taking “Pitbull” Freire in what would be a major upset.

Also on the main card, [autotag]Timur Khizriev[/autotag] (11-0 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) meets [autotag]Daniel Weichel[/autotag] (42-13 MMA, 11-5 BMMA) in a featherweight bout. Khizriev is a big -320 favorite at the betting window, but he has just a 7-4 picks lead.

[autotag]Tyrell Fortune[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 12-2 BMMA) is one of our three unanimous picks in his heavyweight bout against Chicago native [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] (13-6-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA). Fortune is a 3-1 favorite in the fight.

And to open the main card, [autotag]Roman Faraldo[/autotag] (8-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) is our third unanimous pick at 11-0 in his welterweight bout against [autotag]Levan Chokheli[/autotag] (10-2 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) – even though he’s the smallest main card favorite at about 2-1.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Anderson (57 percent), Nurmagomedov (87 percent), Khizriev (75 percent), Fortune (91 percent) and Faraldo (90 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 288.

Bellator 288 fight card announced: 13 bouts official for Chicago

Thirteen bouts including two title fights are set for Bellator’s return to Chicago.

Bellator’s long-awaited return to Chicago this fall now has 13 official fights on the docket.

Bellator 288 is set for Nov. 18 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago with the main card airing on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie. The card is headlined by two title fights including the light heavyweight grand prix final rematch between champion [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] (14-2 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) and challenger [autotag]Corey Anderson[/autotag] (16-5 MMA, 3-0 BMMA).

Their first meeting at Bellator 277 in April ended in a “no contest” after an unintentional clash of heads on the ground caused a fight-ending laceration on Nemkov’s face.

In the co-main event, lightweight champion [autotag]Patricky Freire[/autotag] (24-10 MMA, 15-8 BMMA) will attempt to defend the title for the first time against undefeated challenger [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (15-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA).

Rounding out the main card is [autotag]Akhmed Magomedov[/autotag] (9-0 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) vs. [autotag]Daniel Weichel[/autotag] (42-13 MMA, 11-5 BMMA) at featherweight, [autotag]Tyrell Fortune[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 12-2 BMMA) vs. [autotag]Daniel James[/autotag] (13-6-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) at heavyweight and [autotag]Levan Chokheli[/autotag] (10-2 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) vs. [autotag]Roman Faraldo[/autotag] (8-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA).

With the addition, the Bellator 288 lineup includes:

Champion Vadnim Nemkov vs. Corey Anderson – grand prix final for light heavyweight title
Champion Patricky Freire vs. Usman Nurmagomedov – for lightweight title
Akhmed Magomedov vs. Daniel Weichel
Tyrell Fortune vs. Daniel James
Levan Chokheli vs. Roman Faraldo
Khasan Askhabov vs. Otto Rodrigues
Lucas Brennan vs. Nick Talavera
Imamshafi Aliev vs. Sean Fallon
Archie Colgan vs. Jesse Hannam
Jaylon Bates vs. Jornel Lugo
Jordan Newman vs. Jayden Taulker
Isaiah Hokit vs. Matias Nader
Vlad Gouvea vs. Kory Moegenburg

[vertical-gallery id=443084]