Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
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 the promotions from Aug. 28-Sept. 3.
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 March 27-April 2.
Islam Makhachev finishing the most decorated grappler in UFC history secured him lightweight gold and MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Year for 2022.
With another action-packed year of MMA in the books, MMA Junkie takes a look at the best submissions from January to December 2022.
As voted on by our entire staff, here are the top 10 and winner of MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Year.
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 Nov. 21-27.
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.
The ‘Luca-nator’ is real.
[autotag]Luca Poclit[/autotag]’s puzzled the MMA world.
The Bellator welterweight debuted for the promotion with one of the most bizarre finishes seen in 2022. Poclit (8-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) put his opponent Dante Schiro (94 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) to sleep with an unorthodox choke in the opening bout of the Bellator 285 card at 3Arena in Dublin.
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Many were confused by what they saw in real-time and even question the intent behind the choke. Poclit assures it was no luck.
“Yeah, I know, I practice it every day in the gym, this submission,” Poclit told reporters at the Bellator 285 post-fight press conference. “I practice. My coach knows this submission, John Kavanaugh.”
Have you 𝑬𝑽𝑬𝑹 seen anything like this?! 👀
Luca Poclit submits Schiro to open #Bellator285 with a bang 💥#Bellator285 is LIVE on YouTube & @BBCiPlayer now!@MonsterEnergy Prelims, fueled by Vallarta Supermarkets pic.twitter.com/lycZOrH0HG
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) September 23, 2022
John Kavanaugh, head coach at SBG Ireland, calls the submission win the “Luca-nator.”
You can watch Poclit’s full post-fight scrum in the video above.
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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)
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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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)
One of the strangest chokes you’ll ever see in MMA.
[autotag]Luca Poclit[/autotag]’s picked up one of the craziest submissions of the year on Friday at Bellator 285.
The SBG Ireland welterweight Poclit (8-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) put his opponent Dante Schiro (94 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) to sleep with a ridiculous choke in the opening bout the card at 3Arena in Dublin. It
The commentators, and most watching from home, didn’t even realize Schiro was being choked until he was unconscious, and the referee was stopping the bout.
You can watch Poclit’s wild finish in the video below (via Twitter):
Have you 𝑬𝑽𝑬𝑹 seen anything like this?! 👀
Luca Poclit submits Schiro to open #Bellator285 with a bang 💥#Bellator285 is LIVE on YouTube & @BBCiPlayer now!@MonsterEnergy Prelims, fueled by Vallarta Supermarkets pic.twitter.com/lycZOrH0HG
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) September 23, 2022
The official verdict, Poclit defeated Schiro by technical submission (modified arm-triangle) in Round 2 at the 4:31 mark. However, it was also announced as the “Luca-nator.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 285.
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Twenty-six athletes partook in Bellator 285 ceremonial faceoffs including Benson Henderson, Peter Queally, Yoel Romero, and Melvin Manhoef.
Bellator 285 takes place Friday at 3Arena in Dublin and Thursday, competitors came face-to-face one final time ahead of their respective bouts.
Among those who squared off were headliners [autotag]Benson Henderson[/autotag] (29-11 MMA, 6-6 BMMA) and [autotag]Peter Queally[/autotag] (13-6-1 MMA, 2-2 BMMA), who are set to compete in a five-round lightweight bout. Also on the card, former UFC middleweight title challenger [autotag]Yoel Romero[/autotag] (14-6 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) serves as the final test for [autotag]Melvin Manhoef[/autotag] (32-15-1 MMA, 4-4 BMMA), a combat sports legend expected to compete in his last MMA bout.
Four of the most experienced fighters on the card, the headliners and co-headliners remained respectful with handshakes after their faceoffs.
The ceremonial faceoffs came hours after all 26 fighters made weight at the host hotel.
The most intense interaction of the ceremony was between preliminary card openers [autotag]Luca Poclit[/autotag] (7-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) and [autotag]Dante Schiro[/autotag] (9-3 MMA, 1-1 BMMA). The two welterweight fighters ground forehead against forehead until promotion and commission officials intervened.
The full Bellator 285 lineup includes:
MAIN CARD (Showtime, 4 p.m. ET)
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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