Tag: Patchy Mix

Usman Nurmagomedov, Patchy Mix title fights set as full 2024 Bellator Champions Series schedule announced

Bellator has announced its full 2024 schedule of Champions Series events, including Usman Nurmagomedov and Patchy Mix’s next title fights.

Two of Bellator’s most exciting champions have their next fights set as the promotion announced its full 2024 schedule of Champions Series, beginning in March.

Bellator Champions Series: Paris will take place on May 17 at Accor Arena in Paris, France, the promotion announced in a press release. The event will feature two title fights, with lightweight champion [autotag]Usman Nurmagomedov[/autotag] and bantamweight champion [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] looking to defend their titles.

In the main event, Nurmagomedov (17-0) will look to record his second title defense as he takes on Alexander Shabliy. Nurmagomedov won the title at Bellator 288 by defeating Paticky Freire by unanimous decision. His first title defense against Brent Primus was later overturned to a no contest. Shabliy (23-3), has not tasted defeat since 2016, winning nine consecutive fights.

In the co-feature, Mix (19-1) will put his 135-pound title on the line for the first time when he meets Magomed Magomedov. Mix unified the title in a second-round submission victory over Sergio Pettis in November at Bellator 301. Magomedov (20-3) gets a crack at gold following a first-round submission win over Danny Sabatelly in July.

The promotion also announced its full 2024 schedule of Champions Series events:

  • Friday, March 22 – Bellator Champions Series: Belfast at SSE Arena in Belfast, Northern Ireland
  • Friday, May 17 – Bellator Champions Series: Paris at Accor Arena in Paris, France
  • Saturday, June 22 – Bellator Champions Series: Dublin at 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland
  • Saturday, September 7 – Bellator Champions Series: San Diego at Pechanga Arena in San Diego, Calif.
  • Saturday, September 14 – Bellator Champions Series: London at OVO Wembley in London, England
  • Saturday, October 12 – Bellator Champions Series: Chicago at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Ill.
  • Saturday, November 16 – Bellator Champions Series: Paris at ADIDAS Arena in Paris, France
  • Tuesday, December 31 – Bellator Champions Series – TBD

A U.S. distribution partner for the events will be announced soon, according to the press release.

The current BCS: Paris lineup includes:

  • Usman Nurmagomedov vs. Alexander Shabliy – for lightweight title
  • Patchy Mix vs. Magomed Magomedov – for bantamweight title
  • Gregory Babene vs. Costello van Steenis
  • Louis Sutherland vs. Slim Trabelsi
  • Mansour Barnaoui vs. Yusuke Yachi

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MMA Junkie’s 2023 Gym of the Year: Xtreme Couture

Xtreme Couture is MMA Junkie’s 2023 Gym of the Year for its success molding Francis Ngannou, Sean Strickland, Patchy Mix and others.

What a year it was for the Las Vegas-based Xtreme Couture’s coaching staff and fight team.

Head coach Eric Nicksick was at the helm, flanked by a staff that includes Dewey Cooper, Dennis Davis, Nathan Pettit, Eddie Barraco, Jimmy Gifford, Danny Davis Jr., Maki Pitolo, Jake Shields, Ray Sefo, Roman Isbell, Matheus Naccache, Gil Guardado, and Justin Jaynes among others.

Among the gym’s accomplishments in 2023, [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] crossed over into the world of boxing, where he knocked down (and nearly defeated) heavyweight champion Tyson Fury – in his professional debut.

Xtreme Couture middleweight staple [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] defied the odds when he dethroned Israel Adesanya at UFC 293 in September to become champion.

[autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] solidified his status as one of the best pound-for-pound fighters outside the UFC when he finished Raufeon Stots and Sergio Pettis to win the Bellator bantamweight grand prix and divisional title.

Other Xtreme Couture standouts in 2023 included [autotag]Tatiana Suarez[/autotag], [autotag]Daniel Zellhuber[/autotag], [autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag], [autotag]Farid Basharat[/autotag], [autotag]Javid Basharat[/autotag], and others who also had strong years. The training room’s population continues to grow with many other fighters on the verge of greatness.

That’s why Xtreme Couture is MMA Junkie’s 2023 Gym of the Year.

Juan Archuleta wants Patchy Mix rematch if successful in Rizin title defense vs. Kai Asakura

Being the only man to defeat Patchy Mix, Juan Archuleta is hoping to get a shot at his former rival.

[autotag]Juan Archuleta[/autotag] is hoping Bellator’s promise is kept, even though the promotion has been acquired by PFL.

The current Rizin bantamweight champion is still the only man to ever defeat [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag], who currently holds the Bellator 135-pound title.

Archuleta defeated Mix in 2020 to win the vacant Bellator bantamweight title. Archuleta since lost the belt, but went on to win Rizin’s, while Mix was able to get back in contention and win the Bellator title by defeating then-champion Sergio Pettis last month.

Archuleta defends his Rizin belt against Kai Asakura this Sunday in the co-main event of Rizin 45 in Japan. If successful, Archuleta would like a crack at the Bellator champ.

“I hope so, that’s something that I’m pushing for,” Archuleta told MMA Junkie. “That’s something I was told was going to happen after I win this fight, so we’re just waiting to see again what Donn Davis, PFL, Mike Kogan and all those guys come up with. We’re waiting.”

Archuleta has felt a lot of uncertainty given the lack of details regarding his future following PFL’s purchase of Bellator last month. He hopes that he’s allowed to continue fighting for Rizin along with Bellator and PFL.

Now on a four-fight win streak and potentially five this Sunday, Archuleta thinks a champion vs. champion fight against Mix makes the most sense.

This position is one Archuleta has worked hard for, as not too long ago he suffered back-to-back defeats in championship fights. He thanks Rizin for his career comeback.

“Those were two title fights that I came off losing, and I was like, ‘Bro, what the hell?'” Archuleta said regarding the resurgence of his career. “… I was sitting in the back thinking (after my KO loss to Stots), ‘Man, what the hell. Two title fight losses, this is hard to come back from. It’s going to be hard to come back and become a champion. What road do I take? What’s available?’ I was just sitting in the sorrow, but then the Barzola fight happened. I felt good.

“(Scott) Coker said, ‘We’re actually having a Rizin vs Bellator fight. Do you want to be part of it?’ I was like, ‘Yes, please.’ So I got that opportunity, came here and they gave me their best guys. Kim Soo-chul, beat him. One of their rising stars, Naoki Inoue, beat him. … I was going to fight Asakura (in July), he pulled out on 10 days’ notice. I fought someone totally different, won the title and all the stress was put behind me. Again, I’m the champion like I know I should be. Going into the prime years of my life now, I’m ready to show that.”

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‘Touch of Gloves’: MMA figures show appreciation to those who shined brightest in 2023

What better time than the end of the year for UFC and MMA notables to reflect on who they appreciated most in 2023.

‘”As real as it gets” is the UFC’s slogan to describe just how realistic MMA combat can be. But before fighters get to any of the face punching, they typically share a moment of respect, a moment of peace that represents their mutual acknowledgment for the struggle to arrive at the moment: the touch of gloves.

Fighters might beat each other up for as much as 25 minutes, but the respect for one another and the sport seldom goes away and the martial arts spirt is always with them.

In this year’s edition of “Touch of Gloves,” we see that spirt come to life as fighters, coaches and more show appreciation to the people they think especially deserve a shoutout for what they did in 2023:

  • [autotag]Anthony Pettis[/autotag] on [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Ben Rothwell[/autotag] on [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Beneil Dariush[/autotag] on [autotag]Merab Dvalishvili[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Cain Velasquez[/autotag] on [autotag]Islam Makhachev[/autotag]
  • [autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag] on [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag]
  • And many more

Enjoy!

MMA Junkie’s Submission of the Month for November: Patchy Mix becomes undisputed

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

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

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

Nominees

PFL founder Donn Davis: Patchy Mix ‘doesn’t have the hair, but he’s got better fighting’ than Sean O’Malley

PFL founder Donn Davis says Patchy Mix has the tools to beat UFC’s Sean O’Malley.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Bellator’s bantamweight division is considered by many the promotion’s strongest weight class, which has led people to compare it to the UFC’s.

PFL founder [autotag]Donn Davis[/autotag] is a strong believer in the roster his company acquired, having officially announced the purchase of Bellator on Monday. So much so that Davis believes that Bellator’s bantamweight champion [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] is outright better than UFC’s 135-pound champion [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag].

“Patchy Mix could beat ‘Suga,'” Davis told reporters after the 2023 PFL Championship on Friday night. “He doesn’t have the hair, but he’s got better fighting. I think that most people think that that’s a good fight or that Patchy is a slight favorite, but it’s a damn good fight.

Davis revealed that there’s no plan of developing a PFL bantamweight season in 2024. For now, Mix (19-1) will defend his title against challengers yet to be determined in the eight expected Bellator events for 2024.

Mix recently unified the Bellator bantamweight title, when he defeated Sergio Pettis at Bellator 301 earlier this month. Mix entered the bout as interim champion. The 30-year-old is currently on a six-fight winning streak and only has one career, which came against Juan Archuleta in 2020.

On the other hand, O’Malley (17-1) returns to the octagon in March to defend his title against Marlon Vera, the only man to have a win over him. O’Malley became UFC champion in August, stopping Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292 in Boston.

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for 2023 PFL Championship.

Bellator champ Patchy Mix says UFC champ Sean O’Malley is his ‘dream fight’

Patchy Mix hopes to lock horns with Sean O’Malley someday.

[autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] hopes to lock horns with [autotag]Sean O’Malley[/autotag] someday.

In Bellator’s final show this past Friday, Mix (19-1 MMA, 8-1 BMMA) submitted Sergio Pettis (23-6 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) by second-round rear-naked choke to unify the promotion’s 135-pound titles.

O’Malley (17-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) captured the UFC bantamweight title by knocking out Aljamain Sterling in August. With both their abilities to take people out, Mix thinks their contrasting styles would make for an interesting fight.

“Sean O’Malley, that’s the dream fight,” Mix told The Schmo. “It’s a big fight: similar records, similar size, he knocks everyone out, I submit everyone. It would be a crazy fight.”

O’Malley runs things back with Marlon Vera for his first title defense at UFC 299 in March. Meanwhile, Mix’s next move is unclear. With PFL and Bellator merging, Mix will continue competing against Bellator fighters since PFL doesn’t have a bantamweight division. He sees multiple options.

“Maybe Raufeon Stots,” Mix said on his next opponent. “He looked good last week. Maybe (Juan) Archuleta – I have a loss to him. Who knows, man? I know it’ll probably be a rematch, though. It’s one of those guys in the top five so, I’m here.”

Mix declared himself the best bantamweight in MMA. He pointed to his finishing ability as the main reason. The 30-year-old has finished 15 of his 19 professional wins.

“(It’s) the variety of ways that I finish fights,” Mix said. “I just have too many ways to finish fights, and I don’t think many people can survive that 25-minute pace and pressure. And I’m a world champion, that’s why.”

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USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings, Nov. 21: Mixing up the top 5 at bantamweight

Check out the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings following UFC Fight Night 232 and Bellator 301.

Last weekend’s Bellator and UFC events were the source of a number of changes in this week’s rankings update.

The biggest move of the week came from now-undisputed Bellator bantamweight champion [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag], who defeated Sergio Pettis in the Bealltor 301 co-main event. Mix submitted Pettis in the second round to unify his interim title. This week, Mix jumps from No. 10 to No. 4, entering the top 5 of the USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie bantamweight rankings for the first time.

Check out all the latest pound-for-pound and divisional USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings above.

Patchy Mix doesn’t know what’s next after Bellator 301, just that he’s the best in the world

After Bellator 301, Patchy Mix repeated his previous claims as the world’s best and shed light on what the future may hold for him.

CHICAGO – [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] established himself as the undisputed Bellator bantamweight champion Friday and in doing so thinks he once again proved he’s the best in the world.

In the Bellator 301 co-main event at Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Mix (19-1 MMA, 8-1 BMMA) submitted Sergio Pettis (23-6 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) by rear-naked choke in Round 2 to unify the promotion’s 135-pound titles.

The win over Pettis is one Mix holds in high regard.

“My opponent there, Sergio Pettis, they look at his (flyweight) run,” Mix told MMA Junkie and other reporters at a post-fight news conference. “But this kid was young when he was in the UFC. He’s great. I mean, he just beat Patricio ‘Pitbull.’ He smoked the only man to beat me. Archuleta didn’t win a round against him. I think that Sergio is up there as one of the top three bantamweights in the world right now. I feel like he was so young in the UFC at 24 or 25 years old. He just turned 30 years old, him and I. I feel like we’re both entering our prime.

“They hold Sean O’Malley in such a high regard. Sean O’Malley never beat someone of the level of ‘Patricio Pitbull,’ like Sergio Pettis did. That’s why I respected him like I did. I took this fight very seriously. I feel like a lot of people underestimate him, and I overestimated him because I knew how good he was. The first shot busted my face up. That’s why I had to respect him.”

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Mix sits atop the Bellator throne, though the promotion’s future beyond Friday’s event is uncertain at this time. Bellator president Scott Coker did not speak to reporters after the event as rumors of a potential sale loom large.

Given this and having already fought many of the division’s top contenders, Mix passed on any callouts. He’s champion now and plans to let the promotion bring names to him.

“I’m just getting started,” Mix said. “I just turned 30 years old. I’m 19-1 now with 15 finishes. I’m just getting started. I’m cleaning the division out from the bottom up. … I’m not necessarily chasing anyone not that I’m the titleholder. Whoever they approach me with, I’m willing to do. I don’t mind. I can run it back with all three of them. If they want to do me and Sergio again, if they want to do me and (Raufeon) Stots again, or if they want to do me and Maga (Magomed Magomedov). I’ve fought all the top guys and I just want to fight who they believe is the best, who is on the best run.”

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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 301.

Bellator 301 results: Patchy Mix surgically submits Sergio Pettis to claim undisputed bantamweight title

Patchy Mix did what he does best and is now the undisputed Bellator bantamweight champion after beating Sergio Pettis.

Well, well, well. What do yo know? The master of the back take took his opponent’s back and finished him to claim the undisputed Bellator bantamweight championship.

[autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] can lay clam to that title after he surgically submitted champ [autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] on Friday night at Bellator 301. Mix used what else but a rear-naked choke to make Pettis tap out at the 1:51 mark in the co-main event at Wintrust Arena in Chicago.

After a first round in which Mix (19-1 MMA, 8-1 BMMA) had all the control time, he went right back to it in the second round. Unlike the first when he struggled to mount any major threats, Mix closed distance on Pettis (23-6 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) and immediately spun behind him. Mix pushed off the cage to get the fight down to the mat and from there used clean technique to secure the finish, trapping Pettis’ right arm with his leg while working for the choke. With only one arm to defend, Pettis didn’t stand a chance and had no choice but to quit.

“I’m the best in the world,” Mix said after the win. “135, I’m the best in the world.”

Since failing to claim gold from then-champ Juan Archuleta in September 2020, Mix has won six in a row and entered Friday night as the interim champ at 135 pounds after winning the promotion’s Bellator grand prix.

For Pettis, it’s his first loss in Bellator. He was on a five-fight winning streak in the promotion since leaving the UFC in 2019.

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Up-to-the-minute Bellator 301 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 301.