Tag: Rafael Carvalho

Bellator 277 salaries: A.J. McKee, Patricio Freire lead the pack of guaranteed purses

At Bellator 277, A.J. McKee, Patricio Freire, Vadim Nemkov, and Corey Anderson are set to lead disclosed fighter payouts.

SAN JOSE, Calif – Bellator 277 takes place Friday at SAP Center where three fighters are scheduled to take home six-figure paydays regardless of outcome.

At the 14-fight event, MMA Junkie acquired a list of disclosed salaries from California State Athletic Commission executive director Andy Foster.

In the main event, champion [autotag]A.J. McKee[/autotag] and former champion [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag] square off in a title rematch. Both fighters had a disclosed payday of $250,000 flat. The co-main event is a grand prix final. Light heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov (on an $80,000 to show/$80,000 to win basis) and Corey Anderson ($250,000 flat) will collide with the winner making an additional $1 million.

The total payout or show money is $1.378 million. Check out the full list of payouts below. The story will be updated with exact disclosed payouts at the conclusion of the event.

Bellator 277: Ex-champ Rafael Carvalho steps in for Tony Johnson vs. Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov

Next week’s Bellator return to its Northern California home base has a former champion as a late addition to the lineup.

Next week’s Bellator return to its Northern California home base has a former champion as a late addition to the lineup.

With [autotag]Tony Johnson[/autotag] (9-3 MMA, 2-1 BMMA) out with an injury, former middleweight champ [autotag]Rafael Carvalho[/autotag] (16-6 MMA, 7-5 BMMA) will step in to take on [autotag]Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov[/autotag] (18-7-1 MMA, 0-2 BMMA) on the preliminary card at Bellator 277. Promotion officials announced the change Thursday.

Bellator 277 takes place April 15 at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif. The main card airs on Showtime following prelims on MMA Junkie.

Carvalho has had a rough run since he lost the 185-pound title to Gegard Mousasi nearly four years ago. After that TKO title loss, he dropped a split decision to former UFC champ Lyoto Machida. He bounced back with a decision win over Chidi Njokuani in July 2019.

But since then he has three straight losses, including a pair at light heavyweight to current champ Vadim Nemkov and Alex Polizzi, then one against Lorenz Larkin in his return to 185 pounds.

Yagshimuradov is looking to snap a two-fight skid. After an eight-fight winning streak, Yagshimuradov came to Bellator in 2021 as ACA’s light heavyweight champion. But he was finished by Corey Anderson with a third-round TKO in the opening round of the light heavyweight tournament a year ago. This past October, he dropped a decision to Karl Albrektsson for the first skid of his career.

Johnson was set to attempt to get back in the win column after a decision loss to Dalton Rosta a year ago. Prior to that setback, he had a five-fight winning streak, including four straight after returning to MMA following an absence of more than four years. Now his hope for a bounce-back is on hold.

MAIN CARD (Showtime, 10 p.m. ET)

  • Champ A.J. McKee vs. Patricio Freire – for featherweight title
  • Champ Vadim Nemkov vs. Corey Anderson – for light heavyweight title; light heavyweight tournament final
  • Aaron Pico vs. TBA
  • Tim Johnson vs. Linton Vassell

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 7 p.m. ET)

  • Gaston Bolanos vs. Ali Jafri
  • Rakim Cleveland vs. Tyrell Fortune
  • Rafael Carvalho vs. Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov
  • Kyle Crutchmer vs. Michael Lombardo
  • Calob Ramirez vs. Bobby Seronio III
  • Rhalan Gracie vs. Tyson Miller
  • Edwin De Los Santos vs. Alberto Mendez
  • Socrates Hernandez vs. Rogelio Luna
  • Laird Anderson vs. JT Donaldson
  • Alan Benson vs. Theo Haig

Bellator 258 post-event facts: Michael Page is the new Bellator knockout king

Check out all the facts and figures from Bellator 258, including Michael Page’s takeover of the company KO record.

Bellator saw its first title change of the year happen on Friday in the Bellator 258 headliner.

[autotag]Sergio Pettis[/autotag] (21-5 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) claimed the bantamweight title from [autotag]Juan Archuleta [/autotag](25-3 MMA, 7-2 BMMA) in their main event clash, taking a unanimous decision at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn.

For more on the numbers, check below for 20 post-event facts to come out of Bellator 258.

Rafael Carvalho steps in on six days’ notice to fight Lorenz Larkin at Bellator 258

Former Bellator middleweight champion Rafael Carvalho is back with the promotion – at least for one more fight.

Former Bellator middleweight champion [autotag]Rafael Carvalho[/autotag] is back with the promotion – at least for one more fight.

Carvalho, who was among 30 fighters to part with Bellator late last year, will return this Friday against [autotag]Lorenz Larkin[/autotag] at Bellator 258 in Uncasville, Conn. Larkin’s original opponent, Costello van Steenis, withdrew from their bout earlier this week.

Bellator announced the fight Saturday on social media. A promotion official told MMA Junkie that Carvalho’s return is “a one-off for now.” It’s unclear how the Bellator 258 booking will affect LFA’s plans. On Friday, Carvalho was announced to headline LFA 107 one week later on May 14. A message to LFA CEO Ed Soares was not immediately returned.

Carvalho, 34, won Bellator’s 185-pound title in October 2015 with a TKO of Brandon Halsey. Carvalho (16-5 MMA, 7-4 BMMA) went on to defend it three times – part of an overall 15-fight winning streak – before losing to Gegard Mousasi by first-round TKO in May 2018 at Bellator 200. That kickstarted a downswing for Carvalho, who’s dropped four of his past five, which resulted in his release from Bellator.

But now Carvalho is back to take on Larkin. A former Bellator welterweight title challenger, Larkin (22-7 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) is moving up to middleweight for the first time in his promotional tenure. He currently rides a four-fight winning streak but hasn’t competed since December 2019.

The latest Bellator 258 lineup includes:

MAIN CARD (Showtime, 9 p.m. ET)

  • Champ Juan Archuleta vs. Sergio Pettis – for bantamweight title
  • Anthony Johnson vs. Yoel Romero – light heavyweight grand prix quarterfinal
  • Patricky Freire vs. Peter Queally
  • Derek Anderson vs. Michael Page

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie, 6 p.m. ET)

  • Rafael Carvalho vs. Lorenz Larkin
  • Josh Hill vs. Raufeon Stots
  • Omar Hussein vs. Logan Storley
  • Weber Almeida vs. Johnny Soto
  • Johnny Campbell vs. Henry Corrales
  • Johnny Eblen vs. Daniel Madrid
  • Erik Perez vs. Blaine Shutt
  • Patchy Mix vs. Albert Morales

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Ex-Bellator champ Rafael Carvalho to headline LFA 107 on May 14; LFA 108 set for following week

Former Bellator middleweight champion Rafael Carvalho is set to make his debut in a new promotion.

Former Bellator middleweight champion [autotag]Rafael Carvalho[/autotag] is set to make his debut in a new promotion.

On Friday, LFA announced that Carvalho will headline LFA 107 on May 14 against [autotag]Sharaf Davlatmurodov[/autotag] also making his promotional debut. The booking was part of an announcement that included the lineup for LFA 108 on May 21. Both events will take place at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and stream on UFC Fight Pass.

Carvalho, 34, won Bellator’s 185-pound title in October 2015 with a TKO of Brandon Halsey. Carvalho (16-5) went on to defend his title three times – part of an overall 15-fight winning streak – before losing it to Gegard Mousasi by first-round TKO in May 2018 at Bellator 200. That kickstarted a downswing for Carvalho, who’s dropped four of his past five, resulting in his release from Bellator.

Davlatmurodov (17-3-1), who fights out of Tajikistan, made his professional in 2015 and went on an 11-fight unbeaten streak that included a draw. He’s rebounded from back-to-back losses with his current five-fight winning streak, which includes three finishes.

Below are the lineups for LFA 107 and LFA 108:

LFA 107 (UFC Fight Pass, 9 p.m. ET, May 14)

  • Rafael Carvalho vs. Sharaf Davlatmurodov
  • Vernon Lewis vs. Alejandro Solorzano
  • Ricardo Dias vs. George Garcia
  • Anthony Garrett vs. Jordan Heiderman

LFA 108 (UFC Fight Pass, 9 p.m. ET, May 21)

  • Josh Fremd vs. Gregory Rodrigues
  • Mark Climaco vs. Rodney Kealohi
  • Clayton Carpenter vs. Nick Clem

Bellator 245 fills out, including Ed Ruth, Rafael Carvalho, Tyrell Fortune

The first half of Bellator’s back-to-back Connecticut shows in September has had its lineup filled out.

Bellator 245 fills out, including Ed Ruth, Rafael Carvalho, Tyrell Fortune

The first half of Bellator’s back-to-back Connecticut shows in September has had its lineup filled out.

Bellator 245, which will be headlined by a light heavyweight rematch between Phil Davis and Lyoto Machida with Cat Zingano vs. Gabrielle Holloway in the co-main event, has five new bouts ticketed for the lineup, the promotion announced Friday.

Bellator 245 takes place Friday, Sept. 11, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card airs on Paramount and streams on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie. The next night, the same venue hosts Bellator 246.

On the main card, [autotag]Ed Ruth[/autotag] (8-2 MMA, 8-2 BMMA) takes on [autotag]Taylor Johnson[/autotag] (5-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) at middleweight, and [autotag]Raymond Daniels[/autotag] (2-1 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) meets [autotag]Peter Stanonik[/autotag] (5-4 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) in a welterweight bout.

Additionally, the preliminary card gets a light heavyweight bout between former middleweight champion [autotag]Rafael Carvalho[/autotag] (16-4 MMA, 7-3 BMMA) and LFA light heavyweight champ [autotag]Alex Polizzi[/autotag] (6-0 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), [autotag]Tyrell Fortune[/autotag] (8-1 MMA, 8-1 BMMA) vs. [autotag]Jack May[/autotag] (11-6 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) at heavyweight, and [autotag]Keith Lee[/autotag] (6-3 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) vs. [autotag]Dominic Mazzotta[/autotag] (15-3 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) in a 140-pound contract-weight fight.

Ruth will be looking to rebound from a decision loss to Yaroslav Amosov in February, which snapped a two-fight winning streak. Johnson suffered the first loss of his pro career a little more than a year ago in a Dana White’s Contender Series fight against Andre Muniz. Prior to that, he had four straight first-round knockout wins under the LFA banner.

Kickboxing standout Daniels returned to MMA in 2019 after a lengthy layoff from the sport. He took out Wilker Barros in the first round in his Bellator MMA debut after years on the Bellator Kickboxing circuit. Then earlier this year, he stopped Jason King in the first round with a TKO. Stanonik has a kickboxing and muay Thai background, as well, but his most recent MMA fight was a June 2018 loss to Jake Heffernan at LFA 43.

With the additions, the Bellator 245 lineup now includes:

MAIN CARD (Paramount, DAZN, 10 p.m. ET)

  • Phil Davis vs. Lyoto Machida
  • Gabrielle Holloway vs. Cat Zingano
  • Taylor Johnson vs. Ed Ruth
  • Raymond Daniels vs. Peter Stanonik

PRELIMINARY CARD (MMA Junkie)

  • Rafael Carvalho vs. Alex Polizzi
  • Tyrell Fortune vs. Jack May
  • Keith Lee vs. Dominic Mazzotta – 140-pound contract weight

Patricio ‘Pitbull,’ Pedro Carvalho exchange Twitter barbs ahead of Bellator grand prix showdown

Bellator featherweight rivals Patricio Freire and Pedro Carvalho have stoked up the rivalry early with a Twitter back-and-forth, four months ahead of their grand prix showdown.

This past weekend was the time of year people come together to enjoy some traditional Thanksgiving turkey. Now there’s some beef marinating away ahead of a fighting feast in March.

The beef in question is between Bellator featherweight (and lightweight) champion [autotag]Patricio Freire[/autotag] and his next opponent in the Bellator featherweight grand prix tournament, Dublin-based Portuguese contender [autotag]Rafael Carvalho[/autotag], who have spent much of their weekend engaging in a Twitter back-and-forth that will eventually end with the pair throwing leather inside the cage in around four months’ time.

“Pitbull” (30-4 MMA, 18-4 BMMA) picked Carvalho (11-3 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) as his next opponent in the tournament after utilizing his “champion’s choice” advantage during the recent bracket-setting draw after Bellator 228 at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. And with the pair set to do battle in March, the duo have decided to get the pre-fight banter started early.

It all began with “Pitbull” stating that he’d love to fight for a third Bellator belt as he wished Kyoji Horiguchi a speedy recovery following his decision to relinquish the bantamweight belt.

“It’s a shame I’m busy with the FW tournament and have the LW title to defend first. I’d love a crack at the BW title,” he said. But Carvalho piped up and replied, suggesting the Brazilian may find his schedule a little easier after he has faced “Pitbull” in their quarter-final clash next year, and suggested his SBG teammate Peter Queally was ready to take him on for his 155-pound strap.

“You’ll not be busy in September,” Carvalho said. “So if you want so much to come to Ireland, like I told you before, @peterqueally can give you a warm welcome in Dublin. After March I want to see if you have the same will to do match-ups against any SBG fighter! #andnew”

Freire then threw shade Queally’s way saying he “won’t make it up here” before turning his aim to Carvalho’s team as a whole.

“I’d love my fighters to get the favorable matchmaking you have. SBG fighters are perfect.”

He then asked if Carvalho was Queally’s “errand boy” and asked if the Irish lightweight contender was “too scared to speak up for himself and try to make his way to the top with good wins.”

Cue more back and forth, with Carvalho adopting a phrase we’ve heard from a certain high-profile teammate of his: “Losers focus on winners. Winners focus on winning,” while Freire called Carvalho’s teammates “coward friends” and signing off with: “Thank you for the laugh. I’ll be laughing again at you KO’d in March.”

With Freire seemingly taking aim at anyone and everyone from SBG, and Carvalho firing directly back at “Pitbull,” it seems the rivalry between the two teams could be at fever pitch if the online jousting continues. The big question, of course, is who will be eating their words in March and who’ll be moving on in the tournament with championship gold around their waist?

Bellator featherweight grand prix quarterfinal matchups:

  • A.J. McKee vs. Derek Campos (Bellator 236, Dec. 21)
  • Adam Borics vs. Darrion Caldwell (January)
  • Emmanuel Sanchez vs. Daniel Weichel (February)
  • Champion Patricio Freire vs. Pedro Carvalho (March)