Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Check out which veterans of the UFC are competing in combat sports across the globe this weekend.
This week, the UFC remains idle during its holiday season following the final pay-per-view event of the year.
Many other combat sports events are taking place that feature several familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.
Check out which veterans of the global MMA leader are competing Dec. 29-31.
Scroll below to see how the UFC veterans fared last week, and see the names and details of this weekend’s competitors.
Upcoming event information from Tapology.
Check out all the fighter walkout songs from Saturday’s Bellator 237 event.
While it takes intense training, world-class skills and maybe even a bit of luck to register a Bellator win, picking the right song to accompany you to the cage is a key talent, as well.
See what the fighters from Bellator 237 went with as their backing tracks in Saitama, Japan.
* * * *
[autotag]Fedor Emelianenko[/autotag]: “Христе Боже” by Оригинал
[autotag]Quinton Jackson[/autotag]: PRIDE theme song
[autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag]: ” 晴れわたる丘” by RYO the SKYWALKER
[autotag]Sidney Outlaw[/autotag]: “Montana” by French Montana
[autotag]Michael Page[/autotag]: “Montana” by French Montana
[autotag]Shinsho Anzai[/autotag]: “Rollin'” by Limp Bizkit
[autotag]Lorenz Larkin[/autotag]: N/A
[autotag]Keita Nakamura[/autotag]: “Fly Again” by Man With a Mission
[autotag]Kana Watanabe[/autotag]: “Be the Best Together” by Fight League feat. Yshidakyoudia
[autotag]Ilara Joanne[/autotag]: “Arya Stark Is Coming To Town” by House of Snark, feat. Liane Walls & the Baby Snark Choir
[autotag]Goiti Yamauchi[/autotag]: “Speed TK (Remix)”
[autotag]Daron Cruickshank[/autotag]: “Real American” by Rick Derringer
The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly serious, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.
See the top Twitter reactions to Michael Page’s win over Shinsho Anzai at Bellator 237.
[autotag]Michael Page[/autotag] got his third victory in a 92-day span on Saturday when he defeated [autotag]Shinsho Anzai[/autotag] at Bellator 237.
Page (17-1 MMA, 13-1 BMA) added another spectacular victory to his highlight reel when, in true “MVP” fashion, he downed Anzai (11-4 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) by second-round knockout in the 172-pound contract weight bout, which took place at Saitama Super Arena in Japan and aired on Paramount.
Check below for the top Twitter reactions to Page’s victory over Anzai at Bellator 237.
* * * *
#Bellator237 action continues next with @MichaelPage247 making his fifth @BellatorMMA appearance of 2019 when he takes on @Shinsho_Anzai.
Results: https://t.co/GPH3VXoKSp pic.twitter.com/M10xwmurqm
— MMA Junkie (@MMAjunkie) December 29, 2019
Anzai turning back the clock with this “Rollin’” walkout #BellatorJapan pic.twitter.com/iaAjroRBSd
— Dan Tom (@DanTomMMA) December 29, 2019
Very much approving of this Venom Page walkout out… the Blues music, the Akatsuki outfit, the gas explosions, the showboating… I’m here for it. #BellatorJapan pic.twitter.com/nHw1hKbNRV
— MiddleEasy (@MiddleEasy) December 29, 2019
Anzai takes a stiff right to the face., Another. Page is beating him up from a distance #BellatorJapan
— Sherdog by Mandatory (@sherdogdotcom) December 29, 2019
Saying MVP has fought tougher competition than Silva as this is going on… how dare you
— Al Iaquinta🗽 (@ALIAQUINTA) December 29, 2019
Page is just battering a very overmatched Anzai. Commentary is trying to justify this, but c'mon. #Bellator237
— Rob Tatum (@RobTatum303) December 29, 2019
MVP is in a very entertaining squash match.
— Dave Meltzer (@davemeltzerWON) December 29, 2019
MVP can’t miss out there. I wonder what his accuracy percentage looks like in this fight. Anzai is getting mugged. 10-8
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) December 29, 2019
Big round by Page. Two knockdowns. He did what he wants…
Page faz o que quer na luta. Dando show até aqui. #BellatorJapan #Bellator237
— Bruno Massami (Бруно Массами) (@BrMassami) December 29, 2019
MVP did an MVP thing at #Bellator237/#BellatorJapan… over to #DavisGamboa
— Mike Jackson, Esq. (@TheTruthJackson) December 29, 2019
Dear god man. That was seriously uncomfortable to watch the last few minutes. Now fight Larkin.
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) December 29, 2019
Naruto!!!! #BellatorJapan
— Tatiana Suarez (@tatianaufc) December 29, 2019
It's safe to say @MichaelPage247 is stoked to be in JAPAAAAAAAAN!#BellatorJapan #BellatorvsRIZIN pic.twitter.com/2jJDzt4RDX
— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) December 29, 2019
Larkin vs MVP I’ll be waiting for the winner while I go after the MW gold! @BellatorMMA
— Douglas Lima (@PhenomLima) December 29, 2019
#Bellator237 results: @MichaelPage247 lights up Shinsho Anzai for second-round KO https://t.co/ErWFrTrKUh
— MMA Junkie (@MMAjunkie) December 29, 2019
Michael Page added another spectacular highlight to his reel against Shinsho Anzai at Bellator 237.
SAITAMA, Japan – [autotag]Michael Page[/autotag] added another spectacular highlight to his reel on Saturday when he dished out one of the most one-sided beatdowns in recent memory against [autotag]Shinsho Anzai[/autotag] at Bellator 237.
It was a near-flawless performance from “MVP,” because Page (17-1 MMA, 13-1 BMMA) did everything he wanted in battering Anzai (11-4 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) with a relentless onslaught of strikes before connecting with a fight-ending right hand for the second-round knockout.
The 173-pound catchweight bout went down at Bellator 237, which took place at Saitama Super Arena. The card aired on Paramount and streamed on DAZN.
[lawrence-related id=475419,475416]
Page’s length caused seriously problems for Anzai from the opening bell, as he stuck the Japanese fighter with some hard jabs. Anzai tried to bullrush his way inside, but he walked into a well-timed counter on nearly every advance. Anzai wouldn’t be discouraged, though, because he continued to push forward despite absorbing taking punches, kicks and flying knees. Anzai got dropped with a clean punch, but he got right back up. Page began to showboat, dancing around the cage as he built confidence and brutalized Anzai with everything in the tool bag. Somehow, though, Anzai survived the round.
Anzai walked into two huge flying knees in the first 12 seconds of the second round and was definitely rocked. He charged forward, though, and walked right into an enormous right hand from Page that send him crashing to the canvas and badly hurt. Referee Jason Herzog didn’t allow any follow-up shots, jumping in at the 0:23 mark of Round 2, giving Page another knockout on his record.
Up-to-the-minute Bellator 237 results include:
Check out our staff members’ picks for the Bellator 237 main card in Japan.
| Emelianenko vs. Jackson |
Chandler vs. Outlaw |
Anzai vs. Page |
Larkin vs. Nakamura |
Joanne vs. Watanabe |
Cruickshank vs. Yamauchi |
|
| MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2019: 221-130 (63%) |
 Emelianenko (54%) |
 Chandler (83%) |
 Page (88%) |
 Larkin (88%) |
 Watanabe (66%) |
 Yamauchi (57%) |
| Simon Head @simonhead 2019: 138-71 (66%) |
Emelianenko |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
 Joanne |
Yamauchi |
| Nolan King @mma_kings 2019: 131-73 (64%) |
Emelianenko |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
Joanne |
Yamauchi |
| Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2019: 225-126 (64%) |
 Jackson |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
Watanabe |
Yamauchi |
| Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2019: 224-127 (64%) |
Emelianenko |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
Watanabe |
Yamauchi |
| Brian Garcia @thegoze 2019: 223-128 (64%)  2017 Champion |
Emelianenko |
Jackson |
Page |
Larkin |
Watanabe |
Yamauchi |
| John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2019: 222-129 (63%) |
Emelianenko |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
Watanabe |
Yamauchi |
| Simon Samano @SJSamano 2019: 220-131 (63%) |
Emelianenko |
Chandler |
Page |
 Nakamura |
Joanne |
Yamauchi |
| Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2019: 218-133 (62%) 2014 Champion |
Jackson |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
Watanabe |
Yamauchi |
| Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2019: 122-76 (62%) |
Emelianenko |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
Joanne |
Yamauchi |
| George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2019: 215-136 (61%) |
Emelianenko |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
Watanabe |
Yamauchi |
| Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2019: 212-139 (60%) |
Emelianenko |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
Joanne |
Yamauchi |
| Dave Doyle @davedoylemma 2019: 147-112 (57%) |
Emelianenko |
Chandler |
Page |
Larkin |
Joanne |
Yamauchi |
| Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2019: 185-166 (53%) |
Jackson |
 Outlaw |
 Anzai |
Nakamura |
Watanabe |
 Cruickshank |
For the first time, Bellator this week has touched down in “The Land of the Rising Sun” with a pair of heavyweight legends at the top of the ticket.
Bellator 237, the promotion’s debut in Japan, takes place Saturday (Sunday locally) at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, near Tokyo. The main card airs on Paramount and streams on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.
(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)
[lawrence-related id=469415,469432]
In the main event, [autotag]Fedor Emelianenko[/autotag] (38-6 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) takes on fellow PRIDE veteran [autotag]Quinton Jackson[/autotag] (38-13 MMA, 5-2 BMMA) in a bout between two fan favorites among the Japanese fans. Emelianenko is a slight favorite at the sports books, but he’s got a heavy lead from our 13 MMA Junkie editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers at 9-4 in the picks.
In the co-main event, former lightweight champion [autotag]Michael Chandler[/autotag] (19-5 MMA, 16-5 BMMA) takes on short-notice opponent [autotag]Sidney Outlaw[/autotag] (14-3 MMA, 2-0 BMMA), who will step in for Benson Henderson. Chandler is a heavy favorite in the 160-pound contract weight bout, and only one of our pickers is going against him.
[autotag]Michael Page[/autotag] (16-1 MMA, 12-1 BMMA) is the biggest favorite on the card at as much as 10-1 n his 173-pound contract weight fight against [autotag]Shinsho Anzai[/autotag] (11-3 MMA, 0-0 BMMA). He’s got a heavy 12-1 lead in the picks.
Also on the main card, [autotag]Lorenz Larkin[/autotag] (21-7 MMA, 3-2 BMMA) meets [autotag]Keita Nakamura[/autotag] (35-10-2 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) at welterweight. Larkin is a 5-1 favorite and has a heavy 11-2 picks lead.
Our most competitive fight, picks-wise, is at women’s flyweight between [autotag]Ilara Joanne[/autotag] (9-4 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) and [autotag]Kana Watanabe[/autotag] (8-0-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), who is just a slight favorite. Watanabe has the slimmest possible edge in the picks at 7-6.
And to open the main card, [autotag]Daron Cruickshank[/autotag] (22-12 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) is a heavy underdog against [autotag]Goiti Yamauchi[/autotag] (24-4 MMA, 10-3 BMMA), who has a massive 12-1 lead in the picks.
In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Emelianenko (54%), Chandler (83 percent), Page (88 percent), Larkin (88 percent), Watanabe (66 percent) and Yamauchi (57 percent) are the choices.
Check out all the picks above.
We want your predictions for Bellator 237 in Japan.
We want your predictions for this week’s Bellator 237 event in Japan.
Our staff picks feature includes the consensus picks from MMA Junkie readers. Simply cast your vote for each bout below, and we’ll use the official tallies that are registered by Wednesday at noon ET (9 a.m. PT).
Those MMA Junkie reader consensus picks will be part of the Bellator 237 event staff predictions we release Friday ahead of the event. Bellator 237, the promotion’s debut in Japan, takes place Saturday (Sunday locally) at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, near Tokyo. The main card streams on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.
