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Check out these photos from Bellator 281 which took place at SSE Arena in London.
Check out these photos from Bellator 281 which took place at SEE Arena in London. (Photos courtesy of Bellator MMA)
Watch Paul Daley land a one-punch knockout on Wendell Giocomo and send London into a frenzy.
It would’ve been hard for [autotag]Paul Daley[/autotag] to pull off a more vintage performance than his Bellator 281 swan song Friday in London.
In the declared final bout of his mixed martial arts career, Daley (44-18-2 MMA, 9-6 BMMA) rallied to land a violent one-punch knockout of gritty Brazilian debutant [autotag]Wendell Giacomo[/autotag] (9-3 MMA, 0-1 BMMA). The walk-off stoppage came at 4:09 of Round 2 and was the 35th knockout win of Daley’s career.
The highlight didn’t come easy, something Daley became accustomed to over the span of his 20-year professional MMA career. For the majority of the first nine minutes of the fight, Daley was controlled, particularly in the grappling department. Giacomo displayed great strength and technique, until Daley saw an opportunity to explode upward.
Once there, Daley hurled classic haymakers at the overwhelmed Brazilian. A left hook to the body was followed by a lights-out overhand right. The punch that connected on the head was all he needed. It connected and Giocomo face-planted to the canvas.
๐ฃ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐@Semtex_170 does what he does best, one final time.#Bellator281 LIVE on @SHOsports ๐บ๐ธ and @bbcthree ๐ฌ๐ง pic.twitter.com/upg3DUNu4F
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) May 13, 2022
O2 Arena exploded into pandemonium as the “Daley, Daley, Daley” chants sounded loud and clear. Daley walked to the center of the cage and collapsed, overwhelmed with emotion. Daley was greeted in the cage by his mother and his partner, who joined in the celebration.
Daley, 39, declared Friday’s bout his final fight. A competitor for two decades, Daley competed for the UFC, Strikeforce, Bellator, Cage Warriors, Elite XC, BAMMA, and more. His scrap against Nick Diaz is widely regarded as one of the best one-round title fights in MMA history. His 202 bout against Sabah Homasi also received Fight of the Year candidacy from some. Other notable career wins include Jorge Masvidal, Martin Kampmann, Duane Ludwig, and Lorenz Larkin.
From 2009-2010, Daley competed three times under the UFC banner and went 2-1. However, he was banned from the promotion after he struck Josh Koscheck following the conclusion of their 2010 bout.
The up-to-the-minute Bellator 281 results include:
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All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past two weeks.
MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, itโs nearly impossible to organize.
But here at MMA Junkie, weโve got your back.
Each week, weโll 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 April 18-May 1.
Paul Daley will get a new opponent for his final walk to the cage.
[autotag]Paul Daley[/autotag] will get a new opponent for his final walk to the cage.
Former welterweight champion Andrey Koreshkov has been forced out of Bellator 281 in London, and [autotag]Wendell Giacomo[/autotag] will step in on short notice to face Daley on May 13 at OVO Arena Wembley, promotion officials announced Tuesday.
Giacomo (9-2 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), a Pitbull Brothers fighter, has won eight of his past nine fights. He was last seen in action as an alternate for the LFA welterweight grand prix, where the Brazilian defeated Uyran Carlos by unanimous decision in July but couldn’t continue in the tournament after he wasn’t cleared to compete.
Meanwhile, Daley (43-18-2 MMA, 9-5 BMMA)ย will have his projected retirement fight on home soil. The 39-year-old veteran is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Jason Jackson at Bellator 260 in what was his third straight catchweight bout at 175 pounds. Prior to that, the hard-hitting Brit scored wins over Erick Silva, Saad Awad, and Sabah Homasi.
With the change, the Bellator 281 lineup includes:
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When three fighters were deemed unable to progress to the second round, an alternate bout loser advanced to the tournament final.
A new LFA welterweight champion was crowned as the promotion held a four-man, one-night tournament Friday โ but the road to get there was winding, long, and unusual.
In the end, [autotag]Carlos Leal[/autotag] (14-3) took home the title at LFA 112 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil when he defeated [autotag]Junior Marques[/autotag] (11-6) via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27). While Leal’s road to the top was typical, the opposing side of the bracket was the furthest thing from normal.
The tournament began with two quarterfinal fights of three three-minute rounds. The first matchup was a back and forth brawl, in which [autotag]Gabriel Bonfim[/autotag] (11-0) finished [autotag]Brenner Alberth[/autotag] (8-1) via punches at 0:38 of Round 3. On the other side of the bracket, Leal only needed 69 seconds to finish [autotag]Diego Dias[/autotag] (13-4) with a violent knockout punch.
That's a bad man!!!!
Carlos Leal moves on to the finals!!!#LFA112 pic.twitter.com/ve4x8YacMg
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) July 19, 2021
Bonfim vs. Real was lined up for the tournament final โ until it wasn’t. Due to concussion like symptoms, Bonfim was removed from the matchup and the promotion turned to two alternates, [autotag]Quemuel Ottoni[/autotag] and [autotag]Wendell Giacomo[/autotag], who won on the non-broadcasted prelims.
However, neither Ottoni and Giacomo received medical clearance. In an unusual turn of events, Marques, who lost to Ottani, was named the No. 3 alternate and was placed into the final against Leal.
While he lasted all three rounds, Marques ultimately lost his second fight of the night when he was swept on all three judges’ scorecards by Leal.
Say hello to your new LFA welterweight champion!
Carlos Leal closes out #LFA112 in dominant fashion. Thank you, Brazil!
Good night from Rio! pic.twitter.com/YikzeqB8BT
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) July 19, 2021
In the co-main event, [autotag]Otto Rodrigues[/autotag] snapped [autotag]Carlos Augusto da Silva[/autotag]’s eye-popping 17-fight winning streak via a unanimous decision that earned six 10-8 rounds across the three judges’ scorecards. Prior to the bout, Rodrigues had not competed since April 2017.
The most violent finish, perhaps occurred when [autotag]Kayan Krushewsky[/autotag] brutally knocked out [autotag]Junior Luiz[/autotag] with a pair of punishing punches. The stoppage came 62 seconds into the fight.
VIOLENT END!#LFA112 pic.twitter.com/wdQizWEzu3
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) July 19, 2021
Also on the main card, hyped flyweight standout [autotag]Carlos Mota[/autotag] (6-0) made his long-awaited return to the cage when he won a fairly one-sided unanimous decision over [autotag]Jefferson Oliveira[/autotag] (5-1).
Check out the full LFA 112 results below:
MAIN CARD (UFC Fight Pass)
DARK PRELIMS (Not broadcasted)
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