Tag Archives: Rafael Lovato

THE LONG-AWAITED MMA DEBUT OF DILLON ‘EL JEFE’ DANIS SET FOR BELLATOR 198 ON APRIL 28

 BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU WORLD CHAMP MEETS KYLE WALKER IN MAIN CARD BOUT AT ALLSTATE ARENA

 

 

 

LOS ANGELES – Renowned Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Dillon Danis (0-0) will make his highly anticipated mixed martial arts debut against Kyle Walker (2-4) at Bellator’s return to Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill. on Saturday, April 28for Bellator 198: Fedor vs. Mir.

 

 

 

 

 

Bellator 198, headlined by a first-round Heavyweight World Grand Prix bout between Fedor Emelianenko (36-5, 1 NC) and Frank Mir (18-11), will be broadcast live and free on Paramount Network at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT, while preliminary action will stream on Bellator.com and globally on the Bellator Mobile App. Tickets for the event are on sale now and are available at the Allstate Arena box office and Ticketmaster.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Under the tutelage of Marcelo Garcia at Alliance in New York, Danis began competing at an elite level on the jiu-jitsu circuit not long after emerging on the scene. Danis would win the IBJJF World Championship in Gi and No-Gi in 2014 as a brown belt, with those victories earning him his black belt in 2015. The very next year, Danis would return to the IBJJF tournament and take home the Pan American No-Gi Championship. Garnering the attention of fans along the way, Conor McGregor also took notice, enlisting the services of the New Jersey native to help him train for his 2016 rematch with Nate Diaz. Always one to challenge himself, Danis signed an exclusive multi-fight contract with Bellator in 2017 and has already settled in for training camp at the famed SBG Ireland.

 

 

 

 

 

Fighting out of Herrin, Ill., Kyle Walker will enter the Bellator cage for the first time at Bellator 198, where he will likely play the role of underdog to the BJJ kingpin. Walker made his pro debut in 2013, racking up wins in two of his first three matchups within the calendar year. After taking some time away from the sport, Walker stepped back inside the cage competing for some of the best regional promotions, including a return to Shamrock FC.

 

 

 

 

 

 Complete Bellator 198 Main Card:

Heavyweight Grand Prix First Round: Fedor Emelianenko (36-5, 1 NC) vs. Frank Mir (18-11)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Featherweight Co-Main Event: Emmanuel Sanchez (16-3) vs. Sam Sicilia (16-8)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Middleweight Main Card Bout: John Salter (15-3) vs. Rafael Lovato Jr. (7-0)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Welterweight Main Card Bout: Neiman Gracie (7-0) vs. Javier Torres (10-3)

 

 

 

 

 

 

175-Pound Catchweight Main Card Bout: Dillon Danis (Pro Debut) vs. Kyle Walker (2-4)

 

 

 

 

 

Preliminary Card:

 

 

 

 

 

Welterweight Preliminary Bout: R’Mandel Cameron (4-3) vs. P.J. Cajigas (6-6)

 

 

 

 

 

Welterweight Preliminary Bout: Dan Stittgen (12-5) vs. Mark Stoddard (15-9)

 

 

 

 

 

150-Pound Catchweight Feature Bout: Eric Wisely (27-9-1) vs. Morgan Sickinger (20-10)

 

 

 

 

 

Middleweight Preliminary Bout: Matt Paul (2-2) vs. Brian Booth (4-3)

 

 

 

 

 

Flyweight Preliminary Bout: Joey Diehl (11-9) vs. Nate Williams (27-17)

 

 

 

 

 

Lightweight Preliminary Bout: Tom Shoaff (8-3) vs. Mike Budnik (13-4)

 

 

 

 

*Card subject to change

 

 

 

 

 

Please visit Bellator.com for additional information.

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AND STILL!   JULIA BUDD RETAINS WOMEN’S FEATHERWEIGHT WORLD TITLE WITH A SPLIT DECISION VICTORY AT BELLATOR 189

 

 

 

Complete Bellator 189: Budd vs. Blencowe 2 Main Card Results:

Julia Budd (11-2) defeated Arlene Blencowe (10-7) via split decision (46-49, 48-47, 49-46)

Photos: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/sch58s8ehmtwnjr/AAAx69mIvHYsMWb1iukNObqea?dl=0

 

Rafael Lovato Jr. (7-0) defeated Chris Honeycutt (10-2, 1 NC) via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)

Photos: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/tcr1yg7q1e190fc/AAA7RYTKz1PLenoBmmjKaluTa?dl=0

 

Chidi Njokuani (18-5, 1 NC) defeated Hisaki Kato (8-3) via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Photos: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/xbk2nyzieavcgcm/AADm9fwL3c9TniJiK-gb-u4oa?dl=0

 

David Rickels (19-4, 2 NC) defeated Adam Piccolotti (9-2) via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Photos: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/jz0hx1wjmz82s11/AAB-PokM2z8vn211Lmv9WojZa?dl=0

 

Preliminary Card Results:

Sam Sicilia (16-8) defeated Marcos Galvao (18-9-1) via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Gaston Bolanos (2-1) defeated Rick Gutierrez (0-2) via knockout at 1:13 of round one

Mandel Nallo (6-0) defeated Alec Williams (6-2) via TKO at 0:18 of round one

Juliana Velasquez (6-0) defeated Na Liang (6-2) via submission (arm bar) at 0:32 of round two

Cris Williams (3-0) defeated Thomas Lopez (1-3) via submission (triangle) at 1:39 of round one

Stephanie Geltmacher (2-0) defeated Ky Bennett (0-1) via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-27)

Brian Grinnell (9-7) defeated Kemmyelle Haley (7-6) via submission at 0:39 of round one

Brandon Phillips (7-3) defeated Jordan Howard (10-4) via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)

Andrew Parker (7-2) defeated Frank Patterson (4-5) via submission (triangle) at 3:03 of round one

 

BELLATOR 189 ON FRIDAY, DEC. 1 TO FEATURE WOMEN’S FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMP JULIA BUDD MAKING FIRST TITLE DEFENSE IN REMATCH AGAINST ARLENE BLENCOWE

 

CHRIS HONEYCUTT BATTLES UNDEFEATED JIU-JITSU ACE RAFAEL LOVATO JR. IN MIDDLEWEIGHT CO-MAIN EVENT

 

LOS ANGELES – The Bellator women’s featherweight championship will be up for grabs on Friday, Dec. 1  when Julia Budd (10-2) defends her title in a rematch against Arlene Blencowe (10-6) at Bellator 189 inside WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, Okla., the same venue where Budd captured the inaugural belt earlier this year.

 

In addition, the co-main event of Bellator 189: Budd vs. Blencowe 2 will feature a middleweight contest pitting rising contender Chris Honeycutt (10-1) against undefeated Rafael Lovato Jr. (6-0). Additional main card and preliminary bouts will be announced in the coming weeks.

 

The event will be broadcast live and free on SPIKE at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT, while preliminary action will stream on Bellator.com and the Bellator Mobile App. Tickets for Bellator 189: Budd vs. Blencowe 2 are on sale now and can be purchased at the WinStar World Casino and Resort box office, as well as Ticketmaster and Bellator.com.

 

A STRIKEFORCE veteran, Budd enters the Bellator cage on Dec. 1 as the first and only women’s featherweight champion in promotional history. Currently in the midst of an eight-fight, six-year winning streak, the British Columbia native owns victories over the course of her career against Marloes Coenen, Germaine de Randamie, as well as Gina Carano in kickboxing. Budd has also previously competed at bantamweight, going toe-to-toe with both Amanda Nunes and Ronda Rousey during her tenure in STRIKEFORCE. Continuing the trend of taking on top-flight competition, Budd meets Blencowe at Bellator 189, in her second main event with Bellator.

 

The fighting pride of New South Wales, Australia, Arlene Blencowe enters her fight with Budd riding a three-fight winning streak, most recently edging out a split decision against Sinead Kavanagh in August. A former world champion boxer under the World Boxing Federation and Women’s International Boxing Association, “Angerfist” nearly defeated Budd during their previous meeting at Bellator 162. A proud mother of two, the 34-year-old now has a chance to add more gold to her mantle, this time coming in the form of a Bellator MMA championship.

 

Since making the jump from welterweight to middleweight, the Fresno, Calif.-based Chris Honeycutt feels as though he is right at home in his newfound division. Riding a wave of momentum, which most recently culminated in a vicious stoppage against Kevin Casey, “The Cutt” must now get through BJJ ace Rafael Lovato Jr. The undefeated Lovato Jr. has experienced his own wave of success since signing with Bellator, including a submission victory over Mike “Biggie” Rhodes. These two middleweights will meet in the co-main event of Bellator 189: Budd vs. Blencowe 2 in an exciting battle between a two-time NCAA Division I Wrestling All-American at Edinboro University taking on a World Jiu-Jitsu and World No-Gi Jiu-Jitsu champion.

 

Updated Bellator 189: Budd vs. Blencowe 2 Fight Card:

Women’s Featherweight World Title Main Event: Julia Budd (10-2) vs. Arlene Blencowe (10-6)

Middleweight Co-Main Event: Chris Honeycutt (10-1) vs. Rafael Lovato Jr. (6-0)