The event at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL was already underway with several preliminary card bouts already in the books when Bellator officials broke the news.

Sources tell Cageside Press that Fortune took ill ahead of the fight, and was forced to withdraw. With Bellator MMA’s schedule a question mark moving forward — they have no events scheduled past Bellator 301 — it’s unclear when or if the match-up might take place.

Brazil’s Golm, a UFC veteran, arrived in Bellator in 2021 and has posted a 2-1 record to date. He was looking to shake off a loss to Daniel James in the fight with Fortune.

Tyrell Fortune (13-3, 1NC) is a Bellator product who has been with the company for his entire professional career. He last competed in April, securing a win over Sergey Bilostenniy.

Fortune is ranked #6, and Golm #7 in the promotion’s heavyweight rankings currently.

Bellator 301 is set to be headlined by a welterweight title fight featuring undefeated, 27-0 champ Yaroslav Amosov of Ukraine putting his title on the line against Jason “The Ass-Kicking Machine” Jackson. Sergio Pettis and Patchy Mix throw down in a bantamweight title unification bout in the co-main event.

The post Tyrell Fortune vs. Marcelo Golm Drops Off Bellator 301 With Card Underway appeared first on Cageside Press.

Colgan’s mini-me so to speak was seen on video recently copying his dad’s moves. Of course he’s still too young to know what fighting entails, and Colgan would rather he not grow up to be a fighter.

“I hope not! But it seems like that’s what his calling is,” Colgan told Cageside Press in a recent interview. “I love being his role model. I love being the guy that he idolizes. It’s just a cool job to have, to be the role model of your kid. But man, I hope he doesn’t want to fight, because it’s a roller coaster.”

Colgan has emerged as a standout talent in Bellator’s lightweight division, and returns to the cage at Bellator 301 on Friday night in Chicago, IL. At 8-0, the Colorado native has had a stellar start to his fighting career — and will be getting a step up in competition against Peter Buist, a ONE Championship veteran looking for his first win under the Bellator banner.

Previously, Archie Colgan suggested he was poised for big things moving forward, from 2023 to 2025. That hasn’t changed.

“I feel like I’m knocking on the door right now, man. I feel skill-wise, I’m there. I’m right there to be that guy. But I think I’m just missing a little bit of time,” Colgan explained. “Especially with— I don’t know what’s going on with Bellator, selling, not selling. I don’t know what’s going to happen. I hope they can stick around for another 12 to 18 months, and we can really sell 20-0 Usman Nurmagomedov versus 13-0 Archie Colgan. And that will really hit, I really believe it.”

“I might miss it by just by a little bit of time,” added Colgan, “but no matter what, whatever happens there, I think my 23 to 25 will still be super successful and much better than my 21 to 23 as well.”

Watch our full interview with Bellator 301’s Archie Colgan above.

The post Bellator 301: Archie Colgan Feels Like He’s “Knocking on the Door” Right Now appeared first on Cageside Press.

It feels like Hamel (11-5) has really arrived during his current streak, especially with a head kick KO of former LFA champ Nick Browne this past March. Asked about the feeling that came with the highlight reel finish, Hamel told Cageside Press in a recent interview that it was about more than just winning.

“It was just, my career hadn’t gone exactly how I had planned. And so many people could probably say the same thing about theirs,” said Hamel. “I’d gotten hurt, had to fight through a couple injuries.” Among them, Hamel tore his bicep tendon, and essentially fought Killys Mota, Usman Nurmagomedov, and Bryce Logan without one.

“And so I had all those injuries, but I didn’t want to take time off until I got a couple wins under me. I needed some money, I needed some job security so I fought through those injuries. Then I was out for I think nine months when my [Max] Rohskopf fight got scheduled, and then that fell out an hour before I was getting in the van [to head to the arena]. So it was 15 months of not fighting and that’s not like me. That’s the longest I’ve gone in my life, in my athletic career without having competition.”

Hamel admitted that the long layoff took its toll. “That 15 months off was rough mentally for me. And so to get in there, get a head kick win going into the last fight of my contract, being on a three-fight win streak, I knew I was going to get an increase in pay, I knew I was going to get a new contract. It wasn’t even the fact that I won the fight, it was, I already knew the positive repercussions coming from it.”

When Mike Hamel was approached with the name Tim Wilde, he was definitely excited off the bat. He’s a big fan of the tough match-up — and plans to be the first to tire Wilde out.

“Yeah. Because Tim’s tough. And I like that,” exclaimed Hamel. “Tim’s gonna be there. He’s not going to gas out, he’s not going to over-shoot himself. He’s a pretty smart fighter. He does some things a little reckless, which I’m obviously going to capitalize on. But those English don’t know how to wrestle. I’m going to plant him on his ass over and over again. that’s what I’ve done, I’ve done it since I was four years old. I know how to head kick people, but I’m going to get him biting and my hands are going to start landing more, and he’s going to get tired. I’m going to be the first person to get Tim Wilde tired.”

Watch our full interview with Belaltor 301’s Mike Hamel above.

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It’s another big card for Brown, who has been on several of late, fighting in front of fans at events like UFC on ABC 5 and UFC 284.

“Maybe they see something. They know I’m never in a boring fight,” Brown told Cageside Press in a recent exclusive interview, asked about landing another high-profile gig. “I’m never in a boring fight, I always come to bring it, always come to try to finish the fight. So of course they’ve got to put me on those big cards.”

For years, Randy Brown struggled with cardio issue even when he was putting the effort in. As it turned out, symptoms he was experiencing while training suggested he wasn’t getting adequate oxygen flow — resulting in surgery to fix his nose. The result has been night and day.

“Bro, completely. I honestly did not know.” Brown pretty much downplayed the effect surgery might have when he heard his teammates talking about it, then learned first hand what a difference it really made. “When I did it, I was like ‘oh my God!’ This is really like a massive difference. I wish I’d did it years ago.”

Randy Brown will face Muslim Salikhov at UFC 296 next month, and Brown feels those who follow the sport closely will recognize the danger that match-up brings with it.

“For the hardcores and people who have been around, you know what it is. This is one of those guys, he was ranked at one point. 19-3, been around for a while, very dangerous striker, big finisher, he’s been knocking people out. Especially with that spinning hook kick. And I just think stylistically, with my style, that tough-and-go-y kind of style, it just makes for a banger.”

A banger would be right up Randy Brown’s alley. He got into the sport watching classic B.J. Penn and Joe Stevenson fights, among others.

“I had this Renzo Gracie Academy in NYC, it was right down the street from where I was going to school. I was going to a little technical school there,” Brown called. “In between classes, I would just jump over there, seeing what it was about. Long story short, I started doing jiu-jitsu, getting in jiu-jitsu and after that, I just fell in love with fighting. Fell in love with mixed martial arts.”

Brown started seeing the likes of B.J. Penn and Joe Stevenson in action, and began to wonder how he would fare in fights with kicks and knees and jiu-jitsu and the like. He then met his Sensei, and it wasn’t long before his career got rolling. “And here I am today.”

Watch our full interview with UFC 296 welterweight Randy Brown above.

The post Randy Brown Believes UFC 296 Match-Up with Salikhov Could Be a Banger appeared first on Cageside Press.

The former two-time PFL women’s lightweight champion had been scheduled for a featherweight fight opposite Julia Budd on November 25 in Washington, D.C. However, in a press release issued Wednesday, league officials announced that Harrison (15-1) would instead face UFC veteran Aspen Ladd (11-4).

According to league officials, “the change was made after Budd refused to fulfill her contractual obligation,” though exactly what obligation Budd failed to meet wasn’t specified.

Budd, a former Bellator MMA featherweight champ, gave a her response to the change. “I got pulled from the fight. No injury. Healthy and ready to fight,” she told Cageside Press’ Dylan Rush in a brief statement.

Kayla Harrison vs. Aspen Ladd will be held at a 150lb catchweight.

Harrison has not fought since her 2022 shock upset loss at the hands of Larissa Pacheco, the odds-on favorite to win it all in this year’s women’s featherweight division. The two-time PFL champ and two-time Olympic gold medalist had previously been undefeated in MMA.

Ladd is 2-1 under the PFL banner with wins over Budd and most recently, Karolina Sobek. That arm-bar finish wasn’t enough for Ladd to make the PFL 2023 post-season, however, as she went 1-1 in 2023 and came up just short in points.

The 2023 PFL Championship takes place on November 25, 2023 at The Anthem in Washington, D.C. with all six weight classes closing out their season. The following match-ups have been announced for the card:

• Olivier Aubin-Mercier vs. Clay Collard — lightweight title fight
• Denis Goltsov vs. Renan Ferreira — heavyweight title fight
• Larissa Pacheco vs. Marina Mokhnatkina — women’s featherweight title fight
• Kayla Harrison vs. Aspen Ladd
• Sadibou Sy vs. Magomed Magomedkerimov — welterweight title fight
• Gabriel Braga vs. Jesus Pinedo — featherweight title fight
• Joshua Silveira vs. #3 Impa Kasanganay — light heavyweight title fight
• Ray Cooper III vs. Derek Brunson
• Biaggio Ali Walsh vs. Joel Lopez — amateur bout
• Bubba Jenkins vs. Chris Wade
• Khai Wu vs. Phil Caracappa
• Jesse Stirn vs. Josh Blyden

The post Aspen Ladd in Against Kayla Harrison at PFL Championship, Julia Budd Responds appeared first on Cageside Press.

He’ll be doing so against rival Danny Sabatello, a rematch of their December 2022 Bantamweight Grand Prix semifinal, which Stots (19-2) won via split decision.

The outcome of that fight had some minor controversy around it, but that’s not necessarily why Stots jumped at the rematch. “When you get a chance to punch Danny in the face, you don’t pass it up!” he told Cageside Press in a recent exclusive interview. “And I feel like the chance don’t come around very often. They brought it to my table, and I’m like man, after I beat him again, he’s probably not going to have very many opportunities anywhere. So this might literally be the last time I get to punch him in the face, and I can’t pass that opportunity up.”

Stots is nothing if not motivated for the fight. Though he questions if the motormouth that is Sabatello will have quite as much to say this time around.

“I think it’s going to be fun. This time he probably ain’t got a lot more to say. He’s probably going to stay away. Because I feel like I gave him a tongue lashing last time and then I gave him a f*cking real life lashing and he kind of ran away from the situation. So I feel like he’s going to be— but I don’t know, you never know with Danny. He says he’s got a lot to say, so I’m excited to see [it].”

Trash talk and rivalry aside, there’s the fight itself to consider. Sabatello found some early success in the pair’s first meeting, which as part of the grand prix went five rounds. Raufeon Stots has a different feeling heading into the rematch.

“I got a bead on him now. I feel like I was able to get a bead on him later in that first fight. He surprised me with one takedown in the beginning, but then once that [happened] I stuffed probably like 14 of his shots. 14 of the 19 times he shot,” Stots stated. “Now I got a bead on him, so I’m going to just continue on the success I had later in the fight, the last fight.”

“This fight I know it’s a three-round fight so I don’t have as much time to let the fight develop, so I’ve got to be urgent and I have to not give him an inch. And he has more time to be a b*tch. So he’s probably going to hang on to me and work the clock and things like that. So I’ve just got to come at him, come at him and finish him this time. I’m really focused on getting him out of there this time.”

Watch our full interview with Bellator 301’s Raufeon Stots above. The event takes place at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL on November 17, 2023.

The post Bellator 301: Raufeon Stots Not About to Pass Up Chance to Punch Danny Sabatello in the Face appeared first on Cageside Press.

Gordon (19-6, 1NC) has the sort of backstory that would make for a fantastic bio-pic or late career memoir. He’s overcome addiction to find himself in the largest mixed martial arts promotion on the planet, where he has held is own for six years and counting.

As a New Yorker himself, competing at UFC 295 in MSG later this month is more than just big. “Dude, it’s obviously a monumental thing,” Gordon told Cageside Press recently. “A big part of my career, and I think it’s all part of my destiny.”

Fighting runs in the family for Jared Gordon. His grandfather, Sal Ferello, was a boxer who himself fought under the bright lights of the Garden, for starters. “My grandfather fought there I think three or four times. He was pretty good, he was 38-3 as a pro. He’s from Harlem. I was born in Manhattan, raised in Astoria, I used to train at Renzo [Gracie]’s which is two blocks from the Garden, so I used to walk by it every day looking at it. I used to shoot dope at Penn Station which is underneath the Garden, so for me to be in the Garden fighting and getting the W is huge.”

Getting to this point hasn’t been easy, of course. Gordon is coming off of a couple of rough nights at the office: a No Contest against Bobby Green due to a clash of heads, and a loss to Paddy Pimblett that nearly everyone saw Gordon winning.

“I think it’s pretty fair to say I beat Paddy, and then I was winning that fight with Bobby. Pretty, like, I think it was obvious to most people that I was winning that fight. And the judges on the cards. I was up on strikes and everything, then I got headbutted and it was just really unfortunate. I think it should have been a DQ, but whatever.”

Six weeks after the Green setback, Gordon was booked against Jim Miller, only to be pulled from the bout. He’d been open about experiencing concussion-like symptoms at the time. “Whatever. That’s the past, bro, But yeah it was tough for me to get over it. I’m happy, things always seem to have a way of working out for me for the better. And here we are, got a big fight coming up, MSG, so I’m just focused on this right now.”

Mark O. Madsen is the opponent come November 11 at UFC 295. A silver medal winner in Greco-Roman wrestling at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, Madsen is no easy out— but Gordon is liking the match-up.

“I think all around, well I know I’m a better fighter than him. I’ve got a lot more experience than him fight-wise,” explained Gordon. “He’s obviously a competitor, he was an Olympic medalist so he knows what it’s like to get up on a big stage and have to compete. But I believe I’m the better striker, I believe on the ground I’m better. He’s a Greco wrestler so he’s good in the clinch. I’m not going to underestimate by any means though, but I just think all-around I’m better than him.”

“I think I’m in better shape than him, I think I keep the pace higher, and I just think that I’m hungrier bro. He’s been at it for a long time,” Gordon added. “Obviously he hasn’t been fighting for a long time, but he’s a little older than me. I feel like I’ve been chomping at the bit for this past year or so, just trying to get to that next level, and this is my time. I’m really hungry, I’ve prepared so well for this, I’m the best fighter I’ve ever been and I just think that stylistically, it’s a great fight for me.”

Watch our full interview with UFC 295 lightweight Jared Gordon above.

The post UFC 295: Jared Gordon Sees Fight at MSG As Part of Destiny appeared first on Cageside Press.

This isn’t the first time “The Spaniard” has been matched up with Asakura, as the two were originally scheduled to square off for championship gold this past July.

The former Rizin champion would withdraw from the bout due to injury, however, leading Archuleta to face Hiromasa Ougikubo instead. Archuleta, former Bellator champion, would end up bringing the Rizin belt back to US soil.

Archuleta spoke to Cageside Press earlier this week, advocating for his bout with Asakura to be rebooked.

“He pulled out of our fight, he pulled out of his fight in October – I still want that fight. I just need him to show up this time,” Archuleta said.

Archuleta spoke it into existence, as the bout was announced in a Rizin press conference last night – just two days after his interview with Cageside Press.

It will be interesting to see whether Archuleta will be able to assert his dominance this Winter as he looks to extend his current win streak to five.

Other bouts on the card include:
Hiromasa Ougikubo vs John Dodson
Kyoji Horiguchi vs Makoto Shinryu
Kleber Koike vs Yutaka Saito

RIZIN FF 45 takes place at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan on Dec. 31.

Watch the entire interview with Juan Archuelta above.

The post Juan Archuleta Asks For And Gets Kai Asakura Rebooking appeared first on Cageside Press.

That history? Becoming just the second American champ in a major Japanese promotion. And the first in RIZIN Fighting Federation.

“It was dope, man. Knowing going into there that it hadn’t been done before for an American fighter, it put that stamp of approval on it. Making history that will never be erased,” Archuleta (29-4), also a former Bellator champ, told Cageside Press recently.

“Then finding out there was only two people [from the U.S.] that won Japanese titles, me and Dan Henderson. Putting my name on that platform with him is a dream come true.”

Hendo of course achieved that feat back in PRIDE, the precursor to RIZIN.

While the win came back in July, “The Spaniard” has been busy doing a little globe-trotting of late. In Japan of course, then on the west coast U.S. in San Diego for Bellator 300, then off to Abu Dhabi this past week for UFC 294, supporting a teammate.

The travel is a part of the job that Juan Archuleta loves. “Oh a hundred percent. I do this to travel, go watch my friends beat up people in other countries. Enjoy the cultures, enjoy the food. It’s a dream come true, that’s what my ancestors did. Carrying on that legacy is awesome.”

The future for Archuleta remains a bit of a question mark. He was originally paired up with RIZIN star Kai Asakura, only for Asakura to pull out of their title fight — and one more bout since.

“Hopefully he mans up and take the fight,” said Archuleta, who appears to remain interested at least. If not, he’ll take whoever is next. “It’s like, I trained a whole fight camp to prepare for this guy, and then he pulls out, pulls out of his other fight he was supposed to have in October. I’m not going to do a whole training camp waiting for this guy. I’m going to fight whoever’s in front, the number one contender like I’ve been doing my whole career.”

“Whoever they put in there is about to get f*cked up, that’s for sure.”

Archuleta, who has held gold in every promotion he’s ever fought in, has one more title in mind moving forward: the PFL championship. While they currently don’t have a bantamweight title, Archuleta clearly sees an opportunity should the promotion scoop up Bellator MMA as rumored.

“The last promotion I have to win a title for is the PFL. I fought there during the time they were the World Series of Fighting. I only got to fight once for them, now finding out that they’re going to buy Bellator, they’re making a strong push for it, it kind of makes me happy and very excited,” noted Archuleta. “Because I win that belt, in every promotion I’ve fought for, I have a title. So I’m looking forward to that. That’s going to cement my legacy and who I am, and put me in the history books— that makes me stand out from other fighters.”

Watch our full interview with RIZIN bantamweight champion Juan Archuleta above!

The post RIZIN Champ Juan Archuleta Eyeing One More Title — In the PFL appeared first on Cageside Press.

Lightweight McKinney (15-6) got the job done in a big way at the event, where he knocked out Brendan Martin, a short-notice newcomer, with a knee and punches. Though if McKinney had his way, those punches wouldn’t have been necessary.

“I wish they would have called it right when he dropped. I didn’t even want to hit him again, I was like ‘it’s over,'” McKinney recalled. “The ref made me have to catch a body, made me commit a 187.”

The aftermath may have bore a slight resemblance to a crime scene, with Martin down and out. McKinney would no doubt like to keep the ball rolling now. With the Martin KO, he’s got two straight wins under his belt after all.

“I’m looking at all the cards, it’s looking like they’re pretty booked so I’m assuming I fight in January or February,” he noted. “T-Wrecks” has big plans for 2024, however. “Next year’s the start of a five-fight win streak. Not counting this two-fight win streak, but I’m saying I’m about to go on another five-fight win streak. I think I’m in the right spot, I think I’m with the right people, and as you’re gonna see I’m not just a wild animal. I know when I’ve hurt someone, I know when they’re finished, my striking’s really coming to another level.”

If it works out, McKinney would even be down for a trip to Canada, with UFC 297 set for Toronto in January. “I wouldn’t mind fighting Chris Duncan there.”

McKinney is among the younger generation of UFC fighters, who have grown up with social media and tend to use it to their advantage.

“It’s huge, especially if you have a little hiccup. It’s not about just fighting anymore, it’s about being sellable,” McKinney said of the importance of having an accessible online profile. “And right now my interactions this month is like 3.5 million and I’ve barely been in the UFC. So I’m valuable. The goal is to make yourself valuable. The more media presence you have, for the rookies coming up, the better. Make yourself look irreplaceable, and that’s what I’ve been doing.”

While Terrance McKinney has big plans for 2024, he has even bigger plans for his future overall. We asked if he believes he’ll be champion someday. “Without a shadow of a doubt,” he replied.

Watch our full interview with UFC Vegas 81 winner Terrance McKinney above.

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