“It just makes all the non-believers into believers. And I have a belt to show my country that yes, Jason Jackson can be champ. Anywhere he goes. And it’s just a matter of time before he becomes the best welterweight on the planet,” Jackson told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

Jackson finished Yaroslav Amosov at Bellator 301 to claim the title in the main event. Betting lines put the Amosov as a heavy favorite leaving Jackson to play spoiler, and in his post-fight scrum he let them know about it.

“It felt good. On MMA Junkie and ESPN, they got him at what, #1 and #5? So where’s that put me at, #6? So that put me at #5 if I just jumped him. Or #4 or #1. Alright, #1. I like that, I’ll take that,” Jackson said.

Jackson may be the new champion, but he still has to go to work on Monday. He’s one of many professional fighters who hold a day job in addition to their dream job.

“I feel good that I could give all upcoming fighters who just think is just, you know, get up and go to the gym and come home and play game, and find excuse not to be in (the) gym. I get up and I work and I try to find every little way possible to make money,” he said talking about not making excuses and taking fights regardless of pay.

“I just want to make everybody a believer in that. Hard work always pays off.”

Just minutes removed from his title victory Jackson still wasn’t sure it was even real.

“Not yet, it hasn’t set in. Like I said, every man has a dream, and everyone has a nightmare,” Jackson said.

And I was his nightmare.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Jason Jackson above.

The post Jason Jackson Was Amosov’s “Nightmare” appeared first on Cageside Press.

Fortune and his team received word recently that his bout against Daniel James at Bellator 288 in Nov. 2022 had been overturned and changed to a ‘no-contest’. The reason for the change was a reported failed PED test by James the day before the bout took place.

“We immediately contested the fight because of the illegal blows. If you watch the replay Bellator continues to post you can see I’m struck to the back of my head six times before he transfers it to elbows that were legal,” Fortune told Cageside Press.

“But you had hit me six times to the back of my head and Daniel James is a big man.”

When Fortune and his manager Matt Aptaker contested the fight they were told that Fortune had lost that contest.

Fortune said “They then get back to me to tell me that have a congruent case that will overturn the contest but they can’t state why.”

Tyrell Fortune and his team waited over 11 months for an answer regarding his fight with Daniel James and wanted to get answers.

After going back and forth with the Commission for months and waiting for some clarification they received news a few days before Fortune’s scheduled bout with Marcelo Golm at Bellator 301 that his fight with Daniel James would be ruled a no contest.

Cageside Press was able to verify the positive PED test through the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. An unspecified anabolic substance was to blame; James was fined $5,000 for the incident, and suspended three months. He received an additional suspension for unpaid child support.

Combatreg.com subsequently changed the Tyrell Fortune vs. Daniel James fight to a no contest as a result of the positive test and the fight will not reflect either fighters’ record. Fortune added he was notified by the commission by letter that the result was overturned.

“Daniel James was a big man on steroids. It took almost a year for them to tell me he popped positive for steroids and my fight was now officially ruled a no contest,” Fortune told Cageside Press.

According to Tyrell Fortune, Bellator MMA had no idea that Daniel James tested positive for a banned substance, because Illinois does not fall under the Association of Boxing Commissions (ABC).

“I walked from the commission office to Bellator to tell them Daniel James got popped for steroids and my fight was ruled a no contest and they said they had no idea,” said Fortune.

Daniel James was previously pulled from his scheduled fight against Davion Franklin in May 2022 due to a positive test, making this his second drug test failure in less than two years.

“I contacted Bellator before our fight to ask them what are we doing to make sure I’m safe fighting him and they said he’s going to have to test negative before you guys fight and he passed that test so between that test and the time we fought he started taking steroids again,” he said.

Fortune and his team feel very strongly about fighting clean and not taking steroids, because as Fortune put it, “peoples lives are at stake and my career is on the line.”

The post Tyrell Fortune Says Bellator 288 Fight with Daniel James Ruled No Contest Due to Failed Drug Test appeared first on Cageside Press.

Donn Davis’ highly anticipated appearance on Ariel Helwani’s show came on the heels of the Professional Fighters League purchase of rival Bellator MMA being officially announced. Starting in 2024, the PFL will run both brands, Bellator in eight standalone events mainly focusing on international markets.

Davis revealed that they reached out to Viacom/Paramount, under which Bellator fell, in January of 2023, with no idea that the company would beginning divesting assets in the Spring. It was a slow process, in terms of talks. “Mergers take time,” as Davis pointed out.

Viacom becomes a minority owner in the company. Davis, who built his reputation as an entrepreneur and businessman with America Online, the Chicago Cubs, and his own venture capital firm, revealed the deal was done entirely in stock. “I think what they saw with PFL was an opportunity become part of a big company moving forward. So this was a stock deal, not a cash deal.”

With Paramount a “small” owner and no cash changing hands, it was a “great deal for us,” said Davis, adding he was “very happy” with how things played out.

Asked how close he thought the PFL was to the UFC, Donn Davis took note of UFC President and CEO Dana White being more vocal about the rival promotion recently. The company made waves in 2023 by signing the likes of Francis Ngannou, Jake Paul, Cedric Doumbe, and others.

“Everybody knows Dana well enough that he only dismisses things that worry him, or else he just doesn’t comment. He didn’t comment on the PFL for four years, because he wasn’t worried,” suggested Davis. “He’s commented on the PFL a lot the last six months. He’s worried.”

“What specifically worried him about Bellator is the metrics we put out in the press release. 30% of that roster ranked in the top 25 per Fight Matrix rankings. So this isn’t, Dana gets to rank his own guys, Donn’s ranking his own guys. As you know there’s only one group that ranks all fighters, Fight Matrix, independently. 30% of the UFC roster is top 25-ranked, and now our combined company of PFL and Bellator, 30%.”

“The same. Now, to UFC’s credit, if you look at top five in the world, they still own the top five, one through five. So call it PPV cards, we couldn’t compete with them right now, which is why we’re only going to have two, and they have twelve.”

Davis, however, thinks the TV product from the PFL this year will be better. “Our cards are going to be better. Better. Because what they put on this year was ranked 70 and what we’re going to put on next year is ranked 40.” Davis believes that has White talking, questioning why the PFL would buy Bellator, “because he’s smart.”

“UFC ain’t the NFL. We’re not the XFL. But he wants you to think that. And it’s just a matter of time before that starts to get more well-known, and we’re not the number two, we’re a co-leader. He doesn’t want that. That’s what’s going on.”

Later, Davis would make it clear that there’s no axe to grind with the UFC, nor an attempt to take over the MMA market and displace the leading promotion in the sport.

“UFC is a great company and they invented this industry. This is not about taking share or shifting share. MMA is growing. MMA is growing 10% a year, every other sport 2-3%. They’re going to do well. We’re just going to do really, really well,” said Davis. “And I’m excited to have my new teammates at Bellator, I’m excited to have all our new fighters propelling us forward, and we’re going to win. The next time we’re on here, when people laughed that we’re going to be a co-leader, we’re going to be a co-leader. Just like they laughed when we said we’re going to be #2, and we’re #2. And so to me, if you’re on the new Bellator team, if you’re on the new combined team, declare victory.”

In five years, Donn Davis expects to be able to reach that co-leader goal. “We’re the co-leader in MMA, flat out. But we do things different, we think different, we innovate different. We don’t have dogma. We co-promote. We give fighters opportunity, we let them box, we give 50% PPV share, we think different. And we’re the co-leader. They do what they do, fantastic. We do what we do, market’s big enough for two very, very big companies.”

The 2023 PFL Championship takes place this Friday in Washington, D.C. A Bellator vs. PFL champion versus champion card is expected for Q1 2024, said Davis, with TV deals in the U.S. and Canada ready to be announced for the PFL, while Bellator TV deals are in the works. As for Bellator’s Lightweight Grand Prix, Davis couldn’t answer whether it will complete as scheduled or not.

The post Donn Davis Reveals PFL Plans for Bellator MMA, Believes Dana White “Worried” appeared first on Cageside Press.

“Yeah I really believe so,” Mix (19-1) told media outlets including Cageside Press following Bellator 301 in Chicago this past Friday. “My opponent there, Sergio Pettis, you look at his 25 [flyweight] run, but this kid was young when he was in the UFC. He’s great, he just beat Patricio Pitbull, he smoked the only man to beat me, [Juan] Archuleta didn’t win a round against him. I think Sergio is up there with the top three bantamweights in the world right now.”

Mix, in laying out his argument for being the best bantamweight on the planet, suggested that Pettis had beaten better competition that UFC champ Sean O’Malley.

“I think he [Pettis] was so young in the UFC, at 24, 25 years old. He just turned 30-years old, him and I. I feel like we’re both entering our prime. They hold Sean O’Malley in such a high regard, it’s like, Sean O’Malley never beat someone on the level of Patricio Pitbull like Sergio Pettis did. And that’s why I respected him the way I did. That’s why I took this fight very seriously. I feel like a lot of people underestimated him, and I overestimated him because I knew how good he was.”

Having submitted Pettis to unify the Bellator MMA bantamweight champion — Mix won the promotion’s bantamweight grand prix and an interim belt in the process earlier this year — Patchy Mix can now look ahead. Which, in this particular case, might actually mean looking behind him, to a trio of fighters he’s already faced. That includes the only man to ever beat him, RIZIN champ Juan Archuleta.

“I want to avenge a loss that I got of course, but Archuleta is tied up in Japan, he’s fighting, I think he’s on New Year’s. I necessarily don’t like to wait and see, and I know he’s got his deal over there, I’m not sure what Bellator’s deal is,” stated Mix. “But I’m not necessarily chasing anyone. Now that I’m the title holder, whoever they approach me with, I’m willing to do. I don’t mind, I can run it back with all three of them. Any one of them. If they wanted to do me and Serg again, if they wanted to do me and Stots again, or if they wanted to do me and Arculeta. Or even me and Maga. I fought all the top guys, and I just want to fight who they believe is the best.”

Any of those fights would no doubt be entertaining. When Mix will fight again remains to be seen, however. On Monday, the PFL’s purchase of Bellator MMA was officially announced. The promotion will continue as its own brand, mainly with international events, moving forward, though for how long remains unclear.

Watch the full Bellator 301 post-fight press conference with Patchy Mix above.

The post Bellator 301: Patchy Mix Open to Any Number of Rematches appeared first on Cageside Press.

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.

Will Pettis continue his reign at the top? 👊

Bantamweight champ @sergiopettis has been unstoppable under the #Bellator banner. He now faces the challenge of interim-champ @TeamMixMMA! #Bellator301 | Friday, 9pm ET / 6pm PT | @SHOsports 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/f0x9bunyza

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) November 15, 2023

Earlier this year, Sergio Pettis reminded everyone of who he was in the shark tank of the bantamweight division.  Coming off an injury that required a year long layoff that kept him out of the Grand Prix, Pettis returned to action earlier this year and was able to stave off the celebrated longtime featherweight champion Patricio “Pitbull” Freire.  It was a seminal moment; Pettis spoiled Freire’s hopes of being a three division champion and in doing so reintroduced himself to the masses who in 2023 have been spoiled by amazing performances from bantamweights worldwide.

When Pettis entered the UFC at 20 years-old in 2013 with an undefeated record of 9-0, he was a top prospect whom many had their eye on after his celebrated older brother had soared to great heights in the sport.  After knocking on the door of title contention at flyweight, Pettis moved up to bantamweight and took the more immediate opportunities in Bellator in 2020.  It is a move that has panned out well as he added Pitbull to a resume that also boasts former UFC champion Brandon Moreno, former Bellator champions Juan Archuleta and Kyoji Horiguchi, and more.  Ahead of what could be the final Bellator event (or at least the iteration as we know it,) Pettis has an opportunity to further cement himself as the top bantamweight in the world outside of the UFC and be the centerpiece of the weight class in a new home.

Mix is coming for bantamweight gold! 🔥

Will interim-champion @TeamMixMMA dethrone @sergiopettis to become #Bellator's undisputed bantamweight king?

Find out NEXT FRIDAY live on @SHOsports 👊 #Bellator301 pic.twitter.com/6oPV1btvxi

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) November 8, 2023

But as respected as Pettis is, the man who could take it all from him is Patchy Mix.  Mix is in the midst of a Fighter of the Year campaign of his own after stopping the surging champion Raufeon Stots in the finals of the Grand Prix with a first round jumping knee.  The moment was a beautiful culmination of a professional career that began back in 2016 where he began tearing through the regional scene in King of the Cage and has seen Mix taste defeat only once 19 fights.  Besides the victory over Stots, Mix had also bested Magomed Magomedov, fellow prospects James Gallagher and Ricky Bandejas, and UFC veteran Albert Morales under the Bellator banner.

Friday night could be a triumphant end to one chapter and the beginning of an epic new one for Mix.  He is the one who rides more momentum behind the fashion in which he won the Grand Prix and his level of activity beforehand.  If the PFL does indeed absorb Bellator next year, then the addition of the bantamweight division is expected to be among the first of many new changes.  Should that happen and Mix be the one who is victorious, then it would be he and not Pettis whom the promotion builds the division around.  Of course, that is even assuming things get that far.  With so much uncertainty, it’s completely possible that Mix’s (or anyone else’s for that matter) contract would be dissolved and the UFC, ONE, or any other promotion could also vie for their services in free agency.

Only ONE can be UNDISPUTED! 🙌

Bantamweight champ @sergiopettis and Grand Prix winner @TeamMixMMA collide tomorrow night at the @WintrustArena. Who you got?#Bellator301 | Friday, 9pm ET / 6pm PT | @SHOsports 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/FqzTtF1rtv

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) November 16, 2023

Exactly where anyone goes from here in Bellator is anyone’s guess and an answer is unlikely to be provided on Friday night.  However, what is certain is that Pettis and Mix are expected to fight in 2024 and the rights to their next fights will be a huge prize for the company that gets to promote their fights.

The post Bellator 301: Pettis and Mix Collide with Big Implications for the Future 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.

The post Bellator 301: Mike Hamel Plans on Being First to Make Tim Wilde Tired appeared first on Cageside Press.

27-0, in a leading mixed martial arts promotion, with wins over names like Logan Storley, Roberto Soldic, Douglas Lima, and Erick Silva, among others. But that perfect record doesn’t add any pressure — after all, as Amosov explained during the Bellator 301 press conference on Wednesday, he always wants to win.

“For me, it doesn’t matter. I have to fight, I want to win every fight, so [being] 27-0, for me, of course it’s good but I want to win every fight,” Amosov noted. “Because if you are a fighter, it’s not just ‘okay, this fight, maybe I lose, next fight, maybe I win.’ If you’re a fighter, you must win every fight. When I go to the cage, of course I want to win.”

While Yaroslav Amosov is the top dog in Bellator, globally, he’s ranked #6 on ESPN’s welterweight rankings. Sandwiched between Gilbert Burns (5) and Shavkat Rakhmonov (7). “I’m number one,” Amosov replied. Though he admits most fighters would no doubt feel the same.

“I think if you’re a fighter — I know Jason Jackson thinks he’s number one. I think I’m number one.” Jackson actually disagreed, saying he wouldn’t be number one until he beats Amosov. Still, Yaroslav added that “I think if you’re a fighter, you think ‘yeah I’m number one, I must win every fight [against] every fighter.'”

Bellator 301 takes place at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL this Friday, November 17, 2023 with Yaroslav Amosov vs. Jason Jackson headlining.

The post Bellator 301’s Undefeated Yaroslav Amosov Reacts to #6 Ranking From ESPN: “I’m #1” appeared first on Cageside Press.

Outlaw was yanked due to a failed drug test; in McKee’s case, it was injury that did him in. But he’s back and hungry as ever, he revealed during Wednesday’s Bellator 301 press conference, with Cageside Press on hand.

“I just say being hungry; it’s almost literally been a year for the layoff. Fresh division, but just nothing but grinding,” McKee (20-1) said when asked about his motivation. “Grinding, staying prayed up, working, working, working.”

For those wondering if he might steal the show on Friday, Mckee pointed out that “Last time I was in a tournament I came out with a bag. Like I said before, all finishes, went and did it. Obviously not in this tournament, but being at 155lbs I plan to make a statement to the rest of the division. So it’s just going in there and doing what I do best.”

The goal, meanwhile, is for the former featherweight champ to once again claim gold. “Become world champion again. I don’t know. Things happen in mysterious ways. I don’t know if I’m out of the tournament. No one really knows what’s going to happen.”

That’s one hundred percent correct. Even Bellator officials couldn’t say what the future would hold for the grand prix this week, with champ Usman Nurmagomedov failing a drug test and having his semi-final win over Brent Primus overturned.

“But if my name’s on that belt I’d love to get in there and at least put people to the test, to feel like they deserve a belt with my name on it,” McKee added.

Bellator 301 takes place this Friday, November 17, 2023 at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL. A.J. McKee faces Sidney Outlaw on the main card.

The post Bellator 301: A.J. McKee’s Goal to “Become World Champion Again” appeared first on Cageside Press.