2021 in Bellator MMA

Bellator mixed martial arts events in 2021

2021 in Bellator MMA

Information
Promotion| Bellator MMA
First date aired| April 2, 2021 (2021-04-02)
Last date aired| December 3, 2021 (2021-12-03)
Events
Total events| 18
Fights
Title fights| 13

<- 2020

2022 ->

2021 in Bellator MMA was the thirteenth year in the history of Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. Bellator held 18 events in 2021.

## Background

[edit]

The promotion went on a hiatus following Bellator 254 on December 10, 2020, which would be the final card to air on CBS Sports Network.[1] Beginning in April, Bellator's U.S broadcasts moved to the premium Showtime network.[2] Bellator 255, which took place on April 2, 2021, was the promotion's debut on Showtime, and the first MMA card to air on the network in over eight years; the last event being Strikeforce: Marquardt vs. Saffiedine on January 12, 2013.

## Events list

[edit]

Main article: List of Bellator events

### Past events

[edit]

#  | Event  | Date  | Venue  | City  | Country  | Atten.  | Ref.

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

18  | Bellator 272: Pettis vs. Horiguchi | December 3, 2021 | Mohegan Sun Arena | Uncasville, Connecticut | U.S. |  | [3]
17  | Bellator 271: Cyborg vs. Kavanagh | November 12, 2021 | Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood | Hollywood, Florida |  | [4]
16  | Bellator 270: Queally vs. Pitbull 2 | November 5, 2021 | 3Arena | Dublin | Ireland |  | [5]
15  | Bellator 269: Fedor vs. Johnson | October 23, 2021 | VTB Arena | Moscow | Russia |  | [6]
14  | Bellator 268: Nemkov vs. Anglickas | October 16, 2021 | Footprint Center | Phoenix, Arizona | U.S. |  | [7]
13  | Bellator 267: Lima vs. MVP 2 | October 1, 2021 | Wembley Arena | London | England |  | [8]
12  | Bellator 266: Davis vs. Romero | September 18, 2021 | SAP Center | San Jose, California | U.S. |  | [9]
11  | Bellator 265: Kongo vs. Kharitonov | August 20, 2021 | Sanford Pentagon | Sioux Falls, South Dakota |  | [10]
10  | Bellator 264: Mousasi vs. Salter | August 13, 2021 | Mohegan Sun Arena | Uncasville, Connecticut |  | [11]
9  | Bellator 263: Pitbull vs. McKee | July 31, 2021 | The Forum | Inglewood, California |  | [12]
8  | Bellator 262: Velasquez vs. Kielholtz | July 16, 2021 | Mohegan Sun Arena | Uncasville, Connecticut |  | [13]
7  | Bellator 261: Johnson vs. Moldavsky | June 25, 2021 |  | [14]
6  | Bellator 260: Lima vs. Amosov | June 11, 2021 |  | [15]
5  | Bellator 259: Cyborg vs. Smith 2 | May 21, 2021 | 0 | [16]
4  | Bellator 258: Archuleta vs. Pettis | May 7, 2021 | [17]
3  | Bellator 257: Nemkov vs. Davis 2 | Apr 16, 2021 | [18]
2  | Bellator 256: Bader vs. Machida 2 | Apr 9, 2021 | [19]
1  | Bellator 255: Pitbull vs. Sanchez 2 | Apr 2, 2021 | [20]

## Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix Tournament

[edit]

| Opening round| | Quarterfinals| | Semi-finals| | Final

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

|  | | | | | | | |

|  A. J. McKee |  KO

|  Georgi Karakhanyan |  1 |

|  A. J. McKee |  SUB

| |  Derek Campos |  3 |

|  Derek Campos |  UD

| |

|  Daniel Straus |  3 |

|  A. J. McKee |  SUB

| |  Darrion Caldwell | 1 |

|  Darrion Caldwell |  UD

|  |

|  Henry Corrales |  3 |

|  Darrion Caldwell |  SUB

| |  Ádám Borics |  1 |

|  Ádám Borics |  TKO

| |

|  Pat Curran |  2 |

|  A. J. McKee |  SUB

| |  Patrício Pitbull (c) |  1

|  Patrício Pitbull (c) |  UD

|  |

|  Juan Archuleta |  5 |

|  Patrício Pitbull (c) | KO

| |  Pedro Carvalho |  1 |

|  Pedro Carvalho |  SUB

| |

|  Sam Sicilia |  2 |

|  Patrício Pitbull (c) |  SUB

| |  Emmanuel Sanchez |  1 |

|  Emmanuel Sanchez |  SUB

|  |

|  Tywan Claxton |  2 |

|  Emmanuel Sanchez |  UD

| |  Daniel Weichel |  5 |

|  Daniel Weichel |  UD

|  Saul Rogers |  3 |

## Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix Tournament

[edit]

| Quarter-finals| | Semi-finals| | Final

|
|
|
|
|

|  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |

|  | | | | |

|  Vadim Nemkov (c) |  UD

|  Phil Davis |  5 |

|  Vadim Nemkov (c) |  SUB

| |  Julius Anglickas[a] |  4 |

|  Anthony Johnson |  KO

| |

|  Jose Augusto |  2 |

|  Vadim Nemkov (c) |  UD

| |  Corey Anderson |  5[b]

|  Corey Anderson |  TKO

|  |

|  Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov |  3 |

|  Corey Anderson |  TKO

| |  Ryan Bader |  1 |

|  Ryan Bader |  UD

|  Lyoto Machida |  5 |

1. ^ Julius Anglickas replaced an injured Anthony Johnson.[21]
2. ^ Original final match was held at Bellator 277 and ended in a No Contest;[22] A rematch final took place November 18, 2022 at Bellator 288.[23]

## Title fights

[edit]

Title fights in 2021

Weight class  |  |  |  | Method  | Round  | Time  | Event  | Notes
Featherweight  | Patrício Pitbull (c)  | def.  | Emmanuel Sanchez | Technical Submission (guillotine choke)  | 1  | 3:35  | Bellator 255 | [a]
Light Heavyweight  | Vadim Nemkov (c)  | def.  | Phil Davis | Decision (unanimous) (48–47, 48–47, 48–47)  | 5  | 5:00  | Bellator 257 | [b]
Bantamweight  | Sergio Pettis | def.  | Juan Archuleta (c)  | Decision (unanimous) (50–45, 49–46, 49–46)  | 5  | 5:00  | Bellator 258 | [c]
Women's Featherweight  | Cris Cyborg (c)  | def.  | Leslie Smith | TKO (punches)  | 5  | 4:51  | Bellator 259 | [d]
Welterweight  | Yaroslav Amosov | def.  | Douglas Lima (c)  | Decision (unanimous) (50-45, 49-46, 49-46)  | 5  | 5:00  | Bellator 260 | [e]
Heavyweight  | Valentin Moldavsky | def.  | Timothy Johnson | Decision (unanimous) (50-45, 49-46, 49-46)  | 5  | 5:00  | Bellator 261 | [f]
Women's Flyweight  | Juliana Velasquez (c)  | def.  | Denise Kielholtz | Decision (split) (48-47, 47-48, 48-47)  | 5  | 5:00  | Bellator 262 | [g]
Featherweight  | A. J. McKee | def.  | Patrício Pitbull (c)  | Technical Submission (guillotine choke)  | 1  | 1:57  | Bellator 263 | [h]
Middleweight  | Gegard Mousasi (c)  | def.  | John Salter | TKO (punches)  | 3  | 2:07  | Bellator 264 | [i]
Light Heavyweight  | Vadim Nemkov (c)  | def.  | Julius Anglickas | Submission (kimura)  | 4  | 4:25  | Bellator 268 | [j]
Lightweight  | Patricky Pitbull | def.  | Peter Queally | TKO (punches)  | 2  | 1:05  | Bellator 270 | [k]
Women's Featherweight  | Cris Cyborg (c)  | def.  | Sinead Kavanagh | KO (punches)  | 1  | 1:32  | Bellator 271 | [l]
Bantamweight  | Sergio Pettis (c)  | def.  | Kyoji Horiguchi | KO (spinning backfist)  | 4  | 3:24  | Bellator 272 | [m]

1. ^ For the Bellator Featherweight World Championship
2. ^ For the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Championship
3. ^ For the Bellator Bantamweight World Championship
4. ^ For the Bellator Women's Featherweight World Championship.
5. ^ For the Bellator Welterweight World Championship.
6. ^ For the interim Bellator Heavyweight World Championship.
7. ^ For the Bellator Women's Flyweight World Championship.
8. ^ For the Bellator Featherweight World Championship
9. ^ For the Bellator Middleweight World Championship.
10. ^ For the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Championship
11. ^ For the vacant Bellator Lightweight World Championship.
12. ^ For the Bellator Women's Featherweight World Championship.
13. ^ For the Bellator Bantamweight World Championship.

## See also

[edit]

* List of Bellator events
* List of current Bellator fighters

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Steven Marrocco (February 3, 2021). "Bellator targets April 9 for 2021 return in familiar venue". mmafighting.com.
2. ^ Brent Brookhouse (2021-02-09). "Bellator set for Showtime debut in April as star-studded Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix headlines slate". CBS Sports. Retrieved 2021-02-09.
3. ^ Martin, Damon (2021-10-20). "Sergio Pettis defends bantamweight title against Kyoji Horiguchi at Bellator event on Dec. 3". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2021-10-20.
4. ^ Heck, Mike (2021-10-06). "Cris Cyborg vs. Sinead Kavanagh featherweight title fight set for Bellator 271". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2021-10-06.
5. ^ "Bellator zeroes in on James Gallagher vs. Patchy Mix grudge match in Ireland". MMA Junkie. 2021-07-21. Retrieved 2021-07-21.
6. ^ Lee, Alexander K. (2021-06-25). "Bellator announces Fedor Emelianenko return bout on Oct. 23 in Moscow, opponent to be determined". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2021-06-25.
7. ^ "Sources: Nemkov-Johnson among Bellator semis". ESPN.com. 2021-07-31. Retrieved 2021-08-01.
8. ^ "Bellator London fight card: Douglas Lima vs. Michael 'Venom' Page 2 to headline return to England". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2021-07-27.
9. ^ Helwani, Ariel. "Yoel Romero's Bellator debut is set (again)". arielhelwani.substack.com. Retrieved 2021-08-13.
10. ^ "Bellator 265 heads to South Dakota, adds Alejandra Lara vs. DeAnna Bennett matchup". MMA Junkie. 2021-07-19. Retrieved 2021-07-20.
11. ^ "Gegard Mousasi to defend title vs. John Salter at Bellator 264 in Connecticut". MMA Junkie. 2021-06-25. Retrieved 2021-06-25.
12. ^ Cruz, Guilherme (2021-06-10). "Patricio Pitbull vs. AJ McKee grand prix final set for July 30 Bellator event". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
13. ^ "Velasquez to defend Bellator title vs. Kielholtz". ESPN.com. 2021-05-21. Retrieved 2021-05-21.
14. ^ Heck, Mike (2021-05-07). "Tim Johnson vs. Valentin Moldavsky set for promotion's first interim heavyweight title fight at Bellator 261". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2021-05-08.
15. ^ "Bellator 260 set for June with Douglas Lima vs. Yaroslav Amosov headliner". MMA Junkie. 2021-04-15. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
16. ^ Anderson, Jay (2 April 2021). "Cris Cyborg vs. Leslie Smith 2 Announced for Bellator 259". Cageside Press. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
17. ^ Nolan King (February 9, 2021). "Bellator 258 set for May 7, headlined by Juan Archuleta vs. Sergio Pettis title fight". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
18. ^ Bohn, Mike (17 April 2021). "Bellator 257 post-event facts: Is 6-foot-8 Steve Mowry a contender?". MMA Junkie. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
19. ^ Bohn, Mike (11 April 2021). "Bellator 256 post-event facts: Lyoto Machida falls to 0-4 in rematches". MMA Junkie. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
20. ^ Bohn, Mike (3 April 2021). "Bellator 255 post-event facts: Patricio 'Pitbull' hits new milestones on epic resume". MMA Junkie. Retrieved 26 April 2021.
21. ^ King, Nolan (18 September 2021). "With Anthony Johnson out, Julius Anglickas joins Bellator grand prix to fight Vadim Nemkov Title". MMAjunkie.com. Archived from the original on 10 April 2022. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
22. ^ Anderson, Jay (15 April 2022). "Bellator 277: Clash of Heads Leads to No Contest in Vadim Nemkov vs. Corey Anderson". Cageside Press. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 16 April 2022.
23. ^ Al-Shatti, Shaun (29 August 2022). "Corey Anderson vs. Vadim Nemkov 2 headlines championship doubleheader at Bellator 288". MMA Fighting. Archived from the original on 30 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.

## External links

[edit]

* Bellator

* v
* t
* e

Bellator MMA events

Upcoming events are in italics.

2009|

| Season 1|

* 1
* 2
* 3
* 4
* 5
* 6
* 7/8
* 9
* 10
* 11
* 12

|

2010|

| Season 2|

* 13
* 14
* 15
* 16
* 17
* 18
* 19
* 20
* 21
* 22
* 23

|

Season 3|

* 24
* 25
* 26
* 27
* 28
* 29
* 30
* 31
* 32
* 33
* 34

2011|

| Season 4|

* 35
* 36
* 37
* 38
* 39
* 40
* 41
* 42
* 43
* 44
* 45

|

Summer Series|

* 46
* 47
* 48

Season 5|

* 49
* 50
* 51
* 52
* 53
* 54
* 55
* 56
* 57
* 58
* 59

2012|

| Season 6|

* 60
* 61
* 62
* 63
* 64
* 65
* 66
* 67
* 68
* 69
* 70

|

Summer Series|

* 71
* 72
* 73

Season 7|

* 74
* 75
* 76
* 77
* 78
* 79
* 80
* 81
* 82
* 83
* 84

2013|

| Season 8|

* 85
* 86
* 87
* 88
* 89
* 90
* 91
* 92
* 93
* 94
* 95

|

Summer Series|

* 96
* 97

Season 9|

* 98
* 99
* 100
* 101
* 102
* 103
* 104
* 105
* 106
* 107
* 108
* 109

2014|

| Season 10|

* 110
* 111
* 112
* 113
* 114
* 115
* 116
* 117
* 118
* 119
* 120

|

Summer Series|

* 121
* 122

Season 11|

* 123
* 124
* 125
* 126
* 127
* 128
* 129
* 2014 MEC
* 130
* 131

2015|

* 132
* 133
* 134
* 135
* 136
* 137
* 138
* 139
* 140
* 141
* 142: Dynamite 1
* 143
* 144
* 145
* 146
* 147

2016|

* 148
* 149
* 150
* 151
* 152
* 153
* 154
* 155
* 156
* 157: Dynamite 2
* 158
* 159
* 160
* 161
* 162
* 163
* 164
* 165
* 166
* 167
* 168
* 169

2017|

* 170
* 171
* 172
* 173
* 174
* 175
* 176
* 177
* 178
* 179
* MEFS: Charlotte
* NYC/180
* 181
* MEFS: Bristol
* 182
* 183
* 184
* MEFS: Talladega
* 185
* 186
* 187
* 188
* MEFS: Homestead
* 189
* 190
* 191

2018|

* 192
* 193
* 194
* 195
* MEFS: Atlanta
* 196
* 197
* 198
* 199
* 200
* 201
* 202
* 203
* 204
* 205
* 206
* 207
* 208
* 209
* 210
* 211
* 212
* 213

2019|

* 214
* Newcastle
* 215
* 216
* 217
* 218
* 219
* 220
* Birmingham
* 221
* 222
* London/223
* 224
* 225
* 226
* Dublin/227
* 228
* 229
* Milan/230
* 231
* 232
* 233
* 234
* London 2
* 235
* 236
* 237

2020|

* 238
* 239
* Dublin 2/240
* ~~241~~
* 242
* 243
* 244
* 245
* 246
* Milan 2
* 247
* ~~Dublin 3~~
* Milan 3
* Paris/248
* 249
* 250
* 251
* 252
* 253
* 254

2021|

* 255
* 256
* 257
* 258
* 259
* 260
* 261
* 262
* 263
* 264
* 265
* 266
* 267
* 268
* 269
* 270
* 271
* 272

2022|

* 273
* 274
* 275
* 276
* 277
* 278
* 279
* 280
* 281
* 282
* 283
* 284
* 285
* 286
* 287
* 288
* 289
* x Rizin

2023|

* 290
* 291
* 292
* 293
* 294
* 295
* 296
* 297
* x Rizin 2
* 298
* 299
* 300
* 301

2024|

* PFL vs. Bellator
* BCS 1
* BCS 2
* BCS 3
* BCS 4
* BCS 5
* BCS 6

* v
* t
* e

2021 in mixed martial arts

« 2020

2022 »

UFC|

| UFC flagship events|

* 257 (Poirier vs. McGregor 2)
* 258 (Usman vs. Burns)
* 259 (Błachowicz vs. Adesanya)
* 260 (Miocic vs. Ngannou 2)
* 261 (Usman vs. Masvidal 2)
* 262 (Oliveira vs. Chandler)
* 263 (Adesanya vs. Vettori 2)
* 264 (Poirier vs. McGregor 3)
* 265 (Lewis vs. Gane)
* 266 (Volkanovski vs. Ortega)
* 267 (Błachowicz vs. Teixeira)
* 268 (Usman vs. Covington 2)
* 269 (Oliveira vs. Poirier)

|

UFC on ABC|

* Holloway vs. Kattar
* Vettori vs. Holland

UFC on ESPN|

* Chiesa vs. Magny
* Brunson vs. Holland
* Whittaker vs. Gastelum
* Reyes vs. Procházka
* Rodriguez vs. Waterson
* The Korean Zombie vs. Ige
* Makhachev vs. Moisés
* Sandhagen vs. Dillashaw
* Hall vs. Strickland
* Cannonier vs. Gastelum
* Barboza vs. Chikadze
* Font vs. Aldo

UFC Fight Nights|

* Overeem vs. Volkov
* Blaydes vs. Lewis
* Rozenstruik vs. Gane
* Edwards vs. Muhammad
* Font vs. Garbrandt
* Rozenstruik vs. Sakai
* Gane vs. Volkov
* Brunson vs. Till
* Smith vs. Spann
* Santos vs Walker
* Dern vs. Rodriguez
* Ladd vs. Dumont
* Costa vs. Vettori
* Holloway vs. Rodríguez
* Vieira vs. Tate
* Lewis vs. Daukaus

TUF Finales|

* Team Volkanovski vs. Team Ortega

Dana White's Contender Series|

* Dana White's Contender Series (season 5)

Bellator|

* 255 (Pitbull vs. Sanchez 2)
* 256 (Bader vs. Machida 2)
* 257 (Nemkov vs. Davis 2)
* 258 (Archuleta vs. Pettis)
* 259 (Cyborg vs. Smith 2)
* 260 (Lima vs. Amosov)
* 261 (Johnson vs. Moldavsky)
* 262 (Velasquez vs. Kielholtz)
* 263 (Pitbull vs. McKee)
* 264 (Mousasi vs. Salter)
* 265 (Kongo vs. Kharitonov)
* 266 (Davis vs. Romero)
* 267 (Lima vs. MVP 2)
* 268 (Nemkov vs. Johnson)
* 269 (Fedor vs. Johnson)
* 270 (Queally vs. Pitbull 2)
* 271 (Cyborg vs. Kavanagh)
* 272 (Pettis vs. Horiguchi)

ONE|

| ONE Championship|

* Unbreakable
* Unbreakable 2
* Unbreakable 3
* Fists Of Fury
* Fists Of Fury 2
* Fists Of Fury 3
* Dangal
* Full Blast
* Full Blast 2
* ONE Championship: Battleground
* ONE Championship: Battleground 2
* ONE Championship: Battleground 3
* Empower
* Revolution
* First Strike
* NextGen
* NextGen 2
* NextGen 3
* Winter Warriors
* Winter Warriors II

|

ONE on TNT|

* TNT 1
* TNT 2
* TNT 3
* TNT 4

Road to ONE|

* Road to ONE 6: Young Guns
* Road to ONE 7: RUF 39
* Road to ONE 8: Night of Warriors
* Road to ONE: RUF 40
* Road to ONE: Arena Friday Night 2
* Road to ONE: RUF 41
* Road to ONE: Strikers Cage Championship 7
* Road to ONE: MMA Live 8
* Road to ONE: RUF 42
* Road to ONE: RUF 43
* Road to ONE: Sexyama Edition
* Road to ONE: Muay Thai Grand Prix
* Road to ONE: RUF 44
* Road to ONE: Mix Fight Events
* Road to ONE: RUF 45

PFL|

* 1 (LW & FW)
* 2 (LHW & WW)
* 3 (HW & WLW)
* 4 (LW & FW)
* 5 (LHW & WW)
* 6 (HW & WLW)
* 7 (Playoffs)
* 8 (Playoffs)
* 9 (Playoffs)
* 10 (Championship)

Rizin FF|

* 27 (Nagoya)
* 28 (Tokyo)
* 29 (Osaka)
* 30 (Saitama)
* Landmark Vol.1
* 31 (Yokohama)
* 32 (Okinawa)
* Trigger 1
* 33 (Saitama)

Invicta|

* AXS TV (Rodríguez vs. Torquato)
* Phoenix Atomweight
* 44 (A New Era)

Other|

* Absolute Championship Akhmat
* AMC Fight Nights
* Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki
* Brave Combat Federation
* Legacy Fighting Alliance
* Road FC

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