Bellator 289 gets underway TONIGHT here in Connecticut at the beautiful Mohegan Sun Casino. This main card consists of some absolute bangers and two title fights as well. Bellator's Bantamweight Grand Prix finalists will be determined as the highly anticipated semi-finals happen tonight. To have this card on a Friday and the UFC card tomorrow, us fight fanatics are in for a fun couple days!
The main card gets underway when two middleweights enter the cage. The undefeated Dalton Rosta (7-0) takes on Anthony Adams (9-2). Rosta is one of the biggest prospects in the organization as he keeps getting better and better each time he enters the cage. He does his training at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, FL with the legends and top notch coaches that they have. His last win came by Left hook and was a huge victory against another Bellator prospect in Romero Cotton. This time, Rosta takes on Anthony Adams who is is a tough individual and can take damage. This will be an entertaining fight as we have two fast and strong guys who are looking to add another win to their record and move up inside the division.
The first Bantamweight Grand Prix Semi-Final fight between Magomed Magomedov and Patchy Mix will certainly be a great fight. Magomed brings a record of 19-2 and has gone 1-1 with Petyr Yan, the UFC Bantamweight legend. Magomed has an extensive wrestling background and has really proved himself first on the Russian fight scene and now American fight fans are starting to recognize him too. Magomed is known to train with Team Dagestani and has put a lot of time in with Zabit Magomedsharipov. He faces the talented and dangerous Patchy Mix. Patchy brings a record of 16-1 and has really been excelling in the Bantamweight division. His most recent wins come over Kyoji Horiguchi and James Gallagher. Patchy does a lot of cross training and gets his rounds in with many fighters so that he can see and adapt to many different styles and techniques. This is a really cool thing about Patchy; he's always on the go. Patchy is known as a "Submission Specialist" and has advanced wrestling as well. This is an absolutely amazing matchup with two guys who deserve to advance but only one can..............
The first title fight of the evening is the Womens Flyweight Championship. Juliana Velasquez (12-1) challenges Liz Carmouche (17-7). Velasquez originally had the belt but during her first defense, she became victim to the elbows of Liz Carmouche. Carmouche beat Velasquez at Bellator 278 in April of 2022. The UFC vet, Carmouche has been on a tear and will look to defend her title. Velasquez will bring a tough game plan with her as she looks to figure out Carmouche in the second fight between the two. Both fighters are very capable of finishing the fight but they're also very capable of putting on a great 5 round show. This is anybody's fight and both fighters have proven themselves, now they get to face off again. Carmouche looks to defend the title and Velasquez looks to get it back.
The main event of the evening is something fight fans have been waiting months for. Raufeon "Supa" Stots defends his title in the Bantamweight Grand Prix as he takes on "The Italian Gangster" Danny Sabatello. The winner will face the winner of Magomedov/Mix in the finals. Fans have been wanting his fight for what seems to feel like forever. Danny Sabatello really struck the scene with his trash talk and absolute reckless talking in interviews, post fight interviews, and on social media. Danny really speaks his mind and says it exactly how he sees it. Some fans see it as annoying and unsportsmanlike, others find satisfaction and comedy in Sabatello's trashtalk. The man across the cage from him, Raufeon Stots, entertained the talk minimally and made the point that he is strictly down to business. Sabatello made his way through the opening rounds of the Grand Prix by mostly wrestling and really just capitalizing on his takedowns and position on the ground. His ground control is crazy and he used it on each one of his opponents to hold them down and win the fight. Sabatello (13-1) trains out of American Top Team and has won all 3 of his Bellator fights by decision. Stots, (18-1) started his career training at RoufusSport in Milwaukee but has been doing some training in his hometown of Houston, Texas knowing that an inevitable fight with RoufusSport teammate, Sergio Pettis may be down the road. Pettis is currently the Bantamweight champ but is recovering from a knee injury and Stots his the Interim Champ, defending his belt tonight against Sabatello. Stots has won fights in every which way and his a game opponent ready to fight on the feet or on the ground. His most recent win comes by KO to fellow Bellator Bantamweight contender, Juan Archuleta. This will be a very exciting fight, the fans want it and the fighters want it. Danny Sabatello will look to wrestle and the game plan of Stots is unpredictable! He will fight anyway needed to get the job done and that's why this fight should be great!
