Brendan Miller
Patchy Mix might be the best bantamweight on the planet. The current Bellator bantamweight champion stakes his title and reputation on a rematch with Magomed Magomedov at the Bellator Championship Series in Paris on Friday.
Mix (19-1) was a dark horse contender entering the 2022 Bellator Bantamweight World Grand Prix. The raw material was there, but shortcomings against Juan Archuleta in the 2020 title fight raised flags. Mix emphatically quelled doubts throughout the tournament. He defeated multi-time MMA champion Kyoji Horiguchi in the first round, choked Magomedov in the semifinals and knocked out Raufeon Stots with a knee to become interim champion, Grand Prix winner and $1 million richer. The thoroughness with which he defeated bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis in a subsequent title unifier truly cemented him as an elite fighter at 135 pounds. Pettis had just defeated arguably Bellator’s greatest fighter, Patricio Pitbull, but couldn’t last seven minutes against Mix.
“I am granting [Magomedov] this rematch. I’m going to finish him off and then I’m going to move on to bigger names and the next best guys in the division,” Mix told reporters at Tuesday’s media day. matter. I fought all of the top five, so I will fight them all again if I have to.
“I destroyed Raufeon Stots in a minute for a million dollars last year. I knocked him out. I think he thinks I got him. I admit it goes well here, and it goes, I go out there and put Magomed Magomedov out. Or I’m thinking about a rematch with Stots or even Leandro Higo is around.”
Magomedov (20-3) has a lot to prove on Friday. The talented bantamweight enters as a nearly three-to-one underdog. After all, he is just two fights away from a submission loss to Mix. There is skepticism about the rematch being scheduled so soon, but all of that will be crushed if Magomedov can fill the gap exposed in their first fight. It’s the first step in Magomedov’s great desire to avenge his two Bellator losses.
“I can get revenge and also get the Bellator title, the one that all fighters [are] looking,” Magomedov said through an interpreter at Tuesday’s Media Day.
“If everything goes well in this fight I would love to do my first title defense with Raufeon. I have to defend my title, but if the title defense is the fight where I will avenge my defeat, it will be ideal. ”
French fans are sure to blow up the Accor Arena on Friday when Cedric Doumbe takes to the stage. The two-time Glory kickboxing welterweight champion is one of the biggest stars in the Professional Fighters League and Bellator. Doumbe is coming off the first loss of his young MMA career, a bizarre TKO stoppage due to a chip in his toe. Expect Doumbe to make peace with his fans on Friday.
Below is the rest of the fight card for Saturday with the latest odds before we come up with a prediction and pick the main event.
Bellator Championship Series card, odds
| Irregular mixing -355 | Magomed Magomedov +280 | Bantamweight |
| Cedric Doumbe -535 | Jaleel Willis +400 | 175 pounds catch weight |
| Costello van Steenis-340 | Gregory Babene +270 | Average weight |
| Jonas Billiards -198 | Yves Landu +164 | Feather weight |
| Archie Colgan-650 | Thibault Gouti +470 | Light |
Bellator Championship Series Viewing Information
Date: May 17 | Start time: 2pm ET (main card)
Location: Accor Arena – Paris
Television channel: HBO Max
Prediction
Uneven Mixture vs. Uneven Mixture Magomed Magomedov: No one in the Bellator or PFL bantamweight division compares to Mix. The champion is impossible to separate on the ground and his opponents look like they are drowning in a jiu-jitsu typhoon. Mix complicates things with constantly evolving wrestling and striking. This not only diversifies Mix’s offensive weapons, but also creates more openings to implement his ace submission game. Magomedov is also a talented fighter. Mix is the only person who has stopped him in 23 professional fights. Magomedov did well in the first fight, receiving Mix’s kicks and chaining in takedowns. What tormented him was a defensive finishing gap that Mix took advantage of instantly. Magomedov was threatened with a guillotine and swept the first time. He fainted for the second time. Magomedov should have fixed this issue, but the margin for error is small against Mix. I foresee a more defensive approach from Magomedov. This should result in a longer sequence than the eight minutes that the first fight lasted. Magomedov likely has the wrestling edge, but doesn’t have the offensive tools to seal the deal. Mix via SUB4
