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TOP UNDEFEATED PROSPECTS JAYLON BATES AND ROMAN FARALDO EACH JOIN COMPLETED PRELIMINARY CARD
LOS ANGELES — BELLATOR MMA announced the addition of two main card matchups to the talent-rich BELLATOR 283: Pitbull vs. Outlaw event at Emerald Queen Casino in Tacoma, Washington, on July 22. The main card airs live on SHOWTIME at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.
The first bout features former BELLATOR welterweight title challenger Lorenz “The Monsoon” Larkin (24-7 MMA, 6-2 BMMA) and top Russian prospect Mukhamed “Cherkes” Berkhamov (15-1 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) battling at 170-pounds, while the opening main card fight sees No. 5-ranked heavyweight Davion Franklin (5-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) tangle with Brazil’s Marcelo Golm (9-3 MMA, 1-0 BMMA).
BELLATOR 283 is headlined by a world title fight, as reigning lightweight champion Patricky “Pitbull” (24-10 MMA, 17-9 BMMA) defends his crown against No. 1-ranked contender Sidney “Da Gun” Outlaw (16-4 MMA, 3-1 BMMA). In the co-main event, former welterweight champion and No. 3-ranked Douglas “The Phenom” Lima (32-10 MMA, 14-6 BMMA) will take on the surging No. 4-ranked contender Jason “The Ass-Kicking Machine” Jackson (15-4 MMA, 6-1 BMMA). Rounding out the main card, undefeated No. 3-ranked lightweight Usman Nurmagomedov (14-0 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) will put his unbeaten record on the line against Team Alpha Male’s Chris “CG” Gonzalez (7-1 MMA, 6-1 BMMA).
Also joining the event on the completed preliminary card will be two top undefeated prospects: Jaylon “New Breed” Bates (5-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA), who faces Mark Coates (10-7), and “Vicious” Roman Faraldo (7-0 MMA, 3-0 BMMA), who will battle Luis Iniguez (5-1). A lightweight bout between Russia’s Vladimir “Vova” Tokov (6-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) and unbeaten Justin “Kid Marvelous” Montalvo (5-0 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) and will also take place on the prelims, as will Kai Kamaka III(9-5-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) welcoming Akhmed Magomedov (8-0, 1 NC) to the BELLATOR fray at featherweight. Women’s flyweights are in action, when former title challenger No. 5-ranked Veta Arteaga (6-4, MMA, 5-4 BMMA) takes on No.7 ranked-Vanessa Porto (23-9 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) and Viktor Nemkov (31-8-1 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) will challenge Team Pitbull’s Jose “Gugu” Augusto (7-4, 1 NC MMA, 1-2 BMMA).
The preliminary card will stream live on the BELLATOR MMA YouTube channel, SHOWTIME Sports YouTube channel, and Pluto TV beginning at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
Lorenz Larkin, 35, is putting together the most impressive run of his professional career — 13 years after it began in 2009. The man who challenged then-champion Douglas Lima for the BELLATOR title in his promotional debut has been a perfect 6-0 since 2018, defeating former BELLATOR champions Andrey Koreshkov and Rafael Carvalho during that span, which has seen “The Monsoon” compete at both welterweight and middleweight. Now the #6-ranked middleweight contender, Larkin will return to welterweight after a crushing first-round TKO of Kyle Stewart in London to face a stiff test in Berkhamov.
Mukhamed Berkhamov, 28, dominated the Russian regional scene before catching the eyes of BELLATOR scouts and signing with the promotion in 2020. The proven finisher has earned nine submission victories and two knockouts through his first 16 professional fights, including a first-round submission of Jesse Taylor and a second-round knockout of Brett Cooper in Absolute Championship Berkut. “Cherkes” wasted no time making an impression on BELLATOR fans in his promotional debut, snatching up a first-round guillotine choke against Jaleel Willis as he returned to action from a two-year layoff.
Undefeated through his first five fights inside the BELLATOR MMA cage, Davion Franklin has been one of the sport’s most promising heavyweight prospects since debuting in 2020. The 28-year-old is a staple at the vaunted JacksonWink MMA gym and counts many of the gym’s notable athletes among his training partners. Like Golm, Franklin is known for his killer instinct; he has three first-round knockouts to his name, but he will look to make it four when the cage doors close on July 22.
Golm, 29, will look to follow up an emphatic, buzzer-beating first round TKO of Billy Swanson in his last outing. The stellar promotional debut saw Golm win his third straight fight, a win streak comprised of three finishes. Golm has won all his professional fights by stoppage to the tune of seven KOs and two submissions, and he will look to keep his 100% finishing rate intact when he faces a stiff test in Davion Franklin.
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BELLATOR 283: PITBULL VS. OUTLAW MAIN CARD:
SHOWTIME
Friday, July 22 — 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT
Lightweight Championship Fight: C-Patricky ‘Pitbull’ Freire (24-10) vs. #1-Sidney Outlaw (16-4)
Welterweight Co-Main Event: #3-Douglas Lima (32-10) vs. #4-Jason Jackson (15-4)
Lightweight Bout: #3-Usman Nurmagomedov (14-0) vs. Chris Gonzalez (7-1)
Welterweight Bout: Lorenz Larkin (24-7) vs. Mukhamed Berkhamov (15-1)
Heavyweight Bout: #8-Davion Franklin (5-0) vs. Marcelo Golm (9-3)
BELLATOR 283: PITBULL VS. OUTLAW PRELIMINARY CARD:
BELLATOR MMA YouTube channel | SHOWTIME Sports YouTube channel | Pluto TV
7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT
Light Heavyweight Bout: Viktor Nemkov (31-8-1) vs. Jose “Gugu” Augusto (7-4, 1 NC)
Lightweight Bout: Adam Piccolotti (13-4) vs. Tofiq Musayev (18-4)
Middleweight Bout: #7-Romero Cotton (6-0) vs. #8-Dalton Rosta (6-0)
Flyweight Bout: #5-Veta Arteaga (6-4) vs. #7-Vanessa Porto (23-9)
Lightweight Bout: #9-Gadzhi Rabadanov (17-4-2) vs. Bobby King (12-4)
Bantamweight Bout: Jaylon Bates (5-0) vs. Mark Coates (10-7)
Welterweight Bout: Roman Faraldo (7-0) vs. Luis Iniguez (5-1)
Lightweight Bout: Vladimir Tokov (6-1) vs. Justin Montalvo (5-0)
Welterweight Bout: Ethan Hughes (3-0) vs. Kevin Hand (2-0)
Featherweight Bout: Kai Kamaka III (9-5-1) vs. Akhmed Magomedov (8-0, 1 NC)
*Card subject to change |
