## A doubleheader is set for this weekend with a pair of titles at stake across Friday and Saturday night
The Bellator cage is set to host two nights of action this weekend as Bellator 294 and 295 go down from Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu. Thereās plenty to get excited about over the two nights, from a flyweight title fight to the finals of the Bellator Bantamweight World Grand Prix.
In the main event of Bellator 294 on Friday, Liz Carmouche will put her flyweight title on the line for the second time since winning the belt when she rematches DeAnna Bennett. Itās the next step in the story of a longtime veteran who battled for years to become a champion for a major organization.
The two nights conclude with the finals of the Grand Prix, a fight where Raufeon Stots will put his interim bantamweight championship on the line against former world title challenger Patchy Mix. Itās a fight with huge stakes both financially and for the legacy of both men.
Stots and Mix battle for fame, fortune and opportunity
Bantamweight may be the deepest division in mixed martial arts and Bellatorās 135-pound division is representative of that depth. Mix and Stots have had to battle through two rounds of a tournament to arrive at the Grand Prix finals. They now meet with legacy, a tournament title, the $1 million prize and interim title on the line.
For Mix, the fight is also a chance to erase the sting of a loss in his first title opportunity, a September 2020 decision loss to Juan Archuleta for the then-vacant bantamweight title. Mix came out in that fight like a whirlwind of takedowns and submission attempts but faded badly after the opening two rounds, fatiguing and allowing Archuleta to take over the fight on the feet. That fight was a learning experience. Mix showed growth in the tournamentās first round, winning a pivotal fifth round against former champion Kyoji Horiguchi to secure the decision.
Stots has a big and bold personality that could make him the face of the promotion. The Grand Prix has given Stots a chance to shine, scoring a highlight-reel knockout of Archuleta in the first round to win the interim belt and then having to grind out a win over trash-talking rival Danny Sabatello. Sabatello is the kind of fighter who makes it impossible to ālook goodā against him, but Stots did the key thing and got the win.
Not only does the winner secure all the prizes mentioned above, but they will be positioned to face the winner of the June 16 bantamweight title fight between champion Sergio Pettis and featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull. Stots vs. Mix is a massive fight that only serves to set up an even bigger fight.
Carmouche looks to extend her title reign
The story of Carmouche finally winning a major MMA championship was a feel-good one for longtime fans of the sport. Carmouche had failed to capture gold once in Strikeforce and twice in the UFC. Carmouche has been perfect in the Bellator cage, winning five fights, two of which were against Juliana Velasquez for the flyweight title. Now, she moves on to the first fresh challenger to her title and itās a familiar face.
Carmouche already defeated DeAnna Bennett in September 2020. That fight was the Bellator debut for both women and the loss was Bennettās third in a row. She has since rebounded with three straight wins, including Justine Kish (twice) and Alejandra Lara. Carmouche is an entirely different challenge than those women. Kish is 2-6 since 2017 and Lara is 2-6 since 2018.
Has Bennett turned her career around against some lower-tier opposition to where sheās ready for Carmouche? Or will Carmouche further establish her dominance at the top of the division?
Redemption stories
When a fighter talks as much trash as Sabatello, suffering a loss to a rival can be devastating. Stots deserved the narrow decision over Sabatello, but Sabatello does have the bizarre 50-45 card turned in by judge Douglas Crosby in his favor. Itās something to fall back on and claim he never āreallyā lost the fight. In his heart, he knows that winning is the most important thing going forward. The bantamweight title picture is very clear right now with Stots vs. Mix and Pettis vs. Pitbull. Sabatello needs to get back in the win column and keep winning if he wants to be there waiting when the dust settles. That starts Friday against Marcos Breno.
Aaron Pico also knows plenty about seeing hype come crashing down. Once believed to be arguably the best prospect in the history of the sport, Pico made his professional debut in Bellator only to suffer a loss in his first fight. He then lost his sixth and seventh fights. Starting in 2020, Pico seemed to have figured the game out and rattled off six consecutive wins, seemingly positioning himself within reach of a shot at the featherweight title. This past October, Pico faced off with Jeremy Kennedy only to suffer a dislocated shoulder in the first round, resulting in a TKO loss by doctor stoppage. Bad luck keeps finding Pico and now he has to get back on track Saturday when he faces James Gonzalez.
Both Sabatello and Pico will enter the cage as big favorites and both need to produce a result that justifies those odds. Failure to do so for either man is a disaster they may not be able to come back from.
Bellator returns to Hawaii on Friday with two events in two nights, both of which take place at Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu and air on Showtime following prelims streaming on MMA Junkie.
Bellator 294 marks the first half of the doubleheader, and the event is headlined by a womenās flyweight championship bout. Reigning titleholder Liz Carmouche (18-7 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) will attempt to make her second defense in a rematch with DeAnna Bennett (13-7-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA), who she beat by third-round submission at Bellator 246 in September 2020.
Whelp looks like Iām getting Jack shit done this weekend.
ME2
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A sizable portion of analysts, fans and fighters bemoan the lack of meritocracy in mixed martial arts. Far too often a deserving contender is passed over in favor of a brash talker or former champion with lingering star power. Itās prizefighting after all. That is why the Bellator World Grand Prix is so refreshing as Raufeon Stots and Patchy Mix approach the bantamweight finals at Bellator 295 on Saturday.
Eight fighters compete ā you read that correctly, compete ā to determine who is the very best. Awaiting the winner is a world (or interim) championship and a $1 million reward. Itās prizefighting in the purest sense. Lowbrow, inflammatory marketing and āwhat have you done for me latelyā matchmaking be damned.
Actions speak louder than preconceived notions in this environment. Kyoji Horiguchi, a former three-time bantamweight champion between Bellator and Rizin, was among the favorites entering the tournament. His opening-round opponent Mix was somewhat written off after a failed bantamweight title bid against Juan Archuleta two years prior. Mix more than delivered, rag-dolling Horiguchi in key moments to take a competitive five-round decision.
āI felt going into it just nervous, very nervous energy,ā Mix told CBS Sports of his loss to Archuleta. "Not knowing if I was ready at the moment to do the whole five roundsā¦ I just didnāt feel I was ready to go for five rounds if I didnāt finish him. So I felt that nervous energy and I felt when I got on his back in the early rounds that I needed to finish him.
āIf you look at my Horiguchi fight, I was able to get a takedown in the first 10 seconds of Round 5 because Iām working so much harder inside the gym. Iāve completely changed my training habits and my lifestyleā¦ Now itās my time. Iām fully mature this time. Iām three years older. Iām not coming for one title, Iām coming for many. This is just my step towards my first. This is my step into stardom. Iām going to win the Grand Prix title. Iām going to snatch Raufeon Stotsā interim belt off his arm and Iām taking that $1 million from him. Iām going to make him quit. Heās going to give me that $1 million on Saturday.ā
Stots has progressed through the Grand Prix as de facto titleholder ever since bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis was forced out of the tournament with an injury, elevating Stots vs. Archuleta to an interim title fight. Stots is now the measuring stick but certainly has a point to prove after a snooze-inducing split decision win against Danny Sabatello. The fight almost went awry due to one awful scorecard, but Stots emerged as the rightful winner. Stots, much like Mix, approaches the finals with a more mature mindset.
āI take part of the blame for that because I didnāt really care about or respect Danny Sabatello as a fighter,ā Stots told CBS Sports. "I figured, āOK, if he gets position, Iāll be OK. He wonāt be able to last and he wonāt be able to really do anything to me.ā So I didnāt respect him and that was my fault. I didnāt bring in one wrestler to train with. I just didnāt. In hindsight that was a bad idea.
āThe judging was terrible, but I can only improve what I can improve. I can only look at myself. This camp, Iāve changed that mindset just because of who Iām fighting. Because of who Iām fighting, Iāve brought in people to put me in the positions that Patchy Mix will be in and also try to finish me. I brought in people that are the best in the world. I also went out to train with [UFC fighters] Cory Sandhagen and Ryan Hall for specific positions. Iām prepared now. This one really, really counts. I have a lot of respect for his fighting skills.ā
If skill and merit are not enough to whet your fight appetite, youāll be relieved to know there is a degree of tension between the two parties.
āThe only way weāre staying up on the feet is if I want to,ā Mix said. āWeāll clash or Iāll make him shootā¦ We will grapple and he will get strangled. One way or the other, he will get strangled. Heās lucky we didnāt train when he was at the gym with me because I would have strangled him every single day. So next Saturday, he better come with his A-game. He better hope we donāt go to the ground because I know heās going to be trying to kick my legs and try to run away.ā
āHe probably finds me quite annoying because I got stuff he wants,ā Stots said. "Iām not here to be your friend.
āIf we end up standing, bro, you aināt dictating a god damn thing. You canāt dictate a god damn thing. Youāre going to react to what the fā I got to do. I feel like thatās where our skill sets differ. I feel like Iāve shown, and this is in fights, that Iām a better striker. He hasnāt shown that in fights. He got pieced up by, whatās that kidās name? James Gallgher. He got pieced up by Gallagher.ā