Yarsolav Amosov will get the biggest test of his extensive MMA career on Friday night, facing Bellator Welterweight Champion Douglas Lima in the main event of Bellator 260. The fight headlines a 10-fight card from the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, USA.
Here’s a full preview of the card.
Click here to skip to a preview of the main card.
Preliminary Card (6:00PM EDT) (Youtube)
Bout 1: Alex Polizzi (7-1) vs. Gustavo Trujillo (3-1) (Light Heavyweight)
Attempting to bounce back from his first pro loss, Alex Polizzi will face Gustavo Trujillo in the opening bout of the card.
Polizzi, a former LFA champ, took his first loss last year by dropping a decision to Julius Anglickas. The fight came after seven pro wins, including his promotional debut over Rafael Carvalho.
Trujillo will be making his Bellator debut in the bout. He has won his last two fights in MMA and has also won in his two most recent bare-knuckle boxing appearances.
Bout 2: Amanda Bell (7-7) vs. Marina Mokhnatkina (4-2) (Featherweight)
Featherweights Amanda Bell and Marina Mokhnatkina will collide on the prelims.
Bell has competed in Bellator for quite some time now, as this fight will be her seventh appearance in the cage. Her last fight was in September, where Leslie Smith earned a decision win over her.
Mokhnatkina will be fighting to break a two-fight skid with the appearance. She lost in her last bout, not being favorured on scorecards against Janay Harding in early 2019.
Bout 3: Lucas Brennan (4-0) vs. Matthew Skibicki (4-3) (Featherweight)
Rising featherweight contender Lucas Brennan will look for another Bellator win on Friday, facing Matthew Skibicki.
Brennan’s four pro wins have all come within the Bellator cage since he turned pro in 2019. He went the distance for the first time of his pro career in November, scoring a decision win against Andrew Salas. Before then, he had three first-round stoppage wins.
Skibicki has lost his last three fights in the cage. He last competed only three months ago, where he was stopped by Justin Vazquez.
Bout 4: Nick Newell (16-3) vs. Bobby King (9-3) (Lightweight)
Nick Newell will make his return to action when facing Bobby King on the prelims.
Newell has appeared twice in Bellator, fighting to a win and a loss in 2019. He won his promotional debut within a round, submitted Corey Browning with an arm triangle choke. Two months later, he lost a bout to Manny Muro.
He will now fight King, who is entering the promotion on a three-fight win streak from the regional scene. He has a high amount of submission wins, including his most recent bout, which was an armbar win over Steven Siler.
Bout 5: Tywan Claxton (6-2) vs. Justin Gonzales (11-0) (Featherweight)
LFA Featherweight Champion Justin Gonzales will make his Bellator debut on the preliminary card, fighting Tywan Claxton in a featherweight bout.
Gonzales has put together an impressive 11-fight win streak since turning pro in 2016. His most important win thus far was in July last year, where he stopped Jake Childers in the fourth round of a fight with strikes.
Claxton is fighting to come back from his second pro loss, which came against Jay Jay Wilson last year.
Bout 6: Kyle Crutchmer (6-1) vs. Levan Chokheli (9-0) (Welterweight)
Returning after his only pro loss, Kyle Crutchmer has a tough challenge in undefeated welterweight Levan Chokheli.
Crutchmer lost on scorecards in the fall, dropping a bout to Kemran Lachinov. Before then, he had six pro wins including two Bellator appearances.
Chokheli will be fighting in the Bellator cage for the first time on Friday. His pro career has been quick in the cage, as all of his pro wins have finished within a round.
Main Card (9:00PM EDT) (Showtime)
Bout 7: Demarques Jackson (11-5) vs. Mark Lemminger (11-3) (Welterweight)
The main card will kick off with a welterweight battle between Demarques Jackson and Mark Lemminger. Both fighters are entering the cage after losing in their last fight.
Jackson returned to Bellator just two months back, where Grachik Bozinyan defeated him via unanimous decision. He was re-joining the promotion after a four-fight run in LFA which resulted in two wins.
Lemminger has lost his last two fights in the promotion, losing via decision to Jaleel Willis and title challenger Yaroslav Amosov.
Bout 8: Aaron Pico (7-3) vs. Aiden Lee (9-4) (Featherweight)
Bellator star Aaron Pico will wager a series of finish victories when fighting Aiden Lee on Friday’s main card.
Bouncing back from 2019, a year where he lost two straight bouts, Pico has put together a strong trio of victories. In 2020, Pico earned two finish wins with strikes along with a submission win. His last fight was in November, where he scored a knockout victory against John de Jesus.
Lee has also been on a roll as of late, having won his last two bouts. He finished Jeremy Petley in his last bout, stopping him in the third round with a head kick.
The fight on Friday will be Lee’s U.S. debut, as his three previous Bellator appearances were on European lineups.
Bout 9: Paul Daley (43-17-2) vs. Jason Jackson (14-4) (Catchweight 175 lbs)
Jason Jackson has quickly made himself one of the top names in Bellator’s welterweight division. He can add a big win to his resume on Friday, or veteran fighter Paul Daley can take it all away with a loss.
Jackson has fought five times since joining the Bellator roster in 2019. After a loss in his promotional debut, Jackson has returned with decision wins over Kiichi Kunimoto, Jordan Mein, Benson Henderson and Neiman Gracie. This row of wins has shortlisted him as one of the top in the division, and rightfully so.
Daley, a pro of nearly two decades now, is currently on the best win streak since the tear he had when entering Bellator in 2015. Adding onto a streak from 2019, Daley made a comeback victory over Sabah Homasi in April, catching him with strikes in the second round to end their fight.
A win for either fighter in the co-main event would be a statement before the title fight that closes out the show.
Bout 10: Douglas Lima (32-8) vs. Yaroslav Amosov (25-0) (Bellator Welterweight Championship)
Yaroslav Amosov has been flawless through 25 fights as a pro. That long list of victories could reach a new high on Friday night, as he will challenge Bellator Welterweight Champion Douglas Lima in the main event of Bellator 260.
Amosov’s run in Bellator has been relatively short when compared to the length of his career as a whole. He joined the promotion in 2018, where he scored a decision victory against Gerald Harris.
Roughly a year later, he scored a notable win against veteran fighter David Rickels, who he finished in the second round with a darce choke.
Two wins in recent months have solidified Amosov as a title challenger, as he dominated Mark Lemminger for a doctor stoppage and handed previously undefeated fighter Logan Storley his first loss in a split decision fight.
Lima is easily the most experienced opponent Amosov has ever received, and is a large step-up with big implications.
Lima will be looking to defend his belt for the first time since earning it in 2019. He was crowned champ after defeated Rory MacDonald in the finals of an eight-man tournament that kicked off the year before.
The ongoing title reign is his third in Bellator, as he also had runs with the belt in 2014 and 2016.
He lost in his last appearance, as he was unsuccessful in challenging Bellator Middleweight Champion Gegard Mousasi in October.
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