Bellator has a strong lineup of fights scheduled on Saturday night to close out their doubleheader of events at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA.
In the main event, Bellator Featherweight Champion Cris Cyborg will look to continue her dominance when she faces Arlene Blencowe for the second time.
Follow along throughout the evening for updates.
Click here for a preview of the card.
Quick Results
Preliminary Card (8:30PM EDT / 2:30PM HST) (Youtube)
Bout 1: Lance Gibson Jr. def. Nainoa Dung via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 2: Justin Gonzales def. Kai Kamaka III via Decision, Split
Bout 3: Dayana Silva def. Janay Harding via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 4: Bobby King def. Keoni Diggs via Decision, Split
Bout 5: Goiti Yamauchi def. Levan Chokheli via Submission, Armbar (RD 1, 3:49)
Main Card (10:30PM EDT / 4:30PM HST) (Showtime)
Bout 6: Yancy Medeiros def. Emmanuel Sanchez via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 8: Justine Kish def. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane via Decision, Unanimous
Postlims (Youtube)
Bout 11: Sumiko Inaba def. Whittany Pyles via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 1:22)
Bout 12: Randi Field def. Maraya Miller via Submission, Rear Naked Choke (RD 2, 0:48)
Bout 13: Jordan Winski def. Ryan Dela Cruz via Decision, Unanimous
Live Coverage
Bout 13: Ryan Dela Cruz (12-8) vs. Jordan Winski (11-3) (Lightweight)
Winski Takes Decision Win Against Dela Cruz
Jordan Winski had a hard-fought victory in the final bout of the night, defeating Ryan Dela Cruz in a unanimous decision outcome (29-28, 29-28 & 29-28).
Winski earned a lead early in the fight, landing the best shots in stand-up exchanges and taking Dela Cruz down briefly.
Winski spent most of the final round searching for a rear naked choke against Dela Cruz.
The fight turned bloody in the closing seconds, as ground and pound from Dela Cruz bloodied the face of Winski.
Winski earned his first Bellator victory on Saturday night. He lost his debut for the promotion last year against Brian Moore.
Dela Cruz is now on a two-fight losing streak. His previous fight was a loss against veteran Matt Bessette on a CES card last year.
Bout 12: Randi Field (2-1) vs. Maraya Miller (1-1) (Catchweight 120 lbs)
Field Submits Miller For First Bellator Win
Randi Field earned a sudden win on Saturday night, catching Maraya Miller in the second round with a rear naked choke.
Field took the back of Miller while a takedown attempt was made on her. Fully on the back of Miller, Field locked in the rear naked choke to win the fight.
Miller had a strong opening round, unloading with a series of strikes while in full mount during the round.
The win put Field back into the win column after suffering a loss against Sumiko Inaba last year. Before then, she earned two wins on the regional scene in Canada.
Miller was making her Bellator debut after scoring a win and a loss in Combate Global in 2021.
Bout 11: Sumiko Inaba (3-0) vs. Whittany Pyles (3-4) (Flyweight)
Inaba Finishes Pyles Early With Left Hook
Sumiko Inaba scored an early knockout win against Whittany Pyles in a postlim bout, stopping her early with a left hook.
Pyles dropped to the canvas hard after taking the left hook from Inaba. One hammerfist strike was landed on the ground by Inaba before the fight was stopped by the referee.
Inaba’s record is now an undefeated four wins as a pro. Her three previous victories, which all came inside the Bellator cage, have been via stoppage.
Pyles entered the weekend with a negative record of three wins and four losses but was on a two-fight winning streak. This included a decision win she scored against Lisa Mauldin on an LFA card last month.
Bout 10: Cris Cyborg (25-2) vs. Arlene Blencowe (15-8) (Bellator Featherweight Championship)
Cyborg Goes Five Rounds Against Blencowe In Rematch, Defends Bellator Belt
Cris Cyborg continued her dominance as Bellator Featherweight Champion on Saturday night, going five rounds against Arlene Blencowe for a unanimous decision victory (49-45, 49-45 & 49-45).
Cyborg’s win saw her dominant Blencowe through all five rounds. After a newsworthy opening round, Cyborg slowly strung together enough wins for a comfortable decision victory.
Cyborg scored a knockdown in the first round, hurting Blencowe with a clean right cross. The momentum of Cyborg was stopped on the ground shortly after, as she scored an illegal knee to the head of Blencowe that caused the fight to be halted.
Cyborg was deducted a point from the round due to the knee that she landed. She finished the round strong after the fight resumed, scoring a takedown and showing aggression on the feet.
Cyborg had Blencowe’s number for the rest of the fight, out-landing her and causing a visible amount of damage.
Despite losing, Blencowe certainly had brief moments of success in the fight. Blencowe’s best shot was in the second round when she landed a left hook that seated Cyborg briefly.
Cyborg has now defended her Bellator Featherweight Championship four times since first earning it in early 2020. She first faced Blencowe in October 2020, when she scored a second round rear naked choke submission.
Blencowe earned a second fight against Cyborg after scoring two wins last year, finishing Dayana Silva and beating Pam Sorenson on scorecards.
Saturday was the first time that Cyborg went the distance in a Bellator title fight.
Bout 9: Juan Archuleta (25-3) vs. Raufeon Stots (17-1) (Bellator Bantamweight Grand Prix Quarter-Final)
Stots Finishes Archuleta To Earn Interim Belt, Advance In Grand Prix
Raufeon Stots scored a third-round finish win against Juan Archuleta to advance in the Bellator Bantamweight Grand Prix and become the promotion’s new interim champion on Saturday night.
Stots dropped Archuleta early in the third round with a head kick. Quick to follow up on this shot, Stots landed ground and pound elbows to the head of Archuleta until the fight was stopped by the referee.
The fight was slow-paced before the finish, with a large portion of the fight taking place in clinch positions.
Stots has yet to lose since joining Bellator in 2019. He is currently on a six-fight winning streak in the promotion, including previous wins over Magomed Magomedov and Josh Hill.
Now the interim Bellator Bantamweight Champion, Stots will attempt to carry the belt to the end of the eight-man bracket. If he is still the interim champ by the end of the tournament, he will face current regular champion Sergio Pettis.
Archuleta had his short title run finished in his previous bout, losing a decision to Pettis last year.
Bout 8: Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (11-1) vs. Justine Kish (7-5) (Flyweight)
Kish Scores Upset Win Over Former Champ Macfarlane
Justine Kish spoiled the return of former Bellator Flyweight Champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane, defeating her via unanimous decision after three rounds (30-27, 29-28 & 29-28).
Kish got the nod against Macfarlane after a well-rounded performance. She held her own in striking exchanges against the former champ and notched control time during sections of the fight.
Macfarlane was appearing returning for the first time since she was beaten by Juliana Velasquez in 2020. That loss caused Macfarlane to drop her 125-pound belt and put an end to her undefeated run.
Kish, a former UFC fighter, entered the weekend on a three-fight losing streak. She dropped her Bellator debut earlier this year against DeAnna Bennett.
Bout 7: Kyoji Horiguchi (29-4) vs. Patchy Mix (15-1) (Bellator Bantamweight Grand Prix Quarter-Final)
Mix Defeats Former Champ Horiguchi To Begin Bantamweight Grand Prix
Patchy Mix beat former Bellator Bantamweight Champion Kyoji Horiguchi in the first round of the promotion’s bantamweight tournament, winning via unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47 & 48-47).
Mix won numerous rounds in the fight with ground control. He took the back of Horiguchi many times, using these positions to land punches and attempt rear naked chokes.
Horiguchi made the score of the fight closer with his stand-up skills, having solid rounds against Mix when the fight remained on the feet.
Horiguchi, a 2019 Bellator champ, is now on a two-fight losing streak. His previous appearance was a loss late last year against current Bellator Bantamweight champion Sergio Pettis, who stopped him in the fourth round of a fight.
Mix has now earned three consecutive wins. His two victories last year both came via submission.
Bout 6: Yancy Medeiros (15-8) vs. Emmanuel Sanchez (20-7) (Lightweight)
UFC Vet Medeiros Wins Bellator Debut
Former UFC fighter Yancy Medeiros won his Bellator debut on Saturday night, defeating Emmanuel Sanchez via unanimous decision after three rounds (29-28, 30-27 & 30-27).
A large portion of the fight took place in stand-up positions in all three rounds. Medeiros got the better of these exchanges, out-landing Sanchez and visibly causing more damage due to his blows.
Medeiros also had success on the ground. He notably took the back of Sanchez early to attempt a rear naked choke. He got Sanchez down again in the third round, but only briefly that time.
Medeiros made the move to Bellator following a 15-fight UFC run. He exited the promotion last year after suffering four consecutive losses.
Sanchez has now lost four straight bouts in Bellator. Previous defeats came last year against high-ranked names like Patricio Pitbull and Jeremy Kennedy.
Bout 5: Goiti Yamauchi (26-5) vs. Levan Chokheli (10-1) (Welterweight)
Veteran Yamauchi Wins Welterweight Debut
Bellator veteran Goiti Yamauchi scored a quick submission win on Saturday night, catching Levan Chokheli in the first round with an armbar.
Yamauchi took the fight to the ground early to focus on grappling. After losing an early armbar attempt, Yamauchi was able to catch Chokheli with it upon the second attempt to end their fight in the fourth minute.
Yamauchi was moving up to welterweight after previously competing at lightweight. He handed Chris Gonzalez his first pro loss in his prior bout, stopping him with strikes last year.
Chokheli now has a Bellator record of one win and two losses. He earned his sole Bellator win late last year, defeating Vinicius de Jesus on scorecards.
Bout 4: Keoni Diggs (9-1) vs. Bobby King (11-4) (Lightweight)
King Scores Decision Win Over Diggs Following Striking Battle
Bobby King picked up his second victory of the year on Saturday night, prevailing in a split decision win against Keoni Diggs (29-28 King, 29-28 Diggs & 30-27 King).
The close fight was a slow-paced battle on the feet through all three frames. King was the more aggressive fighter in all three rounds, pushing the pace and constantly advancing on Diggs.
King was riding the momentum of a win he scored against Aviv Gozali in February, becoming the first person to defeat that grappling specialist.
Diggs was handed his first loss last year, suffering a split decision loss against veteran Daniel Weichel. Before then, he had two submission wins in Bellator.
Bout 3: Janay Harding (6-5) vs. Dayana Silva (9-7) (Featherweight)
Silva Earns First Bellator Win, Defeats Harding
Dayana Silva out-landed Janay Harding on the feet for a unanimous decision win (30-27, 30-27 & 30-27).
Silva had the better shots in a three-round stand-up battle. While Silva was often on the counter-attack, she ended up landing the more impactful strikes.
Harding was submitted last time around, losing in May 2021 against Leah McCourt.
Silva earned her first Bellator victory with the performance and snapped a two-fight losing streak that she had.
Bout 2: Kai Kamaka III (9-4-1) vs. Justin Gonzales (12-1) (Featherweight)
Gonzales Returns To Win Column Against Kamaka III
Justin Gonzales bounced back from his sole pro loss on Saturday night, prevailing in a close split decision win over Kai Kamaka III (29-28 Kamaka III, 30-27 Gonzales & 29-28 Gonzales)
Gonzales and Kamaka III fought in a fast-paced striking battle through all three rounds. The fight was hard to score at times, as the fighters traded combinations of shots and both succeeded at times.
Gonzales was returning after taking his first pro loss last year, losing a unanimous decision to Aaron Pico. Gonzales had 12 wins as a pro before then.
Kamaka III, a former UFC fighter, was making his second appearance in Bellator. He won his promotional debut in December 2021, defeating John de Jesus via unanimous decision.
Bout 1: Lance Gibson Jr. (5-0) vs. Nainoa Dung (4-2) (Lightweight)
Gibson Jr. Controls Dung on the Ground For Sixth Win
Lance Gibson Jr. picked up his sixth pro win on Saturday night, succeeding on the ground against Nainoa Dung for a unanimous decision result (30-26, 30-25 & 30-25).
Gibson Jr. had to battle past a scary moment early to keep his undefeated record alive.
Dung scored a flash knockdown early against Gibson Jr., dropping him with a left hook. Gibson Jr. recovered and had a strong showing later in the round, taking Dung down and scoring with ground and pound shots for numerous minutes.
Gibson Jr. continued to control the fight in the second round, taking Dung down again for ground and pound. He cut Dung open late in the round with ground and pound shots.
Gibson Jr.’s success on the ground kept going in the final round as well.
Four of Gibson Jr.’s pro wins have taken place in the Bellator cage. His previous victory was in October 2021, when he stopped Raymond Pina with ground and pound.
Dung was coming back after earning a unanimous decision win over Izzy William in April 2021.
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