LOS ANGELES – The two main cards for Bellator MMA’s annual doubleheader on the Hawaiian island of Oahu are complete with the addition of today’s confirmed bouts.
Honolulu’s Neal S. Blaisdell Arena will play home to a pair of events on back-to-back nights with Bellator 294 taking place Friday, April 21 and Bellator 295 taking place Saturday, April 22.
‘Bellator 294: Carmouche vs. Bennett 2’
Main card airs live on Showtime at 10 p.m. ET
“Bellator 294: Carmouche vs. Bennett 2” on Friday has two new main card contests, bringing Friday’s slate to five fights in total. Former Bellator bantamweight title challenger and No. 5-ranked Danny Sabatello (13-2) will return to action for the first time since his shot at the world championship, when he competes against Marcos Breno (15-2), who surprised many people when he bested Josh Hill on the scorecards in his Bellator debut. A welterweight contest pitting Levan Chokheli (11-2) and American Top Team’s Michael Lombardo (13-3) is also official for the Showtime-aired portion of the event.
The preliminary card for Bellator 294 currently features four fights, including No. 4-ranked heavyweight Tyrell Fortune (12-3), who looks to get back to his winning ways against Russia’s Sergei Bilostennyi (10-2). No. 5-ranked light heavyweight Alex Polizzi (10-2) returns to the Bellator cage and will compete against a streaking Karl Moore (11-2), who holds the No. 8 ranking. A lightweight tilt between five-fight Bellator veteran Killys Mota (14-3) and promotional newcomer Kenneth Cross (13-3) is official, as is a 145-pound bout between Oregon’s Cris Lencioni (10-3) tangling with Blake Smith (7-3). Rounding out the preliminary card is a middleweight affair between Colorado’s Anthony “Sugafoot” Adams (9-3) and Tajikistan’s Sharaf “Sherkhan” Davlatmurodov (18-4-1).
The card is headlined by a women’s flyweight world championship main event rematch pitting current champion and U.S. Marine Liz Carmouche (18-7) against No. 4-ranked flyweight challenger DeAnna Bennett (13-7-1). In the evening’s co-main event, No. 6-ranked heavyweight and Minnesota National Guardsman Tim Johnson (15-9) will compete against Said Sowma (8-4). A women’s featherweight contest featuring former UFC title challenger Sara McMann (13-6), who makes her highly anticipated Bellator debut against former No. 1 contender Arlene Blencowe (15-9), rounds out the card.
Friday night’s event is being held in honor of America’s military, veterans and first-responders, all of whom are eligible to attend the event with a guest for free entry the day of with valid proof of ID. Free admission is based on a limited capacity and available on a first come-first serve basis.
The Bellator 294 preliminary card will stream live on the Bellator MMA YouTube channel, Showtime Sports YouTube channel and Pluto TV beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
‘Bellator 295: Stots vs. Mix’
Updated start time: Main card airs live on Showtime at 11 p.m. ET
The main card for Saturday’s “Bellator 295: Stots vs. Mix” event has also been sweetened with the addition of homegrown Bellator talent and No. 3-ranked Aaron Pico (10-4), who returns from his highly publicized shoulder injury to square off against Brazil’s Otto Rodrigues (13-1), who makes his Bellator debut.
The preliminary portion of Saturday’s event also features multiple new, high-profile additions confirmed, including a marquee bout pitting two top-10 contenders against each other at featherweight, when No. 6-ranked Mads Burnell (16-4) tests his skills against No. 7-ranked Justin Gonzales (14-1). No. 8-ranked Ilara Joanne (11-6) meets fellow Brazilian Bruna Ellen (6-4) in a women’s flyweight contest, and a welterweight tilt between Alexey Shurkevich (13-5) and Japan’s Masayuki Kikuiri (8-2-1).
Bellator 295 on Saturday is main evented by the finals of the Bellator bantamweight world grand prix, which will see current interim champion Raufeon Stots (19-1) face No. 2-ranked Patchy Mix (17-1). In the co-main event, the pride of Honolulu, No. 3-ranked Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (12-2) looks to defend home turf against Japan’s No. 2-ranked Kana Watanabe (11-1-1). Also, at 125-pounds, former Bellator world champion Kyoji Horiguchi (31-5) moves down a division to welcome former UFC title challenger Ray Borg (16-5) to the Paramount-owned promotion.
Tickets for “Bellator 295: Stots vs. Mix” are on sale now and are available at Ticketmaster.com and Bellator.com.
The Bellator 295 preliminary card will stream live on the Bellator MMA YouTube channel, Showtime Sports YouTube channel and Pluto TV beginning at 7 p.m. ET.
