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2022 was an interesting year for Bellator MMA. Two World Grand Prix tournaments dominated the headlines, titles changed hands and young stars continued to rise.
Now, with 2023 looming, it’s time to look ahead at what could be a great year for the promotion. From the Bantamweight World Grand Prix finals, to a lightweight title showdown between a former featherweight champion and the new 155-pound king, to a potential showdown of MMA legends, let’s take a look at five fights we’re hoping to see in the Bellator cage in the coming year.
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Usman Nurmagomedov vs. AJ McKee
After conquering featherweight with his stunning run through the Grand Prix tournament that was capped off with a shocking title win over Patricio Pitbull, McKee fell in the rematch by narrow unanimous decision. A jump to lightweight was a smart move by McKee, putting less stress on his body with weight cuts as he hit his late 20s. In his 155-pound debut, McKee showed a wilder, more wide-open style in decisioning Spike Carlyle.
One month after McKee made his lightweight debut, Nurmagomedov took the division’s crown by beating Patricky Pitbull. Now 16-0 with five wins in the Bellator cage, Nurmagomedov has fully delivered on the promise he held as a blue-chip prospect — just as McKee did during his run through 145.
McKee is a special talent, special enough that there’s no real need for a long, drawn-out process of proving himself worthy of a title shot in his new weight class. A battle of two young, talented fighters with perfectly contrasting styles is about as good of a fight as the promotion could possibly make, and the winner would have a strong case to move up the pound-for-pound ranks.
Raufeon Stots (ic) vs. Patchy Mix
It may be cheating to include a fight that basically has to be made given it’s the finals of the Bantamweight World Grand Prix, but nothing is a guarantee in this sport until the fighters are in the cage on fight night.
Mix has made clear adjustments and improvements since failing in his first shot at the bantamweight title, showing improved cardio and better pacing in his attack. He now enters the tournament finals against Stots and another chance to have a belt wrapped around his waist. Given his dangerous grappling game and improvements in the striking game, Mix is able to hang with anyone on the Bellator roster.
Hanging with Stots is a big ask, however. Stots can employ a variety of effective attacks and mix up his striking and wrestling to keep opponents off balance. Throughout the tournament, Stots has shown an ability to prepare for any kind of challenge, doing particularly well at navigating a complicated fight against Danny Sabatello in the semifinals. Assuming the two men find their way into the cage as planned, fans are in for an intriguing fight with the winner taking the interim championship into a likely late 2023 bout with champion Sergio Pettis.
Patricio Pitbull vs. Aaron Pico
This fight seemed as though it was a lock to happen in 2023 when Pico was once again struck with a bout of bad luck. Pico dislocated his shoulder in the first round of an October bout with Jeremy Kennedy, resulting in a TKO loss. The loss snapped a six-fight winning streak that showed Pico had begun to figure things out after an unexpectedly rocky start to his career.
Pitbull needs fresh challengers for his featherweight title and a fight with Pico promises fireworks. Of course, all of that hinges on Pico getting healthy and possibly even needing to pick up a win to have “earned” a title shot given the most recent fight on his resume is technically a loss.
Still, the pieces would seem to be in place for Pitbull and Pico to share the cage in the second half of 2023 and fight fans should truly be hoping it happens.
Cris Cyborg vs. Kayla Harrison
There are some obvious hurdles to clear in making this fight, not the least of which is getting Bellator and PFL on the same page in putting their top female stars in the cage. Harrison is coming off a shocking loss in her most recent fight, but that only put a small dent in the amount of interest there would be for Cyborg vs. Harrison.
Both promotions have seemed willing to make the fight in the past and it makes a lot of sense for Bellator as, to be honest, there aren’t many great options for opponents to face Cyborg. She’s such a dominant champion that she has already nearly cleared out the division.
Harrison has never been one to shy away from a challenge. While she likely is going to be focused on regaining her PFL title, she’s also aware that a win over Cyborg would be a bigger fight for her legacy than a rubber match with Larissa Pacheco.
Anderson Silva vs. Fedor Emelianenko
Yes, Emelianenko is set for a “retirement fight” with Ryan Bader in February. But how many times have we heard that song before?
Emelianenko is one of the greatest fighters in MMA history and if he gets the itch for another fight after the bout with Bader — a fight in which he’s already a considerable underdog in the early odds — why not put together the kind of ridiculous fight that would get fight fan imaginations going?
Silva and Emelianenko both deserve the opportunity to shine one last time and the fight would be interesting stylistically. Why not have a little fun?