BELLATOR BOOKS LYOTO MACHIDA VS. CHAEL SONNEN, ONE SIGNS VITOR BELFORT, CRO COP RETIRES
Four MMA legends have been back in the news again, and you’ll be able to read what they’re up to beneath.
Bellator Books Lyoto Machida vs. Chael Sonnen
Bellator has been book legends fights and this time the promotion has signed a light heavyweight competition between Lyoto Machida and Chael Sonnen. ESPN’s Ariel Helwani affirmed the reservation, though Bellator has not announced a date or place for the competition as of yet. Notably, the contest will take place at 205lbs after Machida last competed at middleweight and Sonnen at heavyweight.
Machida (25-8) defeated Rafael Carvalho via split decision in his Bellator debut and defeat both Eryk Anders and Vitor Belfort earlier that at the Octagon in what was a comeback 2018 for”The Dragon.” Though he’s 40-years-old today, Machida showed last year that he still has a lot of gas left in the tank. Many believed he had been next in line for a rematch against Bellator middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi, but rather he will move back up to light heavyweight for this big fight against Sonnen.
Sonnen (31-16-1) is 2-2 at Bellator and is coming off of a TKO loss to Fedor Emelianenko in the semifinals of the Bellator Heavyweight Grand Prix. Prior to that, Sonnen had conquered Quinton”Rampage” Jackson in the championship quarterfinals and Wanderlei Silva before that. Though he’s 41 now and no longer an elite fighter, Sonnen continues to property big-name matchups due to his entertaining struggles and colorful personality.
So far as the gambling line goes, look for Machida for a big favorite in this one. His strong takedown defense abilities combined with vicious knockout power contrary to a chinny fighter like Sonnen makes this an extremely favorable matchup on paper.
ONE Championship Inks Vitor Belfort
After last year’s signings of Eddie Alvarez, Demetrious Johnson and Sage Northcutt, it appears the ONE Championship isn’t done signing former UFC fighters just yet. The Singapore-based MMA advertising announced over the weekend it has signed former UFC light heavyweight champion Vitor Belfort into some new, multi-fight contract. Belfort was released from the UFC after announcing his retirement after a KO loss to Machida in May 2018, but ONE gave him an offer that he can not refuse, and he will end his short lived retirement when he fights for ONE after this year, probably in Brazil as the advertising looks to expand in South America.
ONE has not announced who Belfort’s first competition will be, but there are plenty of alternatives for him. Most probably Belfort is going to be ticketed to a heavyweight fight since he will not need to cut weight in that circumstance. An individual could readily give Belfort a name fight against their heavyweight winner Brandon Vera, but they might want to give him an easier fight against a journeyman for example James McSweeney. Roger Gracie is your advertising’s light heavyweight/cruiserweight winner, but he hasn’t fought in a couple of decades. Perhaps ONE could reserve that fight in Brazil. At the same time, Belfort stated he would be interested in boxing and kickboxing fights. I personally believe the 41-year-old Belfort should have stayed retired, but at least he’ll make some good money beneath the 1 banner. Cro Cop Retires
Legendary heavyweight Mirko Cro Cop has retired, just weeks after a decision win over Roy Nelson in Bellator. According to reports, Cro Cop suffered a stroke and must retire. Cro Cop (38-11-2, 1 NC) will retire at age 44 as one of the best heavyweights to compete in the game. He’ll retire to a 10-fight win series, one which saw him fight and compete throughout the world for the best promotions in MMA. We at MMAOB wish Cro Cop the very best of luck .
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