Tokov's fight for the title and the return of Isaev: the main events of February in MMA, in addition to the battles of Emelianenko and Makhachev

Bellator 290

Date and place

: February 4, Inglewood (USA)

Notable fights

: Ryan Bader (c) -

(heavyweight title), Johnny Eblin (c) -

(middleweight title),

- Alejandra Lara,

- Henry Corrales,

- Steve Mowry ,

- Darrion Caldwell,

- Lorenz Larkin

February in the world of MMA will begin with the grand Bellator tournament in California, which will be the first for the promotion in 2023 and the last in the career of the legendary Fedor Emelianenko.

The emperor will end his farewell tour with a duel with Ryan Bader and will try not only to take revenge for the defeat four years ago, but also to win the title in the United States for the first time.

The Russian is a recognized legend and the personification of Japanese PRIDE, but in the States he could not achieve such a status.

Back in 2009, Fedor made his triumphant debut in Strikeforce, but lost in the next three bouts.

Thus ended his impressive unbeaten streak, and with it the aura of invincibility that had surrounded him for nearly a decade disappeared.

Initially, Vadim Nemkov was supposed to perform on the same show with Emelianenko, but the battle with Yoel Romero was postponed to a later date, and another representative of the Fedor Team took his place on the card.

Anatoly Tokov, who has seven victories in a row, finally got the opportunity to compete for the trophy currently owned by Johnny Eblin, a good, but far from the most versatile wrestler.

And if the Russian manages to defend himself against takedown attempts (and there will be a lot of them), then he will surely prevail.

In the stand, he is completely superior to the American and is able not only to interrupt him, but to knock him out.

Among other things, five more Russians will perform in Inglewood, and most of them will face very difficult tests.

Diana Avsaragova will test herself in a battle with a worthy opponent, who at one time even claimed the Bellator belt.

And although now Alejandra Lara is not going through the best period and is on a series of three defeats, she should be a good competitor.

Nor is Henry Corrales a whipping boy, who in his more than ten-year career managed to fight Patricio Freire and Juan Archuleta.

And although the American lost to both, in terms of skills he is much higher than all the opponents who previously stood in the way of Akhmed Magomedov, who has not yet known failures.

Even more intriguing are the three remaining battles involving the Russians.

Nikita Mikhailov will face Darrion Caldwell, a once promising bantamweight fighter capable of causing serious problems on the ground.

The long-awaited return of ex-PFL champion Ali Isaev, who has not appeared in the cage for more than three years, causes great excitement.

His opponent Steve Mowry has never lost so far, and the domestic fans are known for the fight with Valentin Moldavsky.

True, that fight lasted only 54 seconds and was declared invalid.

The American received a poke in the eye and could not continue to fight.

Mukhamed Berkhamov and Lorenz Larkin will also have to sort things out.

In July 2022, their paths already crossed, but the American deprived the fans of the spectacle by performing a forbidden blow to the back of the head.

UFC 284

Date and place

: February 11, Perth (Australia)

Notable fights

: 

(c) - Alexander Volkanovski (lightweight title), Yair Rodriguez - Josh Emmett (interim featherweight title),

- Elwes Brenner

A week after the tournament in Inglewood, the Ultimate Fighting Championship will "strike back" against its main competitor.

One of the most discussed fights of the year in mixed martial arts will take place in Perth, in which the leaders of the UFC consolidated rating will meet.

Moreover, Islam Makhachev, in a fight with Alexander Volkanovski, will put at stake not only the lightweight title, but also his reputation.

Unlike him, the Australian practically does not risk anything: if he loses, he will still remain the strongest featherweight, and his failure will be attributed to the difference in size.

If he wins, he will go down in history as the eighth champion in two divisions and deal a powerful blow to the legacy of his opponent.

After the failure, the Russians will no longer be not only afraid, but also perceived as a full-fledged heir to Khabib Nurmagomedov.

At the same show, a temporary belt in the category up to 65.8 kg will be played, which can turn into a full-fledged one after a few tens of minutes.

If Volkanovski creates a sensation in the battle with Makhachev, he will most likely remain at a heavier weight, and the victor of the battle between Yair Rodriguez and Josh Emmett will be awarded the title of absolute champion.

But if one can only speculate about such events, then one can safely expect a bright confrontation.

Both athletes focus on the stand and are sure to arrange a bloody massacre in the octagon.

Another Eagles MMA fighter will join Makhachev in Australia.

Zubaira Tukhugov was originally supposed to fight Joel Alvarez, but he pulled out of the show due to visa issues.

The Spaniard's place was taken by Elves Brenner, for whom this fight will be his debut in the promotion.

But don't underestimate him.

He owns a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu for a reason, as evidenced by nine fights won by pain and choking.

UFC

Fight

Night 218

Date and place

: February 18, Las Vegas (USA)

Notable Fights

: Marlon Vera vs. Corey Sandhagen

Let domestic fighters not appear in the main fight of the next UFC tournament, its result may affect the career of one of them.

If Marlon Vera handles Corey Sandhagen in his usual spectacular manner, he will win his fifth victory in a row and may well overtake Petr Yan in the bantamweight ranking, making it difficult for him to regain the belt.

Matchmakers are unlikely to miss the opportunity to introduce a new character into the championship race and along the way organize a long-awaited revenge between the Venezuelan and Sean O'Malley.

In the meantime, they will determine the strongest, Algemain Sterling will have time to resolve all issues with Henry Cejudo.

Thus, even success in the battle with Merab Dvalishvili may not bring the title of the first contender to the Russian, and it will take a very long time to wait for the next chance to compete for the trophy.

So Ruthless can only hope for the American.

Of the last three fights, Sandhagen won only one, and lost not only to Ian, but also to TJ Dillashaw.

And it is unlikely that it will be possible to immediately block this with winnings from Song Yadong and Vera.

Bellator 291

Date and place

: February 25, Dublin (Ireland)

Significant fights

: Yaroslav Amosov (c) - Logan Storley (welterweight title),

- Gokhan Sarikam,

- Rafael Hudson

At the end of the month, another tournament will be held by the promotion of Scott Cocker, and a duel for the belt will again crown him.

This time, the title will be defended by Yaroslav Amosov, who has not appeared in the cage since June 2021.

Then the undefeated Ukrainian dealt with Douglas Lima, and was going to hold the first defense 11 months later, but was forced to change plans.

And not to say that it was beneficial.

Convenient to him, Michael Page managed to concede the title of applicant, and Logan Storley took his place.

And although the American wrestler can hardly be compared with the champion in terms of level, he will clearly put up more serious resistance to him than the thin and frankly weak in grappling British.

Also, two Russians will perform in Ireland.

Khasan Magomedsharipov will test Rafael Hudson, a little-known Brazilian with an inconspicuous 7-4 record who has only achieved success in third-tier regional leagues.

And there are no prerequisites that he will be able to stop the younger brother of the ex-UFC star and inflict his first defeat in his career.

Unlike his compatriot, Oleg Popov will face an extremely difficult test.

The matchmakers decided not to beat around the bush and already in the opening they identified Gokhan Sarikam as his opponent, who over the past year managed to deal with Said Souma and Kirill Sidelnikov.

And if a Fedor Team representative manages to avenge a teammate, he can immediately burst into the top ten strongest Bellator heavyweights.

UFC

Fight

Night 219

Date and place

: February 25, Las Vegas (USA)

Notable Fights

: 

vs. Ryan Spann

On the same day, Nikita Krylov will try to break into the top 5 of the light heavyweight division.

After Glover Teixeira left the sport, there were fewer competitors, and only Anthony Smith, who recently spoiled his reputation, separates him from the coveted line.

The Brit was listed as a substitute for the recent fight for the vacant title but failed to make weight.

The UFC leadership does not forgive such negligence.

But in order to get past Smith, Krylov needs to break Ryan Spann's resistance.

Recently, the American has been in excellent shape, as evidenced by two early victories in the first round.

First, he "strangled" Ion Kutselaba, and then knocked out ex-challenger Dominic Reyes.

The American is very strong, has a heavy blow and fighting him in the standing position will not be the most reasonable decision for Nikita.

Therefore, a native of the Red Ray will certainly try to use his wrestling skills and wear down his opponent to the maximum.

Fortunately, in this aspect he is strong.