Gadzhi Rabadanov extended his winning streak by defeating Kevin Lee in the main event of PFL 6, while Liz Carmouche and other fighters also secured victories at the event held in Wichita, Kansas.
Valentin Moldavsky kicks off the PFL '24 season with a first-round knockout, earning six points in the heavyweight division, while Dakota Ditcheva impresses with a dominant performance in her flyweight debut. Three-time defending flyweight champion Liz Carmouche also secures a victory, positioning herself as a top contender in this year's PFL championship.
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane has missed weight for her title fight against Liz Carmouche at Bellator 300, resulting in the bout becoming a one-way title fight. Carmouche can retain her title with a win or draw, but the title will be vacated if Macfarlane wins. Despite the weight miss, Macfarlane's friendship with Carmouche remains strong, as Carmouche showed support and offered her sauna to help Macfarlane cut weight. The two fighters displayed their friendship at the ceremonial weigh-ins, with smiles and laughter during their faceoff.
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane missed weight by 1.6 pounds for her flyweight title bout against Liz Carmouche at Bellator 300. This is the second time in three fights that Macfarlane has missed weight. The fight will proceed as a five-round non-title catchweight bout, with only Carmouche eligible to leave as champion. Other title fights on the card, including Usman Nurmagomedov vs. Brent Primus and Cris Cyborg vs. Cat Zingano, are official.
At the Bellator 300 weigh-ins, former champ Ilima-Lei Macfarlane missed weight for her women's flyweight title fight against Liz Carmouche, rendering her ineligible to win the title. The event was originally scheduled to have four title fights, but with Macfarlane's weight issue, only two championship bouts remain on the main card. Undefeated champ Usman Nurmagomedov and Brent Primus made weight for their lightweight title fight, while Cris Cyborg and Cat Zingano are set for their women's featherweight title clash.
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane defeated Kana Watanabe by split decision in the Bellator 295 co-main event, using strong grappling, submission threats, and striking. With the win, Macfarlane aligns herself as a potential next title challenger to champion Liz Carmouche, who defeated DeAnna Bennett on Friday at Bellator 294. Macfarlane and Carmouche are longtime training partners and friends.
Liz Carmouche defeated DeAnna Bennett by submission in the fourth round of their Bellator 294 bout. Carmouche was motivated to finish Bennett not only because of her success in the fight but also because of her repeated failures to make weight. Carmouche criticized Bennett for being a "cheater" and lacking professionalism, and expressed her desire to "get her out of this sport."
Liz Carmouche retained her Bellator MMA flyweight championship title by submitting DeAnna Bennett via arm triangle choke in the fourth round of their fight at Bellator 294. Although Bennett was ineligible to win the belt after missing weight, Carmouche elected to put her championship on the line. Bennett had success taking Carmouche down in the first three rounds, but Carmouche's strength and experience showed in the fourth, leading to her fourth consecutive finish.
Liz Carmouche defended her Bellator flyweight title against DeAnna Bennett, winning via an arm-triangle choke in the fourth round. Sara McMann made her Bellator debut and won unanimously against Arlene Blencowe. Danny Sabatello defeated Marcos Breno via a rear-naked choke submission.
Bellator 294 took place in Honolulu, Hawaii, with Liz Carmouche defending her women's Flyweight title against DeAnna Bennett in the main event. Timothy Johnson faced Said Sowma in the co-main event. Other notable fights included Danny Sabatello defeating Marcos Breno via second-round submission and Levan Chokheli defeating Michael Lombardo via unanimous decision.
Liz Carmouche defended her Bellator flyweight championship title against DeAnna Bennett in a five-round battle at Bellator 294 in Hawaii. Carmouche won via submission in the fourth round with an arm triangle. In the co-main event, Tim Johnson defeated Said Sowma via unanimous decision.
Bellator 294 live stream for the preliminary card can be watched on MMA Fighting at 8:25 p.m. ET on Friday. The main event features Bellator flyweight champion Liz Carmouche defending her belt against DeAnna Bennett.
DeAnna Bennett missed weight for her flyweight title fight against Liz Carmouche at Bellator 294, coming in 1.2 pounds over the limit. Carmouche will still put her title on the line, but it will become vacant if she loses. This is the second time Bennett has missed weight for this matchup. Cris Lencioni also missed weight by 6.4 pounds for his featherweight bout. Bennett will surrender 30 percent of her purse as penalty for failing to make weight.