BELLATOR RETURNS TO ACTION ON FRIDAY, AUGUST 12 WITH WELTERWEIGHT CLASH PITTING NEIMAN GRACIE VS. GOITI YAMAUCHI – LIVE ON SHOWTIME
LOS ANGELES – Last Friday, Jason Jackson (16-4) showcased a wrestling masterclass against former BELLATOR champion Douglas Lima (32-11) in a five-round main event battle. Jackson’s ability to subdue Lima’s offense earned him a shutout unanimous decision victory and with the win, Jackson now moves one step closer to a title shot and cements his status as the No. 3-ranked contender in the division, while Lima drops to the No. 4 spot.
There was also a huge shake up to the lightweight divisional rankings, as the undefeated Usman Nurmagomedov (15-0) climbs to No. 1 in the rankings with a first-round guillotine submission victory over Chris Gonzalez (7-2), while former RIZIN champion Tofiq Musayev (19-4)blasted his way into the No. 2 spot in his promotional debut by knocking out former number one contender and designated title challenger Sidney Outlaw (16-5) in just under 30 seconds.
The undefeated Dalton Rosta (7-0) earned a TKO victory against three-time NCAA D-II wrestling champion Romero Cotton (6-1) to put an end to their long-awaited grudge match, jumping two spots to No. 6 in the middleweight rankings. Human highlight-reel Roman Faraldo (8-0) makes his debut on the official BELLATOR Rankings at No. 10 in the welterweight rankings after keeping his career-long 100% KO streak intact with a devastating first-round finish against Luis Iniguez (5-2).
BELLATOR MMA returns to action on Friday, August 12 with a five round main event between Neiman Gracie (11-3) and Goiti Yamauchi (27-5). BELLATOR 284: Gracie vs. Yamauchi will air on SHOWTIME beginning at 9:00 PM ET/6:00 PM PT from the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
The co-main event of BELLATOR 284 will include a heavyweight clash between former interim champion Valentin Moldavsky (11-2) and undefeated prospect Steven Mowry (10-0). Former Flyweight Champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (11-2) will be looking for a victory in the feature bout as she faces Bruna Ellen (6-3). Former Middleweight Title Challenger Austin Vanderford (11-1) takes on Anthony Adams (9-2).
The preliminary fight card will begin at 6 p.m. ET/ 3 p.m. PT, and will be distributed on the BELLATOR MMA YouTube channel, the SHOWTIME Sports YouTube channel, and Pluto TV.
Tickets for BELLATOR MMA 284: Gracie vs. Yamauchi on sale at both Ticketmaster.com and Bellator.com.
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