Four MMA legends are back in the news again, and you’ll be able to read what they are up to below.
Bellator Books Lyoto Machida vs. Chael Sonnen
Bellator has been book legends struggles and now the promotion has signed a light heavyweight contest between Lyoto Machida and Chael Sonnen. ESPN’s Ariel Helwani affirmed the reservation, though Bellator hasn’t 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 introduction and defeat both Eryk Anders and Vitor Belfort earlier that in the Octagon in what was a comeback 2018 for”The Dragon.” Though he is 40-years-old now, Machida showed last year he still has a lot of gas left in the tank. Many thought he was next in line to get a rematch against Bellator middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi, but rather he will move back up to light heavyweight for this significant fight against Sonnen.
Sonnen (31-16-1) is currently 2-2 at Bellator and is coming off of a TKO loss to Fedor Emelianenko at 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 is 41 now and no longer an elite fighter, Sonnen continues to property big-name matchups due to his entertaining fights and colorful personality.
As far as the betting line goes, start looking for Machida for a large favorite in this one. His strong takedown defense abilities together with vicious knockout power against a chinny fighter like Sonnen makes this an extremely favorable matchup on paper.
ONE Championship Inks Vitor Belfort
After a year’s signings of both Eddie Alvarez, Demetrious Johnson and Sage Northcutt, it seems that ONE Championship is not done signing former UFC fighters just yet. The Singapore-based MMA advertising announced over the weekend it’s 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 deny, and he’ll end his short-lived retirement when he fights for ONE later this year, likely in Brazil as the advertising looks to expand in South America.
ONE hasn’t announced who Belfort’s first competition is going to be, however there are plenty of options for him. Most likely Belfort is going to be ticketed into a heavyweight fight since he will not need to cut weight in that circumstance. An individual could easily give Belfort a name fight against their heavyweight winner Brandon Vera, but they may want to give him an easier fight against a journeyman for example James McSweeney. Roger Gracie is the promotion’s light heavyweight/cruiserweight winner, but he has not fought in two years. Maybe ONE could book that struggle in Brazil. At the same time, Belfort stated he would be interested in boxing and kickboxing fights. Personally, I think the 41-year-old Belfort should have stayed retired, but he’ll make some good cash under the ONE bannerads. Cro Cop Retires
Legendary heavyweight Mirko Cro Cop has retired, just weeks after a decision win over Roy Nelson in Bellator. Based on reports, Cro Cop suffered a stroke and has to retire. Cro Cop (38-11-2, 1 NC) will retire at age 44 as one of the best heavyweights to ever compete in the game. He’ll retire on 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 top of luck .
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