Bellator 277 took place Friday at SAP Center in San Jose, Calif., and with two title bouts on the books, one switched hands.
That came in the main event, where Patricio Freire (33-5 MMA, 21-5 BMMA) upset A.J. McKee (18-1 MMA, 18-1 BMMA) by unanimous decision to reclaim the featherweight title and further prove himself as one of the best fighters in Bellator history.
The co-headliner, meanwhile, ended in controversy when Corey Anderson (16-4 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) landed an illegal head butt on Vadim Nemkov (14-2 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) that prevented the light heavyweight belt from changing hands and marking a no contest to end the promotion’s 205-pound grand prix.
For more on the numbers behind the event, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from Bellator 277.
Event stats
Betting favorites went 11-2 on the card. One fight ended in a no contest.
Betting favorites improved to 1-4 in Bellator main events this year.
Total fight time for the 14-fight card was 2:12:46.
Patricio Freire def. A.J. McKee
Freire became the third three-time champion in Bellator history. Michael Chandler and Douglas Lima also accomplished the feat.
Freire, a former lightweight champion, became the first in Bellator history with four separate championship reigns.
Freire’s 11 victories in Bellator championship fights are most in company history.
Freire’s 21 victories in Bellator competition are most in company history.
Freire improved to 6-0 in career rematches.
McKee’s 18-fight winning streak was snapped for the first defeat of his career.
Aaron Pico def. Adli Edwards
Aaron Pico (10-3 MMA, 10-3 BMMA) has earned nine of his 10 career victories by stoppage.
Pico has earned seven of his 10 career victories by knockout.
Adli Edwards (9-2 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) suffered the first stoppage loss of his career with a knockout defeat.
Linton Vassell def. Tim Johnson
Linton Vassell
Linton Vassell’s (22-8 MMA, 10-5 BMMA) four-fight Bellator winning streak at heavyweight is tied for the third-longest active streak in the division behind Steve Mowry (six) and Davion Franklin (five).
Vassell improved to 4-1 since he moved up to the heavyweight division in March 2019.
Vassell has earned all three of his Bellator heavyweight victories by knockout.
Tim Johnson’s (15-9 MMA, 4-5 BMMA) three-fight losing skid is the longest of his career. He hasn’t earned a victory since October 2020.
Johnson has suffered four of his five Bellator losses by stoppage.
Tyrell Fortune def. Rakim Cleveland
Tyrell Fortune
Tyrell Fortune’s (12-2 MMA, 12-2 BMMA) 12 victories in Bellator heavyweight competition are second-most in divisional history behind Cheick Kongo (13).
Fortune’s nine stoppage victories in Bellator heavyweight competition are most in divisional history.
Fortune’s eight knockout victories in Bellator heavyweight competition are most in divisional history.
Fortune’s eight knockout victories in Bellator competition are tied for fourth-most in company history behind Michael Page (10), Patricky Freire (10) and Lima (nine).
Rakim Cleveland (22-15-1 MMA, 0-2 BMMA) has suffered both of his Bellator losses by stoppage.
Rafael Carvalho def. Dovletzhan Yagshimuradov
Rafael Carvalho
Rafael Carvalho’s (16-7 MMA, 7-6 BMMA) four-fight losing skid is the longest of his career. He hasn’t earned a victory since July 2019.
Carvalho fell to 1-6 in his past seven fights dating back to May 2018.
Carvalho has suffered four of his seven career losses by stoppage.
Kyle Crutchmer def. Michael Lombardo
Kyle Crutchmer
Kyle Crutchmer (9-1 MMA, 5-1 BMMA) has earned five of his nine career victories by decision.
Michael Lombardo (12-3 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) has suffered all three of his career losses by decision.
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