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TOTAL NUMBER OF BELLATOR FIGHTS: 3,225
TOTAL NUMBER OF BELLATOR EVENTS: 290
Bellator MMA held its penultimate 2022 event in Chicago with a full slate including a pair of championship affairs. The night got off to a blazing start but cooled down when the main card rolled around, ending with a dull roar. Bellator 288 featured its light heavyweight king possibly cementing himself as the best in the world, a flawless Dagestani reaching new heights and a returning big man making a statement by smashing a homegrown talent.
Clearing the Field: Vadim Nemkov staved off Corey Anderson in their rematch for light heavyweight gold and the finals of the 205-pound grand prix. Winning a five-round decision, Nemkov cemented himself with the most successful title defenses (three) of any champion in his division’s history in Bellator.
Win First, Finish Second: Nemkov’s stoppage rate sits at an even 80% following his 25-minute affair with Anderson. All three of Nemkov’s professional decision wins have taken place with Bellator.
Perfect Combination of Fighting Names: Usman Nurmagomedov became a perfect 16-0 as a pro by claiming a one-sided decision over Patricky Freire. The Dagestan native is one of a small number of competitors signed by major organizations sporting an unbeaten record with over 15 wins. He joins names like Shavkat Rakhmonov, Movsar Evloev, Reinier de Ridder, Movlid Khaybulaev and Khusein Askhabov.
Not Khabib-Like: Nurmagomedov is now the seventh Russian competitor to hoist Bellator gold, far higher than the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s total of three. He is, however, the first in the organization to come from Dagestan.
Very Slow, but Extremely Steady: The decision over “Pitbull” dropped Nurmagomedov’s career finish rate to 81%. Two of his three wins on the scorecards have come under the Bellator banner, while he made it to the organization by putting away 10 of 11 foes inside the distance.
Bellator Bash Bros: In a losing effort, the former lightweight champ entered into his 24th Bellator fight by attempting to make his first 155-pound title defense. He is tied with Saad Awad for the second-most outings in company history, with just his brother, Patricio Freire (27), above them.
Been Around Since Bellator 36: Freire fell short for the ninth time on the roster, moving him to third place for the most losses in organizational history. Awad (11) and Georgi Karakhanyan (12) are the only two to suffer more Bellator defeats.
A New Haircut in Town: Making his successful promotional debut, Timur Khizriev snagged a decision over Daniel Weichel. The Dagestani fighter known as “Imam” is a perfect 12-0 as a pro, but he has only finished two opponents across his last eight victories.
Those Russian Checks Dried Up: Returning to Bellator for the first time since his pro debut over eight years ago, Daniel James scorched Tyrell Fortune with an uppercut and put him away with ground-and-pound. “The Predator” boosted his finish rate to 93% as a pro, and his last 11 wins have all come by stoppage.
His First Nine Foes Combined to Be 9-7: Levan Chokheli bounced back from his first career stoppage loss by topping Roman Faraldo on the scorecards. Prior to his Bellator signing in 2021, Chokheli had notched nine first-round stoppages and a no contest. Since then, both of his triumphant performances have lasted the full 15 minutes.
But No Doctor to Sew Up Pitbull: Making his company debut against Sean Connor Fallon, Imamshafi Aliev slashed open Fallon’s face with an elbow to force physician intervention. His doctor stoppage win at 3:20 of Round 1 is the fifth-fastest to prompt medical staff involvement in Bellator history.
To Riverdale and Back Again: In 50 seconds, Archie Colgan demolished Jesse Hannam to enhance his spotless record to 6-0. By far the fastest win of his career, Colgan has put five of six adversaries out of there before the final bell.
Time for a Step Up in Competition: It took Sullivan Cauley 61 seconds to level Jay Radick and become a 5-0 fighter. All five of Cauley’s victories have come in the Bellator cage, and resulted in first-round knockouts.
Captain Sully: A mere five wins into his career, “Sully” has performed five first-round knockouts. The Bellator record is six, which is held by A.J. McKee.
Easy Record to Reach: Just 26 years of age, Cauley has already tied the Bellator light heavyweight record for the most knockouts with five. Liam McGeary and Muhammad Lawal both tallied five knockouts in their respective Bellator tenures as well.
Newman’s Own: A perfect five wins with zero defeats is Jordan Newman, who landed a rear-naked choke on Jayden Taulker in the second round. It marked the first time “Not Human” had ever performed a submission.
Never Say Never Again: Coming into Bellator 288, neither Nurmagomedov (15 fights) nor Freire (34 fights) has never competed beyond the third round (15 fights), Faraldo (eight fights) and Jairo Pacheco (seven fights) had never been defeated and Fallon had never been knocked out (23 fights).