Bellator MMA and RIZIN are set to stage a historic event early tomorrow (Sat., Dec. 31, 2022) from inside the famed Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan which will feature five of best fighters the promotion has to offer square off against one another. Headlining the event will be A.J. McKee taking on RIZIN Lightweight champion, Roberto de Souza, in a non-title fight. In further action, RIZIN Featherweight champion will take on current Bellator MMA 145-pound king, Patricio Pitbull.
The event, which begins with RIZIN 40, will air live at 12 a.m. ET on Sat. (Dec. 31, 2022) on pay-per-view (PPV) on FITE. The main card of “RIZIN vs Bellator MMA,” however, will only be shown in select countries (excluding the US), and is set to begin at 5 a.m. ET. The taped version of the event will then air on Showtime later that night at 8 p.m. ET.
Feel free to leave a comment (or several) about the bouts and chat with all the other Maniacs during the show — it’s always a lot of fun!
Bellator MMA vs RIZIN Quick Results:
155 lbs.: A.J. McKee vs. Champion Roberto de Souza
145 lbs.: Champion Patricio Pitbull vs. Champion Kleber Koike
135 lbs.: Juan Archuleta vs. Soo Chul Kim
125 lbs.: Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Hiromasa Ougikubo
155 lbs.: Gadzhi Rabadanov vs. Koji Takeda
RIZIN 40
108 lbs.: Seika Izawa vs. Si Woo Park – Izawa via split-decision
135 lbs.: Naoki Inoue vs. Kenta Takizawa – Inoue via second-round submission (armbar)
265 lbs.: Tsuyoshi Sudario vs. Junior Tafa – Tafa via first-round knockout, punches
125 lbs.: John Dodson vs. Hideo Tokoro – Dodson via first-round knockout, punches
135 lbs.: Genji Umeno vs Ren Hiramoto (boxing match) – Hiramoto via second round knockout, punch
135 lbs.: Yuki Motoya vs. Rogério Bontorin – Motoya via second-round knockout, flying knee
155 lbs.: Johnny Case vs. Luiz Gustavo – Case via first-round knockout, punches
145 lbs.: Chihiro Suzuki vs. Yoshiki Nakahara – Suzuki via first-round knockout, punch
155 lbs.: BeyNoah vs. Sho Patrick Usami – Usami via first-round knockout, punch
135 lbs.: Tatsuya Nakazawa vs Yushi Sakura- Yushi via unanimous decision
Bellator MMA vs RIZIN Play-By-Play:
155 lbs.: A.J. McKee vs. Champion Roberto de Souza
Round 1:
Round 2:
Round 3:
Final result:
145 lbs.: Champion Patricio Pitbull vs. Champion Kleber Koike
Round 1:
Round 2:
Round 3:
Final result:
135 lbs.: Juan Archuleta vs. Soo Chul Kim
Round 1:
Round 2:
Round 3:
Final result:
125 lbs.: Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Hiromasa Ougikubo
Round 1:
Round 2:
Round 3:
Final result:
155 lbs.: Gadzhi Rabadanov vs. Koji Takeda
Round 1: Rabadanov with an inside leg kick to start things off. Nice left hook, then a blitz from Takeda. Rabadanov evades. Overhand right from Takeda, left hooks in return from Rabadanov. Nice inside leg kick from Takeda hits its mark. Rabadanov drops Takeda with a huge right hand! He gets up but Rabadanov drops him again and Takeda is on wobbly legs. He falls but gets back up and Rabadanov is piling on the pressure. Another huge right land and Takeda is in trouble. They clinch and Takeda is trying to recover. He seems to have recovered with a minute remaining in the opening round. Rabadanov takes his foot off the gas pedal. Rabadanov tags his foe with another right hand. He swarms and he lands a right hook that stuns Takeda as the round comes to an end. 10-9 Rabadanov
Round 2:
Round 3:
Final result:
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