Bellator 297 is set later TONIGHT (Saturday, June 16, 2023) inside the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, Illinois, headlined by a light heavyweight fight as Vadim Nemkov goes on to defend his fourth consecutive title when he fights Yoel Romero. The event will headline the competition for the bantamweight title as Sergio Pettis fights current featherweight champion Patricio “Pitbull” Freire.
Many of our readers check in before, during and after the fights to share their thoughts on all the action going into 6 p.m. ET With “Prelims” on YouTube (Watch them here) and then go to Showtime at 9 p.m. ET to make the master card. Feel free to leave a comment (or 297) about the spells and chat with all the other lunatics during the show – it’s always so much fun!
BELLATOR 297 FAST RESULTS:
205lbs: Champion Vadim Nemkov vs. Yoel Romero
135 lbs: champ Sergio Pettis vs. champion Patricio “Pitbull” Freire-Pettis via unanimous decision
205 lbs: Corey Anderson against. Phil Davis-Anderson via split decision
265 lbs: Daniel James against. Gokhan Sarikam – Saricam by unanimous decision
170 lbs.: Kyle Crotcher vs. Bobby Nash
205 lbs.: Alex Polizzi vs. Carl Moore
265 lbs.: Wladmir Gouvea vs. Gabriel Sayeg
155 lbs.: Mike Hamill vs. Shamil Nechaif
145 lbs.: Timur Khizrev vs. Richie Smolin
155 lbs: Gadzhi Rabadanov against. Peter Boist-Rabadanov by unanimous decision
170 lbs: Jalil Willis against. Ramzan Kuramagomedov – Kuramagomedov via first-round knockout
155 lbs: Archie Colgan against. Emmanuel Sanchez – Colgan by unanimous decision
185 lbs: Norbert Novene Jr against. Kamil Onizczuk-Novini Jr. via first-round knockout
185 lbs: Jordan Newman against. Matthew Perry – Newman by First Round Presentation (Americana)
145 lbs: Cody Low against. Edwin Chavez – Law by unanimous decision
BELLATOR 297 PLAY-BY-PLAY:
205 lbs: champ Vadim Nemkov against. Yoel Romero
first round:
Second round:
Third round:
Fourth round:
Fifth round:
The final result:
135 lbs: champ Sergio Pettis opposite the champion Patricio “Pitbull” Freire
Round 1: Hard leg kick by Betis. Freire is taking his time. Finally, Freire lands a leg kick. Right hand landing by Freire. Then he scores two more kicks. A short left tackle by Freire before returning for a leg kick. Pettis runs into a jab followed by a right hand. Two minutes down. The head kick almost lands on Freire. Right hand scores the counter of Freire. Betis rallies and Freire scores a beautiful takedown. Freire is looking for back control but Betis defends nicely. The two get back on their feet. Only 90 seconds on the clock. Betis attempts a head kick again but Freire avoids it. Gets through the lead shot from Pettis. Solid leg kick in return by Freire. Freire blows Betis with a right-hand electric meter. 10-9 Freire
Round Two: Pettis opens the round with a left hand counter. Calf kick from Freire. Left hook points to Freire before being tackled with a right arm by Betis. Bettis goes to the body. Freire continues to pretend to be right-handed, trying to coax Bettis into biting. The hero is calm. Two minutes off the clock. Pettis dumps a quick combination that immobilizes Freire. Freire is now in attack and hurts Betis with his right inside before slamming into the knee. His body was dismembered by Bettis’ bullets. Then he did a combination of four punches. Get a freer tag. Less than a minute left. Freire’s takedown attempt was stuffed along the cage. The spinning wheel kick caught Freire above his head as he backed away. Pettis swarms but the round is coming to an end and Freire is saved by the buzzer. 10-9 Bates
Round 3: Driving leg kick by Freire. Bettis rushes and scores a great combination. Freire pressed along the cage with a takedown only to have Pettis stuff her again. Saab 1-2 lands for Betis. He follows it up with a nod. Then a slash kick. Bettis moves and fires a leather shot. Freire finally opens and registers a right-hand counter. Two minutes off the clock. Both bantamweights exchange punches and kicks inside. Bettis shows off his speed and lands four strikes in a row, followed by a body shot. Freire started to bleed in his left eye. Low kick from Betis. One minute left. A hard hit and a right by Freire, but Pettis returns with a combination. Freire is able to move and get removed before 20 seconds. Tough tour to score. 10-9 Bates
Round Four: Both heavyweights take their time here in the fourth round. Pettis opens with leg kicks. Freire fouled on the left counter. Brief exchange of punches inside. Pettis scores a good left hand in and then defends another takedown. Slash kick by Betis. Freire looked to fight the length of the cage with two minutes left but Pettis shook him. Bettis leads the cage center. Freire lands on his right hand the sweet counter and is looking to change level again. Bettis cannot be taken down. He throws a substitution kick and a forehand kick to the face to finish the frame. 10-9 Bates.
Round 5: It looks like Freire needs a finish this round. He misses the spin kick for Freire. He presses more, but Betis is very fast. Bettis downs straight left. Great right scores for Freire. Bettis switches positions. A front kick to the shin lands the champion. Almost two minutes to the hour. Quick combination finding a home for ‘SP’. Freire closes the distance along the fence but Bettis spins out of harm’s way. More counterpunching from Pettis. Freire still presses, but he eats a hit. Only about 90 seconds left in the title fight. Both fighters are missing big right hands. Bettis threatens to remove it himself, then prepares for a shaky right. Freire is looking for a spinning backwards fist with 10 seconds left, but it’s not enough. 10-9 Bates
Final result: Betis defeated. Freire by unanimous decision
205 lbs: Corey Anderson against. Phil Davis
Round 1: Brief overview here. Davis changes level, but Anderson stays on his feet and pins Davis along the cage with his own. Anderson scores a takedown. Davis runs back and takes Anderson’s back all the way to the cage before getting a short takedown. More pressure along the cage by Davis. Two minutes off the clock. The two lighthearted ones finally exchanged a few punches. Davis twists but appears to be a slip or ankle problem. Anderson moves in with an insult to the head and body. Davis backtracks along the cage. He is able to control and threaten to suffocate. Anderson runs away and lands a sweet kick in the leg before shooting him to stop him. Anderson catches up, but Davis scrambles hard. Both mean back to the feet. Davis is now on his back again. Anderson with manual control. He is able to swing backwards to finish the round. 10-9 Anderson
Round two: short blow to Anderson 30 seconds off the clock. Both men bluff and don’t throw much. A leg kick and then a body kick land Davis. Anderson’s tough left hand scores. Davis wrestles again to the length of the cage. Anderson breaks hands and spins. Two minutes down. Anderson with his right hand, followed by his left. Davis hasn’t landed much of anything. More work along the cage. Short Knees Inside by Davis. Anderson finds a home for another right hand on his feet. Davis finally comes back with a 1-2 score. Anderson moves to the clinch. One minute left. The two are separated. Anderson with a nice stretch and Davies almost recovered. 10-9 Anderson
Round 3: Body kick landed by Anderson. Davis sniffs a few shots before landing a double. Scores with a lower leg kick from Anderson. Davis returns with a nod. Anderson appears to land on the left. Davis’ big right hand. Anderson brings him back with a whipping hook across his body. The pressure builds before Anderson shoots inside to clear the cage. Anderson almost gets back in control, but Davis gets back on his feet. The two light heavyweights now triumphing along the fence. They broke in the end. Anderson with a nice body before landing a spinning backhand. Anderson with more pressure. Davis needs more production. Big 1-2 by Davis followed by a punch. Anderson is not backing down. They exchanged shots and Anderson’s mouthpiece fell off. 10-9 Davis
Final result: Anderson defeated. Davis via Split Resolution
265 lbs: Daniel James against. Gokhan Sarikam
Round 1: James Press and Sarikam hit a counter shot in a short takedown. James looks to clinch along the cage. Saricam short punch. A low blow lands against Sarikam but the referee doesn’t see it. James with more knees on the inside. Saricam returns with his own. Two minutes down. Both heavyweights still wrestle along the cage. Sarikam tries to shoot but James gently defends. James then tries to jump to throw Saricam but he defends. Two minutes left. More grappling over the fence. Finally, Saricam gets a takedown and lands in the highest level. Body work by Saricam. James doesn’t do much for the class or vice versa. Hammer fist lands by Saricam. More pound land for Sarikam to finish the round. 10-9 Sarikam
Round 2: Hard leg kick lands by Sarikam to start the round. Another kick from Sarikam. Then it records the removal process. James runs back to the fence to stand up. Saricam cuts the corner and enters a half-mountain. He lands short punches. James does a good job of controlling the wrists and limiting the damage. Sarikam’s sharp elbow shakes James’ head. More elbows from above. Two minutes off the clock. The crowd becomes agitated, but Sarikkam manages enough. James looks exhausted. The Saricam stays heavy on top and is happy to land short punches to the head and body. The round ends with Saricam in the lead again. 10-9 Sarikam
Round 3: James chasing Sarikam assumes he needs to finish here. Leg kick lands by Sarikam. He is distancing from James. Sarikam almost clipped James during a quick exchange inside. Sarikam swoops in for the takedown, but James gently defends. James controls along the cage. Saricam reverses and goes down some knees. James reverse now. Not much offense that landed. Three minutes left. The referee finally steps in to reset the procedure. Sarikam goes straight back to his takedown and James stuffs it. James is now looking for chokehold, but Sarikam flees to the dismay of the crowd. The heavy weights continue to maneuver for position along the cage. The crowd is still booing. James and Sarikam exchange some knees on the inside before Sarikam lands and ends the round. 10-9 Sarikam
The end result: Saricam def. James via unanimous decision
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