This Friday, June 14, Bellator heads to Madison Square Garden in New York City with a stacked fight card.
The main event of the evening is a Welterweight Grand Prix Semifinal bout that will see Rory MacDonald face Neiman Gracie. MacDonald recently fought to a majority draw with Jon Fitch at Bellator 220, a result that helped him to retain his title and advanced to the semifinal round of the tournament. After the fight, MacDonald declared that he “doesn’t have the same drive to hurt people anymore,” which proved to be an incredibly concerning announcement from the champion at the time.
.@Rory_MacDonald's post-fight interview. #Bellator220
"I don't know if I have that same drive to hurt people anymore." pic.twitter.com/6Iosk6RPID
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) April 28, 2019
MacDonald’s welterweight title will be on the line again at Bellator 222 when he faces Gracie.
The co-main event of Bellator 222 is an intriguing matchup between two veterans of the sport. Lyoto Machida and Chael Sonnen are set to clash in a light heavyweight bout that hasn’t attracted much attention. To some fans, that fight sits as one of the least anticipated bouts of the main card.
The six-fight main card also features an inter-promotion rematch between Darrion Caldwell and Kyoji Horiguchi. Horiguchi defended his RIZIN bantamweight title at RIZIN 14 in December when he submitted Caldwell in the third round of the bout after struggling to make an impact in the first two rounds. This time around, the two will be fighting for the Bellator bantamweight title to get the main card started.
Dillon Danis is set to feature on the main card of Bellator 222. He’ll enter the cage for the second time in his career to face Max Humphrey.
Other exciting main card bouts include a bantamweight battle between Ricky Bandejas and Patrick Mix, and a featherweight bout between Eduardo Dantas and Juan Archuleta.
The Bellator 222 prelims are equally packed, with well-known talents such as Aaron Pico, Heather Hardy, RIZIN’s Rena Kubota, and Valerie Loureda all set to compete.
See below for the Bellator 222 full fight card. Bellator 222 odds are posted underneath the fight card.
Bellator 222 Fight Card
Main Card
- Rory MacDonald (20-5-1) vs. Neiman Gracie (9-0)
- Lyoto Machida (25-8) vs. Chael Sonnen (31-16-1)
- Dillon Danis (1-0) vs. Max Humphrey (3-2)
- Ricky Bandejas (11-2) vs. Patrick Mix (10-0)
- Eduardo Dantas (21-6) vs. Juan Archuleta (22-1)
- Darrion Caldwell (13-2) vs. Kyoji Horiguchi (27-2)
Prelims
- Aaron Pico (4-2) vs. Adam Borics (12-0)
- Heather Hardy (2-1) vs. Taylor Turner (3-5)
- Valerie Loureda (1-0) vs. Larkyn Dasch (0-1)
- Robson Gracie Jr. (1-0) vs. Oscar Vera (Pro Debut)
- Mike Kimbel (2-1) vs. Sebastian Ruiz (2-2)
- Haim Gozali (10-6) vs. Gustavo Wurlitzer (22-22, 1 NC)
- Rena Kubota (8-2) vs. Lindsay VanZandt (5-1)
- Phil Hawes (4-2) vs. Michael Wilcox (6-3)
- Marcus Surin (5-1) vs. Nekruz Mirkhojaev (4-2)
- Brandon Medina (Pro Debut) vs. Brandon Polcare (1-2)
- Kastriot Xhema (2-3) vs. Whitney Jean Francois (2-6-1)
- John Beneduce (2-2) vs. Kenny Rivera (2-1)
Bellator 222 Odds
Here are the odds for the six main card fights coming up at Bellator 222.
- Rory MacDonald (-160) vs. Neiman Gracie (+130)
- Lyoto Machida (-355) vs. Chael Sonnen (+265)
- Dillon Danis (-800) vs. Max Humphrey (+500)
- Ricky Bandejas (-130) vs. Patrick Mix (+100)
- Eduardo Dantas (+190) vs. Juan Archuleta (-250)
- Darrion Caldwell (-155) vs. Kyoji Horiguchi (+125)