Hawaii’s Yancy Medeiros is about to fight at home for the first time in over a decade.
Medeiros (15-8, 1NC) is set to face multi-time Bellator MMA title challenger Emmanuel Sanchez (20-7) when the promotion returns to Hawaii this April. The fight will be Medeiros’ debut with the company, and comes on the second night of a double header.
Bellator 279 takes place on Saturday, April 23, 2022 at the Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu, while Bellator 278 arrives one day prior.
Multiple sources confirmed the booking to Cageside Press, following an initial report by MMA Junkie.
The fight will be a crucial one for both men. Medeiros finished his UFC stint on a four-fight skid that began in 2018, culminating with a loss to Damir Hadzovic last year, after which the Hawaiian was released by the promotion. He has not fought since.
The last time Medeiros fought at home was in 2009, prior to his Strikeforce and UFC runs. Before his current slump, he put together a three-fight win streak inside the octagon.
Sanchez has hit hard times of late as well. He’s lost his last three, most recently dropping a unanimous decision to Jeremy Kennedy. “El Matador” has twice challenged for featherweight gold in Bellator, losing both title bids against Patricio Pitbull.
Bellator 279 currently has the following fights attached to it:
- Cris Cyborg (c) vs. Arlene Blencowe – for the Bellator MMA women’s featherweight championship
- Sergio Pettis (c) vs. Raufeon Stots – for the Bellator MMA bantamweight championship / bantamweight grand prix quarterfinal
- Kyoji Horiguchi vs. Patchy Mix – bantamweight grand prix quarterfinal
- Justine Kish vs. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane
- Yancy Medeiros vs. Emmanuel Sanchez
