The upcoming Bellator 298 has seen five more fights announced.
On Thursday, Bellator officials announced via press release the addition of fights in the bantamweight, women’s flyweight, and other divisions for the August card. Among the bouts announced, Leandro Higo (21-6), ranked #7 in the 135lb weight class, will face Nikita Mikhailov (10-2), a member of Fedor Team who has picked up wins in three of his four Bellator MMA fights to date.
Higo had a three-fight win streak snapped when he ran into Danny Sabatello in the Bellator bantamweight grand prix last year. Prior to that, the Brazilian had earned wins against ex-champ Darrion Caldwell, Ricky Bandejas, and Shawn Bunch.
Mikhailov, who previously fought for Fight Nights Global, is coming off his own win over Caldwell.
Also on the Bellator 298 card, Mikhailov’s countrywoman Diana Avsaragova (6-0) returns, putting her undefeated record on the line against UFC veteran Justine Kish (8-6). Kish is 1-4 in her last five fights dating back to her UFC run, with the lone win against former women’s flyweight champ Ilima-Lei Macfarlane sandwiched between losses to DeAnna Bennett.
Max Rohskopf (7-2) will face Brazil’s Jairo Pacheco (7-1) in a lightweight match-up, while Ukraine’s Katerina Shakalova (7-1) debuts in a women’s featherweight fight against #7-ranked Dayana Silva (10-8). Finally, ex-LFA bantamweight champ Jerrell Hodge (10-3) makes his own debut against Marcirley Alves da Silva (11-3).
Bellator 298 is set to be headlined by a welterweight showdown between Logan Storley and Brennan Ward at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on August 11, 2023. The following match-ups have been reported/announced for the event:
- Logan Storley vs. Brennan Ward
- Valentin Moldavsky vs. Steve Mowry
- Dalton Rosta vs. Aaron Jeffery
- Sidney Outlaw vs. Islam Mamedov
- James Gallagher vs. TBD
- Lucas Brennan vs. Weber Almeida
- Michael Blockhus vs. Eli Mefford
- Alfie Davis vs. Aalon Cruz
- Leandro Higo vs. Nikita Mikhailov
- Diana Avsaragova vs. Justine Kish
- Max Rohskopf vs. Jairo Pacheco
- Katerina Shakalova vs. Dayana Silva
- Jerrell Hodge vs. Marcirley Alves da Silva