While the future of the promotion has been the subject of much speculation in recent months, Bellator MMA continues to press onward.
On Wednesday, promotion officials announced the Bellator 301 is set for the Wintrust Arena in Chicago, IL on November 17, 2023, with a pair of title fights headlining. The first will see welterweight champ Yaroslav Amosov put his belt on the line against top contender Jason Jackson, while the co-main event will feature a title unification bout between bantamweight kingpin Sergio Pettis and interim champ/grand prix winner Patchy Mix.
Promotion officials confirmed the news to Cageside Press on Wednesday following an announcement on The MMA Hour. A subsequent press release revealed several promising additions to the card, including a 135lb showdown between Danny Sabatello and Raufeon Stots which should be something of a grudge match, and a lightweight grand prix semi-final between Patricky Pitbull and Alexander Shabliy.
Amosov (27-0) returned to action earlier this year after taking time off to help in the defense of his native Ukraine following Russia’s invasion. The undefeated standout earned a unanimous decision win over Logan Storley for that effort.
Opponent Jackson (16-4) has won six straight fights, all via unanimous decision. The list of names falling to “The Ass-Kicking Machine” is nothing short of impressive, with wins over Benson Henderson, Paul Daley, Neiman Gracie, and Douglas Lima in that stretch.
Pettis (23-5) is undefeated dating back to the end of his UFC stint, with six straight wins since 2019. Most recently, he earned a unanimous decision against former double-champ and current 145lb title holder Patricio Pitbull.
As for Patchy Mix (18-1), he defeated Kyoji Horiguchi, Magomed Magomedov, and Raufeon Stots to win Bellator’s million dollar bantamweight grand prix.
The newly revealed Bellator 301 card on November 17, 2023 breaks down as follows:
Main Card
- Yaroslav Amosov (c) vs. Jason Jackson — for the Bellator MMA welterweight championship
- Sergio Pettis (c) vs. Patchy Mix (ic) — for the Bellator MMA bantamweight championship / title unification bout
- Patricky Pitbull vs. Alexander Shabliy — Lightweight grand prix semifinal
- Raufeon Stots vs. Danny Sabatello
Preliminary Card
- Daniel James vs. Ali Isaev
- Tyrell Fortune vs. Marcelo Golm
- Timur Khizriev vs. Justin Gonzales
- Mike Hamel vs. Tim Wilde
- Denise Kielholtz vs. Sumiko Inaba
- Islam Mamedov vs. Killys Mota
