Shipman (14-3) will look to play spoiler against Gregory Babene, who returns to the Bellator cage on a six-fight win streak. Shipman himself will be looking for his second straight win, competing for the first time since September 2020 — and he’s happy to play spoiler in Paris, though he hasn’t given it too much thought.

“Yeah sure. I mean, my primary concern is the guy across from me. If I can get a reaction out of the crowd, then great. It’s just some added energy,” Shipman told Cageside Press during this week’s Bellator 280 media day. “I’ve not really thought too much about being the spoiler or being the hero, what role I’m playing, so much as just going out there and enjoying myself. Hopefully I win the crowd over with a good performance.”

During his absence, Shipman was called out by Dalton Rosta, an ATT middleweight who has fought his way into the 185 pound rankings. That’s a callout Shipman is aware of, and he’s up for the challenge moving forward.

“We did see it,” said Shipman, adding that he and his coaches reached out to the promotion about the match-up. “We asked Bellator about it as well. So that’s definitely something that I’d be interested in. I think he’s ranked now, and during my inactivity I’ve been dumped out of the rankings. So yeah, sure, anyone in the rankings is great, and I think he may have bit off a bit more than he can chew. But I’ll be happy to meet him in the Bellator cage.”

Mike Shipman faces Gregory Babene at Bellator 280 in Paris, France, this Friday, May 6, 2022, on Showtime. Watch the rest of Shipman’s media day interview above. More coverage can be found below.

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Gracie (5-0) was a clear favorite over “Flexster” Marfone (5-2), who was making his Bellator MMA debut on the night.

Gracie ducked under a Marfone punch early, and immediately took his opponent down. As Marfone powered to his feet, Gracie clung to the back, and worked to get hooks in. He couldn’t quite take Marfone’s back, instead tying up one leg and controlling the action. After disengaging, Gracie actually landed a left that got Marfone’s attention, but Gracie then slipped.

Marfone, wisely, chose not to follow him to the ground. Gracie then managed to get the fight to the mat and worked to half guard, keeping an arm wrapped around Marfone’s neck. The Brazilian then briefly moved to full mount, but Marfone first got him back to half guard, then worked up to his feet. Marfone certainly showed he wasn’t lost on the ground against a high level BJJ expert.

Nearly adding another surprise to the night, Marfone pulled guard and threatened with a guillotine as the seconds ticked down in the first, but Gracie was having none of it.

Round two opened with Neiman Gracie mixing in some kicks to the head and body. While a takedown by Gracie was thwarted by Marfone, Gracie would later take the back and force the fight to the ground. Locking in a body triangle with half the second round remaining, it was not a good position for Marfone to find himself in. The rear-naked choke followed, and it wasn’t long before Marfone tapped!

Neiman Gracie def. Dave Marfone by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 2, 2:27

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With the first fight being a close split decision win for Bader, there was no doubt that both fighter would be looking for a definitive win.

Ryan Bader took the center of the cage early and looked to maintain control, backing Davis up. “Darth” got the jab going early, while Davis looked to change levels with his eye on the takedown. Ducking under a Bader punch he went for it, but Bader was able to stay on his feet and push the champ off of him. Bader looked comfortable on the feet, switching to a southpaw stance to mix things up. Davis’ second takedown was stuffed as well — could there be trouble with the game plan?

Oddly enough, the fight seemed to slow, rather than pick up, towards the end of the first, with each fighter seeming a little tentative.

Round two wasn’t quite a carbon copy of the first, but it certainly started that way. Davis was a little more active, mixing in front kicks and controlling the cage while Bader circled out of danger. Bader seemed content to throw single punches and two-punch combos rather than put anything together. Davis, meanwile, still couldn’t manage to get his wrestling game going as Bader once again stuffed a takedown prior to the ninety second mark.

Towards round’s end Bader came over the top with a solid punch that connected, but that was all she wrote for the second.

In the third, Davis scored the best combination of the fight thanks to a superman punch that took Bader by surprise. However, beyond that, it was another plodding round with the two unable to find an opening. Davis seemed to have mostly given up on his takedowns, while Bader opted to continue throwing until he finally found an opening and shot in, scoring a takedown of his own very late in the frame. That, however, likely gave him the round.

At the start of the fourth round, ref Big Dan warned the pair to start engaging, which should give you some idea of the level of action at that point. Bader focused on his counters, landing an uppercut, while Davis later connected with a head kick. The pair would trade kicks, with Davis continuing to press the action.

The fifth round got underway with a big question hanging in the air: just who was up in the bout? Not a single round had been decisive to that point. A finish would certainly come in handy, otherwise this was looking to be a crap-shoot for both fighters.

Bader pressed the action early in the fifth, while Davis targeted the body with his jab, which allowed him to surprise Bader when he later came over the top. Bader, however, managed to score a takedown with just over two minutes left in the fight, but could not keep Davis down.

They’d stay on the feet to the end, turning it up at little in the final moments, with Davis touching Bader’s chin but neither men really taking much damage. They went to the scorecards, with Bader getting a split decision once again! Bader finally gets the title he’s sought after for so long, albeit in a fight reminiscent of their first meeting.

Ryan Bader def. Phil Davis by split decision (49-46, 48-47, 49-46)

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Machida Karate proponent and older brother to Lyoto Machida, Chinzo Machida stepped into the cage tonight riding a four fight that started back in November of 2013. With a move to Bellator in 2016 and two more wins under his belt he looked to build on his success with a win over Irish prospect James Gallager.

James Gallarger entered the evening riding an undefeated MMA record of 6-0. The team SBG prospect has seen further success since moving to Bellator with three wins in as many fights under the promotion and two of those coming by submission. Tonight with his eyes on toward the title he looked to get one step closer to that goal.

The first round saw Gallarger come out quickly with both fighters feeling each other out until Gallarger could get things moved to the ground. He then quickly transitioned into mount where he was able to drop a elbows and then take Machida’s back. Gallarger then locked a body triangle and went to work, opening up a cut around Chinzo’s eye. It wasn’t long before Gallagher got his arm under the chin for the rear-naked choke and the win.

James Gallagher def. Chinzo Machida by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 2:22

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When it comes to combat sports Heather Hardy, knows only success. Having pushed the sport of female Boxing and faced the many challenges that entailed, tonight she looked to put those experiences to work in her new “office” the Bellator cage.

Alice Yauger is no stranger to fighting, having started training in Muya Thai at an early age before moving on to Boxing. She competed in the first all-women National Golden Gloves tournament at 21 before turning pro and that’s all before she started training for MMA. Tonight she found herself almost back where she started standing across from a boxer.

This was a fight that got off to quick start and the pace kept up from there, with Hardy focusing on here stand up and Yauger happy to oblige.

The first round saw both women trade shots and work inside of the clinch with Hardy showing off her superior boxing skills and Yauger controlling the clinch. Hardy started off looking a little stiff, however once she got going, the boxing champ began to work in some kicks with her offense. Yauger however did catch a late Hardy kick close to the end of the round, pushing Hardy back and pursuing her.

The second round saw Hardy begin to pull away in this one with superior boxing and a strong overhead right. Yauger was able to test Hardy’s takedown defense with a few trip attempts. but the round ended with a bloodied Yauger and Heather Hardy pulling away.

The third round saw more of the same up until an accidental headbutt opened Hardy up, a cut bad enough that it needed to be checked out by the ringside physician. The doctor concluded that Hardy could continue, and once the fight resumed and both women came out with a sense of urgency trying to end the fight. With both women throwing shots trying to finish, Hardy caught Yauger and dropped her, however showing her inexperience in the cage she didn’t pursue he downed opponent and allowed her to get back up — only to land another flurry of shots before Big John called things off.

Heather Hardy def. Alice Yauger by TKO, Round 3, 4:47

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Chael Sonnen and Wanderlei Silva square off in a grudge match in the main event of Bellator NYC, the promotion’s second PPV. In the co-main event, heavyweight GOAT Fedor Emelianenko meets Matt Mitrione in a fight that could either launch the Russian legend back to stardom, or signal the end of his illustrious career.

We’ve got our staff picks in below! Be sure to check out our Bellator NYC preview as well.

Staff Writer	Aaron Pico vs. Zach Freeman	Douglas Lima (c) vs. Lorenz Larkin	Michael Chandler (c) vs. Brent Primus	Fedor Emelianenko vs. Matt Mitrione	Chael Sonnen vs. Wanderlei Silva
Jay Anderson (17-9)
Dan Doherty (13-7)
Mike McClory (11-9)
Heath Harshman (18-8)
Harry Davies (16-8)
Eddie Law (15-11)
Paarth Pande (12-8)

It should come as no surprise that highly touted prospect Aaron Pico has been selected as a lock to win; he turned out to be a unanimous pick with all our writers this week. Cageside Press staff were also heavily in favor of debuting welterweight Lorenz Larkin, with only a single staff member selecting incumbent champ Douglas Lima to win.

On the flip side, all but one writer tabbed reigning lightweight champion Michael Chandler to win.

In the co-main event, only one writer sees Fedor Emelianenko returning to glory. The biggest division came with the main event, where four of seven writers sided with Chael Sonnen, while three see the fight going in favor of Wanderlei Silva, who has been out of action the past four years.

Be sure to check back tonight for full coverage of the event!

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Bellator 180: Davis vs. Bader kicks off Bellator MMA’s big New York City show Saturday night. There’s a huge light heavyweight showdown atop the four-fight main card, and a handful of notable names sprinkled throughout the other bouts. You can check out our preview here.

Cageside Press has our picks ready, with staff choosing each of the four main card bouts. It was a good night for our writers last time out at UFC Auckland, with a number of staff members going 4-4. Lets see how tonight’s Bellator cards work out.

Staff Writers	Heather Hardy vs. Alice Yauger	Neiman Gracie vs. Dave Marfone	James Gallagher vs. Chinzo Machida	Phil Davis (c) vs. Ryan Bader
Jay Anderson (17-9)
Dan Doherty (13-7)
Mike McClory (11-9)
Heath Harshman (18-8)
Harry Davies (16-8)
Eddie Law (15-11)
Paarth Pande (12-8)

Not surprisingly, all but the headlining fight wound up being a clean sweep as far as picks. No one is giving soccer mom Alice Yauger much of a chance against boxing champ Heather Hardy, despite Hardy making her pro debut at Bellator 180. Similarly, Neiman Gracie was picked to be a lock over the unheralded Dave Marfone.

In something of a surprise, no one picked Brazil’s Chinzo Machida to top Ireland’s James Gallagher. Gallagher has youth on his side, but Machida is a flashy, dangerous striker. Still, not a single staff member sees the fight going his way.

The main event was neck and neck, with four of seven writers this week seeing a new champ being crowned in Bader.

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Beyond that are names like Machida, Gallagher, and Gracie, all familiar to MMA fans and Bellator/Spike TV loyalists. There may even be a couple of hidden gems on the the Bellator 180 portion of the card, so it’s not one to miss — especially given that you’re getting it for free. Will it sway people to order up the Bellator NYC Pay-per-View? That remains to be seen, but there are certainly some fun fights booked on paper.

A light heavyweight title fight is always a special event, so lets take a look at that and the rest of the Bellator 180 card!

Heather Hardy vs. Alice Yauger

One thing that Bellator NYC and Bellator 180 have in abundance is storylines, which are crucial to selling a card like this. Heather Hardy vs. Alice Yauger is no exception. Hardy, a successful boxer, is making her pro MMA debut at Madison Square Garden on Saturday. In the build up to the event, she has been front and center in the media, talking about making the transition from the sweet science to cage fighting, and how she’ll be making more money in her Bellator MMA debut than she ever did in boxing, despite having a perfect 20-0 record and holding two titles.

Speaking to Bleacher Report, Hardy broke down the situation in boxing astutely, saying “the same men who were in charge back when Christy Martin was fighting are still in charge. They’re stuck in their ways and boxing is just not evolving.”

MMA, however, has evolved, and Hardy will get the TV time she deserves at Bellator 180. She also gets to make her MMA debut on the biggest of states. Opposite her in the Bellator MMA cage will be Alice Yauger, the “Soccer Mom” who came to the attention of MMA fans at Bellator 171 earlier this year. Yauger (4-5) showed a great deal of heart in a tough battle with Jessica Middleton, but ultimately dropped a unanimous decision. She’d no doubt love to play spoiler Saturday, and at age 38, this may be her last chance to really shine, on the biggest of stages.

Even should she lose to Hardy — as is pretty much the betting line — Yauger getting to fight at Madison Square Garden may be a reward in itself, so there’s no loser here in a sense. Hardy, meanwhile, has the personality needed to be a marketable star with a couple of wins.

Neiman Gracie vs. Dave Marfone

It would seem wrong to host what is considered Bellator MMA’s biggest card and not have the Gracie name somehow attached to it. Bellator was happy to oblige, given they have the undefeated Neiman Gracie among their ranks.

The promotion has taken the slow build route with Gracie, and with good cause. The recent struggles of the legendary fighting family have been well documented, and Neiman seems to be the exception to the norm. A perfect 5-0, four of his wins have (not surprisingly) come via submission. In his most recent outing, he secured an arm-bar to take out Rudy Bears at Bellator 163.

His opponent in New York, Dave Marfone (5-2), is making his Bellator debut at the event, and coming off a loss in February. He’s going to have to watch his limbs and stay out of Neiman’s grasp — which will not be easy.

James Gallagher vs. Chinzo Machida

Another fantastic storyline, and a fight full of potential, goes down in the co-main event of the Bellator 180 card on Spike TV. Old lion vs. young lion, but two fighters with almost the same number of fights in professional MMA. Twenty years between them. The brother of UFC star and former light heavyweight champ Lyoto Machida vs. the teammate of Conor McGregor, who could some day be Bellator’s own version of the Irish sensation.

Machida (5-2) has been on a roll since finally focusing his attention on MMA last year. This will mark his third fight in roughly a year, and he told Cageside Press that he’s looking to continue that pace — and that he’s “ready to WAR!”

That’s good, because “The Strabanimal” (6-0) is looking to make it a war, claiming he intends to finish the fight and choke Machida out on the ground. This has the potential to steal the show, as Gallagher has won four of six fights by rear-naked choke, and fans know how skilled the Machidas are at striking, with their Karate base.

Phil Davis (c) vs. Ryan Bader

Arguably the biggest title fight Bellator has to offer right now, Davis vs. Bader happened essentially by chance. Newly signed UFC veteran and top-five light heavyweight Ryan Bader was expected to face King Mo Lawal at Bellator 180.

That bout alone would be enough to headline many a Bellator MMA card, but an injury to Mo put the kibosh on that fight. Instead of finding any warm body to fill in, however, Bellator was lucky enough to have its reigning 205lb champion, Phil Davis, step up, making a good light heavyweight title eliminator a great rematch (the pair first fought in the UFC), with gold on the line.

Davis (17–3 (1)) has been perfect so far in Bellator, winning the promotion’s single-night light heavyweight tournament in 2015 at Bellator 142: Dyanamite, then following that up with wins over King Mo and subsequent to that, champ Liam McGeary.

Now, Davis owns the gold, something that eluded both him and Ryan Bader in the UFC, despite their high standing in the 205lb division. Bader (22-5) will look to be the next crossover success story come Saturday, and the question is, will this simply be a rehash of their close battle in 2015? Bader won a split decision that night, but this bout could easily go either way.

For his part, Davis told Cageside Press that he does not plan on letting it go to the judges this time. Can he finish Bader? Will Bader jump right to the top of the Bellator light heavyweight heap? We’ll find out Saturday.

Bellator 180 takes place Jun 24 at New York City’s Madison Square Garden, and airs on Spike TV prior to the Bellator NYC Pay-per-View.

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Phil Davis left the UFC as one of the winningest light heavyweights in UFC history. With the ability to dominate any opponent on the ground, he amassed a 9-3 record at 205-pounds at the highest. However, he failed to ever gain (or even fight for) a championship belt and has successfully done so in just four fights in Bellator.

Now he faces the last opponent to fight him in the UFC octagon, Ryan Bader, who bested Davis via split decision in 2015.

“Anytime you have a win over me, literally anything in life, I want to get you, and I’ve really grown so much since I’ve got to Bellator.”

Bellator has served as a platform for fighters since the UFC stopped allowing athletes to earn money from in-cage endorsements. The ability to take in income beyond fighting has attracted several from the UFC. As of late, fighters such as Rory MacDonald and Ryan Bader have joined on at Bellator.

The aforementioned split decision defeat propelled Bader to the top-five of the light heavyweight division. Mr. Wonderful’s adjustment since then?

“Do not go to the judges.” Davis laughed. “That’s my approach, do not let it get to them. I want to wrap this thing up in regulation, finish the fight.”

The circumstances surrounding the fight are entirely different this time. Two years ago this was a bout between two top contenders vying for a shot at the belt. Now, this fight contains arguably two of the top five fighters at 205 in the world representing Bellator in their first-ever event in New York City.

“My job is the same, I go in there and beat someone up,” Davis said on his promotion switch since his the first time he faced Bader. “That part doesn’t necessarily change, but the company is totally different. I like the company, I like the people that work there, and ultimately I enjoy my job so much more.”

Now Davis has not only gone from the UFC to Bellator, but from FOX to Spike TV, who has the television rights for Bellator MMA/Kickboxing events. A channel that many would say attracts a large number of dedicated fight fans rather than significant national attention.

“Spike TV is a great channel,” Davis said. “They have such a great dedicated fanbase, being on Spike gives me a great opportunity to be on their radar. The visibility I get from being on Spike is really good and I get the opportunity to use different ideas of promotion. It really is a couple of things that make it better, but not something I can necessarily put my finger on.”

He also works for a promotion that is venturing into kickboxing in addition to MMA, and plenty of fighters have crossed over between the two in the last year. But don’t expect the national champion wrestler out of Penn State University to test himself in the kickboxing ring anytime soon.

“The thing with the kickboxing is that it’s very different, those boys are crazy. You got my guy John Wayne Parr, are you kidding me? It is a very precise art, I respect those guys because what we do is punch and kick. What those guys do is very precise. It would be hard to train for a kickboxing fight, because what they do, they are very talented, and you can’t think just because you punch and kick that you can step in there with those cats.”

With the Bellator banner now as the background for this rematch, and a title win in the books, Davis sees a very different fight going down this time around.

“[The belt] is a part of me now and I don’t plan on ever losing that belt,” Davis said. “I try not to script how I think a fight will go, I let it manifest itself, but I really don’t think this fight is going to go five rounds. I think I’m going to finish him early.”

Phil Davis looks to do that this Friday at Madison Square Garden in the main event of Bellator 180. Bellator 180 will be on Spike TV and leads right into Bellator NYC pay-per-view.

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It’s an interesting contrast between two very different fighters: a young, brash up-and-comer in Gallagher against the older, wiser, almost reserved Machida. It’s one of those MMA bouts in which nearly anything could happen, which makes it a compelling, must-watch fight.

We spoke to Machida (5-2) prior to the event, to get his take on his opponent, going full swing into MMA a little late in life, and a host of other topics. If there’s any one takeaway, it’s this: Chinzo Machida is focused and ready to give it his all Saturday at Bellator 180.

First up, however, was a discussion of Machida’s last outing. The come-from-behind KO of Jamar Ocampo at Bellator 170 was another highlight reel win for the elder Machida brother, and arguably (flying knees aside) one of the more memorable moments of his MMA career. So what did Machida take away from that fight?

“I learned a lot [from] that fight” Machida told Cageside Press. He explained that he felt “good to go” as far as his endurance went as well. “Even if the guy pressures me, I can overcome that situation.”

Pressure him is exactly what Ocampo did, and Machida’s corner was straightforward in their assessment of the action between rounds. That no doubt helped, and in the end, Machida was able to make “my opponent broke mentally. I learned a lot about that, and I’m ready for that situation again. I’m ready for top five.”

Before he gets to that top five opponent, however, there’s business with James Gallagher to attend to. So what about Gallagher has stood out to Machida? “I know he has very good standup, he has good takedowns, he has good guard work, but most of his victories are from jiu-jitsu” the fighter told us. “So I’m ready for any situation, I don’t want to predict the fight, but I trained very hard for any situation – standing, takedown defense, on the ground. I’m ready to fight, I’m ready to WAR!”

War might very well be what Machida gets, and it’s something the fans will no doubt love. James Gallagher previously said that he would take Machida down “and strangle him.” Chinzo, however, is not phased by the comments. “He can think about that, but it’s his opinion. My opinion is different. It’s not going to be easy to submit me. It’s not going to be easy to finish the fight. I’m ready for that, I trained very hard for that. Lets see [at Bellator 180] what’s going to happen.”

There’s no question that Machida has looked good of late, and his bout against Gallagher could turn out to be one of the best fights on the card. Yet the older brother of former UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida (who will be in Chinzo’s corner Saturday night) got started in MMA relatively late. Between 2005 and 2010, he took just three professional MMA bouts, going 1-2 over that stretch. Then in 2013, he returned to the sport, and has gone 4-0 since.

He has also picked up the pace since joining Bellator MMA. So does Machida have any regrets about not getting things going sooner?

“No, no because my focus was always creating the best form of Karate” the fighter explained. He then corrected himself. “Not created, but developed — Machida Karate — that proves effective in a real fight. My brother has already proven that.”

Of course, the Machidas happen to be some of the most legendary fighters in MMA utilizing a Karate base at this point. As Chinzo explained it,

I’m the guy in charge of the development of Machida style Karate. Last year, I decided to myself to prove that Karate is not for one person, like my brother, [but that] Machida Karate is a technique for everybody to train the right way, to train the good way. So in that sense, I started training and started to fight again in Bellator. As I had success in the first fight and the second fight… the guys from Bellator, they were so excited that they invited me to fight again at this very special event.

Success indeed. Machida has earned finishes in both of his Bellator fights to date, and now has a chance at another, over a top prospect on arguably the biggest stage possible. Not bad for a fighter who turned forty earlier this year.

On page two, we talk about Bellator’s plans for Machida, fighting at age forty, and appearing at Madison Square Garden.

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