“Of course, I could feel that there was a buzz in there,” Burnell (14-3) said of the atmosphere in the arena on Saturday, which held a limited number of fans due to coronavirus restriction. Speaking to media outlets including Cageside Press post-fight, the Danish fighter said of his debut that “it’s a great experience, being with Bellator.”

“First time in France, putting on a good performance. I had a great week, so I’m happy,” he added.

Talk surrounding the Paris event had focused on Bellator MMA’s continued growth in Europe. They have slowly built up a reputation as the most active major organization in Ireland and the U.K., and Italy as well. It seems like Paris is the next stronghold the promotion has secured, with promotion President Scott Coker confirming a return to the Accor Arena next year.

Coker also aired a desire to head to Amsterdam. Oliver Enkamp, who fought on the Paris card, has his hopes set on a Swedish event. Burnell, of course, would love to fight at home in Denmark.

“100 percent. That would be a dream come true if Bellator would come to Denmark, so all my hometown guys could come too,” exclaimed Burnell. “Because we’re a clique full of broke guys, so if it’s in Denmark, it’s way easier and cheaper for them to come. It would be awesome if Bellator came to Denmark.”

Of course, the ongoing coronavirus pandemic is a factor. Patience is necessary. “One small step at a time. Eventually, it will come,” said Burnell. “If I keep performing and we get some more Danes in Bellator, why not? Of course the decision is not up to me, but it would be a dream come true if Bellator came to Denmark.”

Watch the full Bellator 248 post-fight press scrum with Mads Burnell above.

The post Bellator 248’s Mads Burnell: It Would Be a “Dream Come True” If Promotion Went to Denmark appeared first on Cageside Press.

Ultimately, the first major MMA event in the country, which just recently legalized the sport, was a success. And the promotion has already set its sights on a return date in 2021, once again to the Accor Arena in Paris.

In the meantime, check out highlights from all of Saturday’s bouts below. As well as full results from the card, which was divided into Bellator Paris (Bellator Europe 10) and Bellator 248 for broadcast purposes.

Bellator Europe 10 Results:

Main Card

Tim Johnson def. Cheick Kongo by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Saul Rogers def. Arbi Mezhidov by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 4:38

Preliminary Card

Yves Landu def. Terry Brazier by knockout (flying knee), Round 1, 2:18
Fabacary Diatta def. Dominique Wooding by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Lucie Bertaud def. Maguy Berchel by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-26, 30-26)
Ciran Clarke def. Jean N’Doye by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)

Bellator 248: Page vs. Houston Results

Michael Page def. Ross Houston by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-37, 30-27)
Oliver Enkamp def. Emmanuel Dawa by submission (Japanese neck tie), Round 1, 4:10
Alan Omer def. Ryan Scope by TKO, Round 1, 1:46
Mads Burnell def. Darko Banovic by TKO Round 1, 3:13

The post Bellator 248 and Bellator Europe 10 Photo Highlights appeared first on Cageside Press.

Enkamp (10-2) picked up his third consecutive win at Bellator 248 in Paris, France on Saturday. He once again fell back on his favorite submission, the Japanese neck tie, earning a win over Emmanuel Dawa within a round.

For Enkamp, MMA is a personal journey, and there’s two sides to that coin, he explained in a virtual media scrum following the fight.

“First and foremost, I’ve never been a competitive person. People find that hard to believe, because I’m in a very competitive sport, but honestly ever since I was a kid, I never wanted to compete against anyone but myself,” the Swedish welterweight explained. “I always want to improve what I’m doing, but I don’t like competition, because it makes conflict somehow.”

Even playing video game with his friends growing up, said Enkamp, “if I started to win too much, I let to other guy win, so we don’t create a bad environment. That’s always been my attitude. I prefer to spread love than win against someone.”

Beyond that, Enkamp grew up in a traditional karate dojo, “which is not only about physical training, but also the correct character development,” he noted. Which in turn involves “teaching respect, discipline, humility, and bringing your karate outside the dojo to make the world a better pace.” Something that is “deeply ingrained in my upbringing,” Enkamp added.

Despite his laid back demeanor and lack of competitiveness, however, the title is still the goal — even if just a symbol of self-improvement and perfection. And Enkamp believes that with his third consecutive win in the Bellator cage, he’s closer to the belt than ever.

“Absolutely. Three first-round finishes by TKO and submission, that speaks for itself,” said Enkamp. “I don’t know if there’s a ranking, I don’t follow it really, but I always want to climb the ladder so to speak, and get harder and harder challenges.”

Watch the full Bellator 248 post-fight press scrum with Oliver Enkamp above.

The post Bellator 248: Believe it or Not, Oliver Enkamp Is Not a Competitive Person appeared first on Cageside Press.

“This was the worst I’ve ever had it. The canvas was so slippery, I literally couldn’t [execute] any of my game plans,” Page (18-1) said following the fight, speaking in a virtual media scrum. “My whole game derives around moving, moving my feet, being able to be agile, in and out, land shots, get out. I don’t know if people will be able to see it during the fight, but I had to change my style. I threw a punch and spun myself around.”

Page noticed opponent Houston was struggling with the canvas as well, he said. “He threw a kick, and nearly threw himself off.”

“Venom” didn’t place all the blame on a wet floor, mind you. “I made myself an average fighter, which made it a lot harder to cover the ground I needed to, to land the shots,” he admitted. “Then kind of had to play a grappling game. Which I’m happy to do, but don’t care for. I want to do a spectacular finish, have a spectacular fight. But it is what it is.”

For those watching, one upside was that Page showed glimpses of a more well-rounded game. But even that didn’t turn out to be a positive takeaway for MVP, who isn’t interested in proving wrong the critics who have accused him of being far from a complete mixed martial artist.

“Not really,” he said in regards to finding an upside to his performance, “and the only reason I say that is because I always say, I’m not here to try and prove to people that I’m a mixed martial artist. I’m here to win fights in the fashion that I would like to win fights. And it just wasn’t in that fashion, so this is why I’m heavily critical of my performance.”

Page was doubly disappointed as Bellator Paris was a “landmark event, and I really wanted to put on a show.”

“Yes, I may have been able to show other areas of my game, but I know I’m capable in those areas,” he explained. “A lot of people, just because they don’t see it, they assume it’s just not there. But I just don’t care to prove to people that it is.” His coaching, training, and sparring partners all know his game, Page added. “For me, it’s just about executing a performance that I would want to, and that just wasn’t it.”

Douglas Lima, Bellator’s current welterweight champ, is the latest to set his sights on double-champ status. That pursuit may very well result in Page taking at least one more fight before getting a shot at the belt. With that in mind, he’s not exactly a fan of fighters chasing additional titles.

“I don’t particularly care for it. I think it’s a bit of a fashion trend that [Conor] McGregor has kick-started within the MMA world. I get it, in terms of the individual, it shows an amazing achievement. To be able to go up a weight division, or down a weight division, which ever it is, and take another belt.”

That, however, “does hold up a division, and you have to do an interim belt, and it just becomes messy.” Page believes that when it comes to your average fan, it’s better to keep things “as simple as possible.”

“Especially now,” Page added. “I think just having one champ in a division keeps that simplicity, so when people are tuning in and watching and following stories going on it, it’s easier for them to stay and commit to the sport. Especially now where we have to prove ourselves as athletes and not barbarians.”

Watch the full Bellator 248 post-fight press scrum with Michael Page above.

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Not just in Paris, mind you. Although the promotion will return to the Accor Arena in 2021, Coker confirmed following Saturday’s historic card. But there are more plans beyond that, pandemic permitting, the promoter revealed during a virtual media scrum following Saturday’s event.

“Once we start actually going to cities and countries again and doing full events, we will expand to more cities in Asia,” said Coker, noting the promotion’s trip to Japan last year. “We’re definitely going to go back there, maybe next year, I don’t know about this year, but next year for sure. Korea, China, those are all markets we want to go to. And also Latin America. I think that Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, those are all great markets that we want to go into, and we do very well in our ratings over there. To me, it’s just a matter of time.”

Brazil had already been on the schedule for 2020, until the pandemic struck, he added.

Coker also highlighted the European series that Bellator has developed. It’s a model the organization would like to replicate. “I would like to do an Asian series after that, and in the same time, maybe do a Latin American series. We can have our fights going on in the U.S., and have all these sub-series going at the same time, and basically send all these fighters back and forth to make it interesting. But why not eventually do 50 fights a year, and maybe at the end of the day, you have your own mini-world cup tournament? That’s something that’s very interesting to me.”

Further expansion, including in Europe, depends on the COVID situation of course, Coker noted. A number of fighters, including Bellator 248 winners Oliver Enkamp and Mads Burnell, have expressed interest in fighting at home there. There were plans for Bellator to go back to Israel, Florence Italy, Newcastle England, and other locations in 2020. But right now, travel for Coker’s team is an issue. “It’s hard for them to even just enter a European country without really going through a lot of politics and red tape, and trying to get authorization and proper letters to travel to Europe,” he stated.

Which means the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut will continue to be to go-to spot for 2020 and early 2021. The promotion returns there for its next event, Bellator 249.

“But listen, I would love to go to Amsterdam and throw a major fight there,” Bellator’s President added. “Especially with such great Dutch fighters, and such a history of great combat sports fighters in Holland and Amsterdam. So to me, we’ve got to go there. And the Nordics, great talent, another territory that we definitely want to go to. It’s just a matter of when it becomes a little more easier to travel and when it becomes a little easier to operate our business outside and actually do our touring model like we had done in the past.”

“It’s just going to be a matter of time. Because with COVID, eventually, this too shall pass,” predicted Coker. “And when it does, we’ll get back on the road and do it like we had been doing it before.”

Watch the full Bellator Paris virtual media scrum with Scott Coker above.

The post Scott Coker on Bellator Expansion Plans: Asian Series, Amsterdam, 50 Shows? appeared first on Cageside Press.

The other standout factor was the presence of a crowd, small as it may have been. Though the arena was at reduced capacity due to the coronavirus pandemic, there were still fans in the arena to witness a little history in the making.

Mads Burnell and Darko Banovic had the honor of being the first sanctioned MMA contest in French history. And it did not take long for Burnell, the former UFC featherweight and Cage Warriors champion, to become the first winner in the nation. Burnell landed an early takedown, scooping Banovic up and laying him down. In short order he worked his way to a dominant position, eventually taking the back and raining down strikes as Banovic covered up. That was enough for the ref, who waved it off, giving Burnell his first win in Bellator, and fifth straight overall.

When it came to the quick finish, Alan Omer apparently took notice. He wasted little time in his 160lb catchweight fight with Ryan Scope, wailing on the English fighter as he covered up along the fence. A big knee to the body and more strikes sealed the deal, making it two straight first-round stoppages to open the Bellator Paris card. Following the win, Omer, who improved to 24-5 with the victory, called out the Pitbull brothers. Both of them.

I love that everyone has been calling me out. I have a tough task ahead, if I'm injury free I wanna fight 2 more times this year so bring them all. #BellatorParis Now excuse me, I have a plane to catch. On my way to Mohegan Sun 🛫 @BellatorMMA @CBSSports

— Patricky Freire (@PatrickyPitbull) October 10, 2020

The third fight of the night featured the first French fighter to step into the cage. Emmanuel Dawa had the crowd in his corner. Sweden’s Oliver Enkamp found himself on his back early, but it didn’t take long for him to transition to the top, moving into half-guard and dropping a few short punches. Dawa returning to his feet was met with approval from the crowd, but it was short lived. Enkamp quickly slammed him back down. Before long, Enkamp had his third straight win inside the Bellator cage, once again utilizing his preferred submission, the Japanese neck tie. Although that would confuse the officials cageside, who deemed the submission a D’arce choke in error.

The main event of the Bellator 248 card, though not of Bellator Paris as a whole, saw Michael Page paired up with former Cage Warriors champ Ross Houston. And without question, Houston put up a better fight against Page than many of MVP’s past opponents. In the opening round, a caught kick saw Page dumped on his back, forced to fight from the one place he really didn’t want to be. Houston proved strong enough on the feet to force Page into a more reserved style through the first half of the fight. Hands up, flash and showboating placed on the back burner.

Still, the cocky Michael Page fans have come to know came out later in the second, as he landed a couple of strong blows on Houston, then took him down with a leg sweep, allowing Page to land some ground n’ pound prior round’s end. The pair entered round three with the possibility of the fight being split at a round a piece — though if there was any edge, it went to Page. The third was a more closely contested, conservative round with a lot of grappling exchanges. Page proved to have refined his game — he was far from lost in the grappling departments — and after fifteen minutes, the scores reflected just that, with Page picking up a unanimous decision win.

The rest of the action from the Accor Arena in Paris will play out throughout the afternoon, with the Bellator Europe 10 prelims up next. But the four-fight Bellator 248 card, which aired on CBS Sports Network, is in the books.

Bellator 248: Page vs. Houston Results

Michael Page def. Ross Houston by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-37, 30-27)
Oliver Enkamp def. Emmanuel Dawa by submission (Japanese neck tie), Round 1, 4:10
Alan Omer def. Ryan Scope by TKO, Round 1, 1:46
Mads Burnell def. Darko Banovic by TKO Round 1, 3:13

The post Bellator 248: Burnell, Enkamp Earn Quick Finishes, MVP Goes the Distance for Decision Win appeared first on Cageside Press.

Bellator 248, meanwhile, featured another of the promotion’s bi10ggest stars, Michael Page, taking on promotional newcomer Ross Houston. Houston was set to make his promotional debut in the fight, and while the more casual segment of the fan base might not be familiar with him, he’d put in his time in U.K. promotion Cage Warriors, and amassed an undefeated record in the process.

Of course, making your debut against MVP is no easy task.

Also on Saturday’s Bellator 248 card was Mads Burnell. The former UFC featherweight was making his own promotional debut, after putting together a four fight win streak in Cage Warriors. Ex-UFC welterweight Oliver Enkamp, a.k.a. “The Future,” was on hand as well, in the penultimate fight of the card. He was looking to make it three in a row inside the Bellator cage.

The action kicks off at 11:30AM ET — check below for results. The official Bellator 248 live stream can be viewed above where available. In North America, the event will stream on CBS Sports Network.

Bellator 248: Page vs. Houston Results

Michael Page def. Ross Houston by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-37, 30-27)
Oliver Enkamp def. Emmanuel Dawa by submission (Japanese neck tie), Round 1, 4:10
Alan Omer def. Ryan Scope by TKO, Round 1, 1:46
Mads Burnell def. Darko Banovic by TKO Round 1, 3:13

The post Bellator 248: Page vs. Houston Live Stream and Results appeared first on Cageside Press.

Enkamp (9-2) has secured two first-round finishes, after bouncing out of the UFC in just two fights. The 29-year old from Stockholm, Sweden, now has a chance to make it three straight inside Bellator’s welterweight division, as he takes on Emmanuel Dawa at Bellator 248 in Paris, France this weekend.

When it comes to his recent turnaround, “I think it’s a matter of focus,” Enkamp said during this week’s Bellator 248 media day. “I was fighting mostly local shows in Sweden before I got a short-notice fight in the first big league when the UFC came to Sweden in 2017. That was really my first interaction with a high level, and I learned so much from there. I think I just brought everything with me from every fight to Bellator, and I have good momentum.”

Enkamp joked on Wednesday that he might need to change his nickname. “That name was given to me like six years ago. I don’t feel like the future, I feel like the present,” he stated. He might be able to make that a reality with a big win come Saturday.

And if he does secure his third straight victory, Enkamp hopes that the next time he fights, it will be at home. “I’m looking at one fight at a time, so now my focus is on Saturday. But after that, I would really like to fight in Sweden, because it’s been rumored that Bellator’s going to come to Stockholm,” revealed Enkamp. “And that would be a very nice fourth fight for me. If it’s on the horizon, I’m going to wait and hope for that. It could like a main event or co-main, maybe.”

Watch the full Bellator 248 media day scrum with Oliver Enkamp above. The event goes down live this Saturday, October 10.

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Now, Scope (10-3) will look to turn things around, and claim his first win inside the Bellator cage against the much more experienced Alan Omer.

“I’ve never been one to take easy fights,” Scope said during this week’s Bellator 248 media day. The event, a historic first in Paris, France, unfolds Saturday. “Alan’s 25-3, on short notice, a lot of people would have just said no. But I’m confident, had a great camp, and I’m ready for whoever.”

Scope likes to keep the focus on himself during training, which makes that “take on all comers” attitude a little easier to follow through on. He’s watched “a couple tapes” on Omer, and admitted he’s seen some good things as well as some bad things. “But I’m not going to dwell on it too much,” Scope added.

While Scope is a former lightweight champ in BAMMA, this weekend’s Bellator 248 bout will come at a catchweight. It wasn’t Scope, or the pandemic, that created a need for the 160lb contract weight. “That wasn’t my choice. My original opponent, Paul Redmond, I think he must have been a bit heavy or something,” explained Scope. “So he asked for the fight at that weight, and I just said yes. Now the opponent’s changed, but the weight just stayed the same.”

“I’m happy with the extra three kilograms,” Scope added.

Watch the full Bellator 248 media day scrum with Ryan Scope above. The event goes down live this Saturday, October 10.

The post Bellator 248: Ryan Scope Believes A Lot of People Would Have Said “No” to Short-Notice Omer Fight appeared first on Cageside Press.

He’s getting one of those right out of the gate in Michael “Venom” Page. For some, Houston is the next “can” being lined up for MVP. That doesn’t reflect reality, although Houston did acknowledge during a Bellator 248 media day this week that his opponent’s level of competition has at times been lacking.

“I’d be stupid to say he hasn’t got the skills,” Houston stated, noting Page’s kickboxing background, which saw him become a multi-time champion. “But I don’t think he’s fought anyone quite as well-rounded as me, other than, obviously, Douglas Lima. Lima and the Paul Daley fight are the ones that stand out.”

“I know what a win against him will do for my career,” added Houston, stating that it’s strictly business between himself and Page. “Obviously scalping MVP is going to put me right up there, and I’ll be asking for the title shot.”

Houston is no stranger to big fights, having held gold in Cage Warriors. But taking part in the first ever official MMA event in France is something else, he told Cageside Press.

“It’s crazy. Here’s the thing, I asked to fight Michael, and I wasn’t entirely confident that I’d get it. So getting offered him in the first place was massive,” revealed Houston. “And I didn’t know anything about French MMA history. When I was told that, it was crazy.”

The European nation has long been one of the last holdouts when it comes to legalizing MMA. An obstacle to the sport’s growth that was finally overcome earlier this year.

Like many fighters, Houston got his start in the sport as a young man, looking to stay out of trouble. “I never looked too far in the future,” admitted Houston. “I woke up this morning, I opened the curtains, they put me on the top floor of a fancy hotel in Paris. It’s just looking out at Paris, I’m like — just fighting is what I love to do, and fighting’s got me to this position. It’s just weird to be honest. It’s not really fully sunk in.”

He expects it will, sooner or later. “Once I’m done fighting, it’s going to be a lifelong memory.”

Watch the full Bellator 248 media day scrum with Ross Houston above. The event goes down live this Saturday, October 10.

The post Bellator 248’s Ross Houston: “Scalping MVP Is Going to Put Me Right up There” appeared first on Cageside Press.