Colgan (8-0) admitted following the fight, however, that he had expected the finish, rather than the unanimous decision he eventually won.

“If I’m going to be honest, I did truly believe that I was going to get the finish in that fight,” Colgan told media outlets including Cageside Press on Friday. “Leading into the fight I believed that, and even during the fight. I was hitting him with some big shots, I was doing the damage, and yeah. I believed until I maybe heard about 30 seconds left — up until then.”

“I see how why he’s 20 fights in Bellator and hasn’t been finished,” Colgan added, explaining that “He’s tough. Literally what I said, he’s a hard-nosed Mexican fighter, and he’s going to be there until the fight is over. And he was.”

“I pride myself on being strong, explosive, and accurate. I was all of those things, and he withstood it.”

There are a few things lightweight Colgan prides himself on, another being composure.

“Composure is one of the things I also pride myself a lot on. I’ve been a competitor since I’ve known life. Four years old is when I started wrestling, I literally don’t know life without competing. I don’t,” said Colgan. “I can’t remember a day before four years old. So as long as I can remember life and being on this earth, I remember competing. And composure goes a long way.”

As for the ground game with Sanchez, Colgan told Cageside Press that “I felt very confident in the positions I was going to be in with Emmanuel Sanchez, or any other black belt, after taking them down.”

“I don’t put myself in bad positions, I stay in strong contact. I’m going to be a hard person to choke in those situations,” he added. “I don’t have a neck, I’m a fairly muscular guy. So even if I got put in a bad situation, I could use my strength to help me get out of those positions. I felt very confident in all those situations.”

Watch the full Bellator 297 post-fight press conference appearance by Archie Colgan above.

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Newman earned a submission victory over Matthew Perry at Bellator 297 this past Friday in Chicago. That win improved his record to 6-0, and the 27-year old known as “Not Human” Newman is now looking for an opponent with a number next to his name.

“Look at my record, I’m 6-0. I think it’s time I start getting pushed up,” Newman, a Roufusport product, said following the fight. “You look at the rankings, you look at who’s ahead of me, I think there’s some winnable fights. We’ll just have to see where that takes me.”

“So far, my competition has been decent. I just want to keep getting better and better competition, keep proving myself, keep proving myself to myself and everybody else why I’m here,” he added.

In terms of the winnable fights he sees, “pretty much everyone on the bottom half of the rankings,” suggested Newman. “If you look at the division, it’s not like super super deep. I’m not calling anyone out right now, but I will be calling someone out here soon when I decide with my coaches who I want to fight. So yeah, definitely [a ranked opponent is] what I’m looking for.”

Watch the full Bellator 297 post-fight press conference appearance by Jordan Newman above.

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Novenyi Jr. (7-0) took all of 46 seconds to stop Kamil Oniszczuk, dropping the Polish fighter with a right hand then sealing the deal with hammerfists. It might have been a shocking scene to fans at home (and at the very least, an explosive one), but Novenyi believed all along that it would be a short night in the Windy City.

“I thought I’d finish him in the first. To be fair, he’s a tough guy so I thought worst case, early second. But I knew I’d finish it quite early,” Novenyi Jr. told media members following the event, backstage at the Wintrust Arena. “I punch really hard and I’ve got a pretty decent ground game. So where ever the fight went, I would have finished it.”

There was a delay to the Bellator 297 broadcast that resulted in several fights being shifted from prelims to the dreaded “post-lim” spot, after the main event. For Novenyi, that bump in the road didn’t cause any issues.

“It didn’t really. I’m always ready. Whenever. Obviously it’s annoying, but it was great, it worked out perfectly.”

What has been perfect so far is Norbert Novenyi Jr.’s 2023. Since time away due to an ACL injury, he’s returned to capture two wins already this year.

“I feel like now people are understanding the level I’m on. Someone said I’m the best hidden secret talent in MMA, and another guy said I’m the biggest prospect in MMA. And I feel like now, people are seeing that,” said Novenyi, asked about the kind of pressure he’s been under, between increased media attention, and his Olympian father. “It took me a long time. I’ve been fighting since I was like a year and a half, I started with Karate, and I’ve been fighting since I was a kid. And now it’s paying off. I had a two and a half year injury and all that, and now I’m finally here, proving these people right who have supported me. It’s an absolute pleasure.”

Watch the full Bellator 297 post-fight press conference appearance by Norbert Novenyi Jr. above.

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That success is something he attributes to a recent change in camps.

“I just switched camps, I’m at Fortis MMA in Dallas, Texas. I feel like I’m just rejuvenated. I’m not taking anything from AKA [American Kickboxing Academy], AKA gave me so much and a lot of experiences, and I got to learn from a lot of high-level guys,” Crutchmer (10-2) told media members following the fight. “But for me, man, I feel like I needed a change. I felt like I was kind of stagnant, not because of the training but just everyday life. I went to Sayif [Saud] at Fortis and started training with a lot of those guys, and started learning different things.”

“I feel like that’s something you guys got to see tonight. This is just the beginning,” said Crutchmer, who has now been with Fortis MMA for a little over five months, and believes he has the best training partners in the world.

The desire to move was more a personal matter than anything to do with AKA itself. It boils down to Crutchmer, now 30, wanting to settle down. He was already absent through much of his daughter’s childhood, and still plans to marry and have more kids.

“I needed a change, and it wasn’t to do with anything but personally. I see myself in a nice home with a wife and kids and all that good stuff. It just didn’t seem like I was going to accomplish that living in San Jose, California,” said Crutchmer. “And not because of anything but, if you go look at the houses, they’re all f*cking a million dollars.”

Watch the full Bellator 297 post-fight press conference appearance by Kyle Crutchmer above.

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“I’m extremely happy,” Moore (12-2) said of his performance, speaking to media members following the event. “Striking was crisp, I was sharp, I felt good but at the same time I made quite a few mistakes. Simple mistakes that I knew right away, I’d f*cked up, excuse my language.”

“He’s an extremely tough, extremely durable guy. He’s only lost to Yoel Romero and Julius Anglickas, who at the time I think was number five, or number six. He’s a legitimate competitor. So to beat that guy the way I did, obviously I made a few mistakes and I could have done a lot better, but it’s still a win.”

“All in all extremely happy, but plenty more to work on,” Moore finished.

Could it be a title shot next for Ireland’s Moore, who is undefeated in Bellator? Even he thinks that is a stretch — but a chance to win gold could still come soon.

“I think if I had of finished Alex, I could have been talking title contention. But realistically, I’ll call it like it is, maybe my next fight, against Corey Anderson or Phil Davis. Maybe Phil Davis because he’s coming off a loss. If I beat him in September, Dublin, that’s a number one contender’s fight,” suggested Moore. “If I beat that guy, that’s me with five wins in a row. I’m 4-0 now in Bellator, and those four fights, I’ve beat number six, number ten, and a number five ranked guys.”

“Keep winning, one more fight in September, Dublin, then after that there’s no more contenders, so title fight definitely. That’s what I think anyway.”

Watch the full Bellator 297 post-fight press conference appearance by Karl Moore above.

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Paired up with ex-light heavyweight champ Phil Davis, Anderson (17-6, 1NC) knew exactly what was on the line.

“If I lose to Phil Davis, there’s no way I’m getting a title fight. He’s already been champ, and he’s been beat by the champ,” was Anderson’s line of thinking.

“Fight week, the jitters really got to me, the what ifs, and ‘I don’t think I can do it.'” Anderson literally had chills, he added, speaking during Friday’s post-fight press conference. Chills bad enough that he turned the heat up in his hotel room. It left him questioning “Did I get COVID again? I didn’t know what was going on. I was so nervous. if I lost — my only goal is to be champ, I figured if I lost, there goes that.”

When it came time for the scores to be read, Anderson was sure he had done enough — up to a point.

“I wasn’t as confident in the last round. Last round was the one that kind of had me wondering,” Anderson admitted. The other two rounds, however, “Overtime” was much more confident in. “I felt like I was winning, but when they said that one [scorecard] 29-28 for Phil, I was like ‘awww. Burt [Watson] said it, ‘don’t leave it in the hands of the judges, because they’ll make you cry.’ But they got it right.”

They got it right, and Anderson took home a split decision win. With champ Vadim Nemkov also winning on the night, defending his title with a decision against Yoel Romero, what comes next for Anderson would appear to be obvious.

“There’s nothing else to do, I’m the number one contender. Why would I go back and fight back to get back here, when I just beat #2? We should have did the trilogy in the first place, but they’d already announced the Yoel fight.”

Anderson and Nemkov first met during the Bellator light heavyweight grand prix. Their original meeting ended in a No Contest due to an accidental clash of heads, while Nemkov won a decision in the rematch.

Watch the full Bellator 297 post-fight press conference with Corey Anderson above.

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For Bellator bantamweight champ Sergio Pettis (23-5), who returned from an extended layoff at Bellator 297 on Friday to defeat on of the best fighters in company history, Patricio Pitbull, the mindset was just the opposite.

“I thought I was going to lose this fight, I ain’t going to lie. I was telling my girl, ‘hey if I lose to anybody, it’s okay to lose to Patricio Pitbull, he’s a legend,'” Pettis told media outlets in person and online, including Cageside Press, following the decision victory that same him retain his 135lb title.

“I didn’t think I was going to lose, I just had battles with my mind,” Pettis then corrected. “I was kind of nervous, scared, all the above, 14 months, 18 months off from competing. Kind of forgot how all this felt. And I’m surprised. I am surprised. That’s the opposite of Nate Diaz. I am surprised, motherf*ckers.”

Whether he surprised himself or not, thought he would lose or not, Pettis put on a stunningly good performance against a fighter who held gold at lightweight and still reigns as Bellator MMA’s featherweight champion. And overall, Pettis is happy with his performance.

“I feel good man. It’s been 18 months off, and to come back and have a performance like that— I didn’t get to watch it yet, but in my head it looked kind of good,” Pettis stated. “So I hope it looked good for everybody else.”

“Everybody’s talking about ring rust and all this crazy stuff, and everybody’s talking about Pitbull and kind of forgot about me. So glad to be back, and showed champ’s home. Champ’s back.

Being overlooked is nothing new for the former UFC flyweight, however. “I think my career is like that,” said Pettis. “A lot of people overlook me. Now it’s good to be seen. I feel like this fight made me be seen, and we’ll see. I have to keep on going, keep on going. I’m motivated.”

Watch the full Bellator 297 post-fight press conference appearance by Sergio Pettis above.

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Now, the Russian champ is looking for a new challenge, and quite possibly will find it at a new weight class.

Nemkov (17-2, 1NC) fended off Yoel Romero on Friday, using speed and pinpoint striking to pick “The Soldier of God” apart. A less experienced fighter with a lesser chin would likely have fallen, but Romero stuck around, even winning the fifth round of a fight he was otherwise dominated in.

As for Nemkov, he has now beat Ryan Bader, Phil Davis, Corey Anderson, and Romero, a who’s who of the 205lb division. Having also picked up the victory in the Light Heavyweight Grand Prix last year, it’s on to the next one for Nemkov. It just might not come at 205lbs.

“Pretty much I don’t see any challenge for me in the light heavyweight division, so I may try myself in the heavyweight division now,” Nemkov told media outlets in person and online following the fight at the Wintrust Arena in Chicago. “Because there’s no one else to fight there [at light heavyweight].”

Corey Anderson might beg to differ. He came away from Friday’s card with a win over fellow UFC alum Davis, currently ranked #1 in the weight class. That, however, doesn’t seem to have convinced Nemkov of the need for a third fight with Anderson.

“He just won [against] Phil Davis. Phil Davis was number one, so he was the one that you have to pass through to get to the top. He probably is deserving it, but I would prefer to fight someone else, who I didn’t fight yet,” Nemkov stated. “Because if I’m going to fight Corey Anderson right now, next fight for Phil Davis, he’s going to win [against] someone else, so it would be a third fight with Phil Davis again.”

Nemkov talking about a heavyweight move isn’t new — he told Cageside Press ahead of the event that he was interested in such a move, and that if he made the jump, it would likely be a permanent move.

Watch the full Bellator 297 post-fight press conference with Vadim Nemkov above.

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Interestingly enough, it’s the losing side of those match-ups that sparked the most conversation in the aftermath of the event. That’s something Bellator President Scott Coker addressed during the post-fight press conference.

“The one thing with Patricio is, we have to sit down and have a conversation. Are you going to stay at 35, or do you want to go back to your normal weight at 45?” said Coker. “He might feel more comfortable at 45. Maybe that’s where he should be.”

“If he fights at 35, he’s going to run into speed all the time. So maybe he might be better off at 145.” Coker also still has plans for the reigning featherweight champ, who was looking to becoming the first fighter in both Bellator and MMA history to claim a title in three weight classes. “Listen, it’s no secret I would love to have him fight Aaron Pico at some point in the 45 pound weight class. But it’s going to be up to him. He deserves to have— the next move is going to be up to what he wants to do, and we’ll take it from there.”

Yoel Romero could be an interesting case moving forward as well. He was thoroughly beat to the punch, quite literally, in his fight with Vadim Nemkov, but still rallied to win the final round on all three scorecards. At 46, it feels like his chance at a title has now passed, but Romero is a former middleweight competing at 205lbs, and the future isn’t clear.

“As far as Yoel Romero, I’m not sure. He took a lot of punishment tonight. And we’ll have to evaluate and see where he wants to go with his future,” said Coker. “We’ll probably have a conversation with him in the next two weeks.”

Asked if Pitbull could still earn another shot at bantamweight gold, Coker didn’t entirely dismiss the possibility.

“If he wanted to, we’d have that conversation with him. But let’s just wait and see what he says. I don’t want to speculate on what he’s thinking. But we definitely will have that conversation. He deserves that respect. We’ll see. The kids at 35 are young and fast. Like I said maybe he’s better off at 45.”

Watch the full Bellator 297 post-fight press conference with Scott Coker above.

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At the Wintrust Arena in Chicago on Friday night, Nemkov looked to fend off arguably the biggest name of his career in Yoel Romero.

At age 46, meanwhile, “The Soldier of God” was almost certainly looking at his last major title shot — despite claiming that he wanted to compete until age 52.

Nemkov opened the action on Friday with a front kick, and would fire another kick high moments later, using his length to keep the powerful, compact Romero at a distance. Romero would eventually answer back with a kick of his own, but was blocking and moving far more than he was attacking; when Romero did get to throw something, Nemkov was all too often already out of range.

The champion’s jab, meanwhile, was finding its mark. A couple of those were following by a spinning kick; a right hand then backed Yoel up. Nemkov was more or less having his way with the challenger through the opening round, out-landing Yoel Romero by a wide margin.

Round two saw Romero continue to react rather than attack, unable to find a way in on Nemkov, who was quicker and busier. Nemkov, meanwhile, fired a right hand down the middle that split the guard of Romero. A frustrated Romero switched stances, but that didn’t pay off at least initially. “The Soldier of God” seemed reluctant to employ his wrestling as well. Through two rounds, the story of the fight was all about Vadim Nemkov.

In the third, Nemkov opened up, landing numerous heavy shots on Romero that appeared to hurt the challenger. Romero swung wild in response, but wasn’t able to land clean. The champ had Romero pinned up against the fence, landing jabs and hooks. Romero answered back, briefly forcing Nemkov to take his foot off the gas. Moments later, Nemkov was back on the attack, while Romero tried to feign injury to lure him in. That didn’t work, but it was Romero landing moments later, knocking Nemkov off-balance! He went down, and Romero got on top, looking to do damage; as Nemkov got back up, Yoel tried to time a knee but had no opening.

That sequence got the crowd going, but Nemkov didn’t appear to be hurt. The champ, however, fired some heavy blows early in round four. Nemkov ripped the body, more than once, and those shots appeared to catch Romero’s attention. Romero’s swing were powerful but wild, rarely coming close to their target. Romero would connect with a low kick, and walk Nemkov down, only for Nemkov to circle out. A right cross for Nemkov would land clean later in the round, Romero barely appeared to notice it. At 46, he certainly still had a chin on him. And at the end of the round, it was a right hand by Romero connecting, keeping things interesting heading into the fifth and final frame.

Round five opened with a simple truth: Yoel Romero needed a finish, with Vadim Nemkov well ahead in the fight. Whether he would be able to find an opening was the question, one that, as time ticked away, became less and less likely. Romero took the fight to Nemkov, cutting off the cage while the Chicago crowd chanted his name. But when the came together in a clinch along the fence, Nemkov was able to hang off the challenger and eat time off the clock. Romero would land a takedown with one minute to go, but the Olympic wrestler was running low on time. Romero ripped the body, but didn’t hand the position to do damage to the head. Nemkov stayed active on bottom, spinning around, and while Romero finished the round on top, the fight had got away from him much earlier.

The win came on the scorecards, with Nemkov extending his record-setting title defense streak in the light heavyweight division to four.

Official Result: Vadim Nemkov def. Yoel Romero by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46)

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