Bellator 281 London is fast approaching, with SSE Arena preparing for the May 13th mega card. Headlined by Micheal “Venom” Page taking on Logan Storley for the interim welterweight title, the card is a big one for the UK. In this article, we are going to take a look at some of the fun facts and figures, and no, that is not an oxymoron.
Lyoto Machida – 22-7-0
That was “The Dragon’s” MMA record after losing to Yoel Romero at a UFC Fight Night back in 2015. That same year a sprightly 22-year-old named Fabian Edwards was making his amateur debut in Budo FC, a popular UK based promotion. He scored a 4-second knockout, and now, just seven years later, he takes on one of the best to ever do it.
Micheal “Venom” Page – 9
Main eventer and UK superstar MVP has managed so far to beat fighters from a total of 9 different countries. The highlight reel making fighter has even ventured into boxing to add a few flags to his collection. The countries are as follows. See if you can guess who they are.
- England
- Scotland
- USA
- Egypt
- Brazil
- Spain
- Poland
- Italy
- Japan
Luke Trainer – 3,363 Miles
That’s the distance between the birthplace of Trainer’s opponent and London. He takes of fellow 6’6 giant Simon Biyong, who comes by way of Yaounde, Cameroon. Trainer holds a seven-inch reach advantage and will hope that advantage helps keep his currently 5-0 record unblemished.
Paul Daley- 13 Years
It has been 13 years since one of the UK scene’s brightest ever stars got signed to the UFC. “Semtex” was 26 at the time and blasted onto everyone’s radar by knocking out UFC stalwart Martin Kampmann at UFC 103 in the very first round. Daley was later banned from the UFC for life due to some unsportsmanlike conduct in a later bout with Josh Koscheck.
Despite the setback, Daley went on to rebuild his reputation, fighting everywhere, from Shark Fights, where he beat Jorge Masvidal, to Strikeforce, where he met up with various big names such as Tyrone Woodley and Nick Diaz, to name a few. Eventually, though, Bellator became his fixed abode, and with his last ever fight this Saturday, we are sure London will let him know what he means to the sport.
Do you have any Bellator figures that catch your eye for Bellator 281 London?
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Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
