Bellator 261: Johnson vs. Moldavsky was a
mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...
event produced by
Bellator MMA
Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media cong ...
that took place on June 25, 2021, at
Mohegan Sun Arena
The Mohegan Sun Arena is a 10,000 seat multi-purpose arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, located inside the Mohegan Sun casino resort. The arena facility features of configurable exhibition space and a clear span. It was built by the Perini Buil ...
in
Uncasville, Connecticut
Uncasville is an area in the New England town, town of Montville, Connecticut, Montville, Connecticut, United States. It is a Administrative divisions of Connecticut#Village, neighborhood, section of town, village in southeastern Montville, at the ...
.
Background
With current heavyweight champion
Ryan Bader
Arizona State Sun Devils
Ryan DuWayne Bader (born June 7, 1983) is an American mixed martial artist currently signed to Bellator MMA where he is the current Bellator Heavyweight Champion, the former Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion, a ...
moving on in the
Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix Tournament,
Timothy Johnson and
Valentin Moldavsky
Valentin Igorevich Moldavsky (russian: Валенти́н И́горевич Молда́вский; born 6 February 1992) is a Russian mixed martial artist and combat sambo practitioner. He is currently signed to Bellator MMA, where he is a for ...
competed for an
Bellator Interim Heavyweight World Championship.
A title eliminator women's flyweight bout between
Liz Carmouche
Liz Carmouche (born February 19, 1984) is an American mixed martial arts fighter currently signed to Bellator MMA, where she is the current Bellator Women's Flyweight World Champion. Carmouche competed for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC ...
and
Kana Watanabe
is a Japanese mixed martial artist. She is competing in the Flyweight division of Bellator MMA. Kana Watanabe spent most of her career fighting in her native Japan, until she began fighting in Bellator MMA.
As of December 13, 2022, she is #7 in ...
served as the co-main of the event.
A light heavyweight bout between Christian Edwards and Ben Parrish was scrapped after weigh-ins at
Bellator 259
Bellator 259: Cyborg vs. Smith 2 was a mixed martial arts event that was produced by Bellator MMA at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut.
Background
The event featured a Bellator Women's Featherweight Championship bout between the ch ...
after Edwards wasn't cleared to compete by the Mohegan Sun Athletic Commission. After being cleared by a commission doctor on May 26, the bout was rebooked for this event.
The reigning WBC Muaythai World Featherweight champion
Lena Ovchynnikova
Oléna "Lena" Serhíyivna Ovchýnnikova ( uk, Оле́на "Ле́на" Сергі́ївна Овчи́ннікова; born April 22, 1987) is a Ukrainian kickboxer and mixed martial artist who competes in the featherweight divisi ...
was scheduled to fight Kyra Batara in the event prelims. However, the bout was cancelled the week of the event with one of Batara's corner testing positive for
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
.
A featherweight bout between Keoni Diggs and two-time
Bellator Featherweight title challenger
Daniel Weichel
Daniel Weichel (born November 22, 1984) is a German mixed martial artist currently competing in Bellator's Featherweight division. A professional competitor since 2002, he has also competed in M-1 Global and Shooto. As of November 22, 2022, he i ...
was announced for the main card.
A middleweight bout between Taylor Johnson and Lance Wright was to take place at
Bellator 260
Bellator 260: Lima vs. Amosov was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on June 11, 2021, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The event was the first Bellator event with fans in attendance since Bellator ...
. However, a week before the event it was announced that it was moved to this event.
Light heavyweight bouts between Simon Biyong and Lee Chadwick and Christian Edwards and Ben Parrish were scheduled for this show. However, Chadwick tested positive for
COVID-19
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei, identified in Wuhan, China, in December ...
and Parrish had to pull out of the bout, so Biyong and Edwards were matched with each other.
Results
See also
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2021 in Bellator MMA
2021 in Bellator MMA was the thirteenth year in the history of Bellator MMA, a mixed martial arts promotion based in the United States. Bellator held 18 events in 2021.
Background
The promotion went on a hiatus following Bellator 254 on December ...
*
List of Bellator MMA events
This is a list of events held and scheduled by Bellator MMA (formerly known as "Bellator Fighting Championships"), a mixed martial arts organization based in the United States. The first event, Bellator 1, took place on April 3, 2009. Upcoming fig ...
*
List of current Bellator fighters
List of current Bellator MMA fighters records current Bellator MMA (Bellator) fighters' information, country origins, recent fighter signings and departures, fight schedules and results and the champion of each division. Unlike the UFC, Bellator do ...
*
Bellator MMA Rankings
The Bellator MMA rankings, which was introduced in March 2021, is generated by a voting panel made up of media members. The media members are asked to vote for who they feel are the top fighters in the Bellator MMA by weight class and pound-for-pou ...
References
{{2021 in mixed martial arts
Bellator MMA events
Events in Uncasville, Connecticut
2021 in mixed martial arts
June 2021 sports events in the United States
2021 in sports in Connecticut
Mixed martial arts in Connecticut
Sports competitions in Connecticut