The Bellator cage lands in Tel Aviv, Israel for Bellator 234, with a pivotal heavyweight bout headlining the card, a returning veteran in search of a much-needed victory, and an Israeli father-son combination looking to follow in the footsteps of Bellator’s McKee family by securing a double celebration on fight night.
Here are our five burning questions ahead of Bellator 234:
Can ‘The Paratrooper’ drop himself into a title fight?
Sergei Kharitonov may be as little as one win away from a shot at the Bellator heavyweight title, but he needs to eliminate any lingering doubts about his status as the top contender before he’ll get his opportunity.
Kharitonov (30-7 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) is undefeated since his flash knockout at the hands of Javy Ayala back at Bellator 163 in 2018, and you have to go as far back as the summer of 2011 for his last defeat before that. In short, “The Paratrooper” has been on some solid form over the last eight years.
Standing in his way is a British powerhouse looking to make an impact in a new weight class, Linton Vassell. Two-time light heavyweight title challenger Vassell (18-8 MMA, 7-5 BMMA) has moved up a division to take advantage of his powerful frame, and while he lost out on the scorecards on his return to heavyweight, “The Swarm” looks to be in prime condition ahead of one of the toughest tests of his career.
If Vassell can take Kharitonov off his feet and work his ground and pound, the Brit could walk away with a big win and upset the heavyweight applecart. But Kharitonov knows that a shot at glory could be just one solid punch away, and you can bet he’ll be looking to connect early in a bid to score a quick KO and deliver a statement to the division.
Who will prevail – the power-punching former kickboxer, or the British former light heavyweight contender?
Will Roger Huerta get back to winning ways in Tel Aviv?
After back-to-back losses inside the Bellator cage in 2018, Roger Huerta returns for the third fight of his current contract looking to score his first Bellator victory since Bellator 13 back in 2010.
Much has happened for Huerta (24-11-1 MMA, 1-4 BMMA) since that victory, of course. He’d just arrived in Bellator after a run in the UFC but was unable to build momentum and ended up heading east to ONE Championship, where he went 2-3 with the Singaporean promotion. Now he’s back in Bellator for a second run, and he’s looking to pick up the first win of his current deal with the promotion.
He’ll need to be on his guard against Bellator returnee Sidney Outlaw, who makes his second appearance in the Bellator cage, some five-and-a-half years after his first, back at Bellator 118.
Outlaw (13-3 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) has built a solid record on the regional scene and heads into this weekend’s clash riding an eight-fight win streak, with his last three outings each producing submission finishes. Outlaw’s last loss came via split-decision to top UFC contender Gregor Gillespie, so that should offer a little window to his ability to grind his way through a matchup, if needed. And his seven submission wins show where he’s most likely to offer his biggest threat to “El Matador.”
Can Outlaw upset Huerta, or will the former “ESPN The Magazine” cover boy pick up his first win since 2017?
Can Aviv Gozali add another record to his name against fellow finisher Fatullazade?
Israeli lightweight Aviv Gozali is the highest-billed local star on the card, and the rising star of Israeli MMA certainly isn’t short of confidence heading into his bout with Zaka Fatullazade.
Gozali (3-0 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) captured the record for the fastest submission in Bellator history last time out, thanks to an 11-second heel-hook victory at Bellator 225 in August. Now he’s targeting another rapid-fire record, with the fastest KO mark in his sights in Tel Aviv.
“I’m going to do like (Jorge) Masvidal did,” Gozali told MMA Junkie on Tuesday. “I’m going to run with a flying knee. I want to take all the records in the book.”
Fatullazade (14-7 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) will have other ideas, of course, as the Azerbaijani prospect looks to make an impact of his own on his Bellator debut. It’s worth noting that he also owns a 2019 victory via heel hook. Half of his 14 career wins have come via submission, but he has also finished five men by KO/TKO.
With both men showing a propensity for finishes, their clash at 155 pounds could produce one of the best fights of the night. But which finisher will get their hand raised?
Can the Gozali family match the McKees with father-son win double?
Just a matter of a few weeks after A.J. McKee and father Antonio scored a pair of victories on the same fight card at Bellator 228 in September, Israel’s Haim Gozali and his son Aviv will look to repeat the feat in Tel Aviv.
We’ve laid out the challenge ahead of Aviv earlier in this piece, but before he steps into the cage, his father Haim will get the chance to send his son into the cage on a high by picking up a victory in the preceding matchup.
Gozali Sr. (11-6 MMA, 3-3 BMMA) takes on dangerous Russian Artur Pronin (16-3 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), who comes into the contest looking to make a splash on his Bellator debut by continuing his 100 percent finishing rate at Gozali’s expense.
The fight is expected to bring down the curtain on Gozali’s MMA career as he passes the torch to his son on what the family hopes will be a memorable night on home soil
“He’s fighting one fight before me, so I won’t be able to watch him fight,” said Aviv. “I will be nervous for this fight, but I’m excited because now the Gozali legacy is going to my end. I’m going to continue the legacy and give us the belt soon.”
But will the family end the night with a double celebration?
Can ‘The Gentleman’ continue his undefeated run?
It’s a sad fact that, to many MMA fans around the world, Austin Vanderford is best known for his high-profile wife rather than his own fighting skills.
But the man known as “The Gentleman” has quietly been building an impressive record as he climbs the ranks of the Bellator middleweight division. Another big win this week could go another step toward the fan respect his performances to date have deserved.
Vanderford (8-0 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) will look to make it three wins in a row under the Bellator banner when he takes on Russian Grachiya Bozinyan, who makes his return to active competition after a nightmare two years that saw a succession of fights canceled, but every cloud has a silver lining. Bozinyan (10-3 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) subsequently signed with Bellator and will now make his promotional debut against Vanderford in Tel Aviv.
Victory for Vanderford could well push him towards the division’s top names, but if Bozinyan can take the American’s “0,” he’ll immediately make a name for himself on his maiden Bellator appearance.
