NEW YORK – On Friday night, the Bellator cage opens for business at Madison Square Garden as a stacked card of fights lands in New York for Bellator 222.
The main event features a welterweight title fight and Bellator welterweight grand prix semifinal, as undefeated Brazilian Neiman Gracie challenges Canada’s Rory MacDonald, while the co-main event may also have potential world title implications, as fellow veterans Lyoto Machida and Chael Sonnen go head to head with a possible shot at two-division champ Ryan Bader awaiting the winner.
There’s a world title rematch, as Bellator bantamweight champ Darrion Caldwell looks to avenge his loss to Rizin champion Kyoji Horiguchi and retain his Bellator strap.
And there are intriguing matchups further down the card, with the return to action of Aaron Pico, a pivotal clash at bantamweight between Eduardo Dantas and Juan Archuleta, plus a matchup between elite taekwondo striker Valerie Loureda and Michigan mixed martial artist – and Hooters waitress – Larkyn Dasch.
In short, there’s a little something for everyone on this weekend’s card in “The Big Apple.” Here are our burning questions ahead of what looks set to be a lively night at The Garden:
1. Does the fire still burn inside ‘The Red King?’
Perhaps the biggest burning question heading into Bellator 222 this weekend is whether MacDonald (20-5-1 MMA, 2-1-1 BMMA) still has what it takes to keep his place at the top.
MacDonald has been through some of the sport’s most incredible wars – most notably his UFC 189 slobberknocker against Robbie Lawler – but, as they often say, those wars take something out of you.
And after MacDonald admitted he found it hard to pull the trigger during his Bellator 220 draw with Jon Fitch, the alarm bells started to ring. MMA is the toughest sport on the planet, and competing while battling mental uncertainties can’t be conducive to a great performance.
Some wondered if MacDonald’s comments might lead to retirement, but the Canadian confirmed he would carry on in the Bellator’s welterweight grand prix and now faces undefeated Brazilian Gracie (9-0 MMA, 7-0 BMMA), who said he thought MacDonald’s supposed doubts were, to quote, “bull(expletive).”
Gracie’s biggest win to date came in his last bout against Ed Ruth, and he hasn’t yet reached the level of competition MacDonald has been facing during his career.
MacDonald has been fighting world-class opposition for the last nine years. That could be an advantage, or could all those wars with the likes of Lawler, Tyron Woodley, Carlos Condit and many others have worn down “The Red King,” physically or mentally?
It’s fair to say that on Friday night at The Garden, MacDonald faces two fights. He has to not only beat Gracie, he also has to beat his own demons.
2. Will Kyoji Horiguchi repeat the feat and snag another belt?
We’re living in the “champ-champ” era, and Japanese star Horiguchi (27-2 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) plans on adding his name to the ever-growing “champ-champ” list, but with a twist.
Unlike other fighters, who successfully captured their titles in two different weight classes, Horiguchi is bidding to achieve a first – holding world titles in two major organizations simultaneously.
He won the inaugural Rizin bantamweight title by defeating Bellator 135-pound champ Caldwell (12-2 MMA, 9-1 BMMA) back at Rizin 14 on New Year’s Eve last year. Now the Japanese ace is heading to New York in a bid to repeat the feat and steal away Caldwell’s Bellator bantamweight title in the process.
If he’s successful, he’ll be the first fighter to hold titles in two of the world’s major organizations at the same time. Then he’ll face a challenge that has no other fighter has had to cope with before – the challenge of defending two world titles for two different organizations on opposite sides of the world.
3. From wings to wins: Can Larkyn Dash spring a shock?
When news of Loureda’s opponent first made its way onto the world wide web, all the talk was about her day job. Now Dasch gets the chance to show the world she’s much more than just a Hooters waitress with a dream.
Dasch (0-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) is looking to spring something of a shock when she takes on taekwondo ace Loureda (1-0 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) on Friday night. Both women have only one professional fight to their name, but Loureda’s elite-level experience in taekwondo – plus her hugely impressive debut at Bellator 216 – has her in the role of pre-fight favorite this weekend.
Dasch may have posted a pic of her signing her fight contract while wearing her Hooters gear, but don’t fall into the trap of thinking she’s just here for a bit of cheap PR. Dasch told MMA Junkie this week she dropped out of her college degree course with just one semester remaining in order to chase her dream. Her friends told her she was crazy, but there’s no questioning her commitment.
The big question now, of course, is can she fight? She lost her pro debut by decision in April but has four amateur wins to her name, including a knockout and a reverse-triangle submission. Now Dasch says she’s ready to prove she belongs in the Bellator cage.
“This is my opportunity,” she told me this week. “And I’m going to take it.”
4. Which light heavyweight vet will earn a shot at Bellator gold?
Dragon vs. gangster. Karate vs. wrestling. Pee drinker versus trashtalker. Whichever way you look at it, the co-main event bout between Machida (25-8 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) and Sonnen (30-16-1 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) offers a stark clash in styles. But which fighting 40-something will prevail at The Garden this weekend?
Sonnen is still chasing his first major MMA title, having lost in three title fights during his UFC career, and then being eliminated from Bellator’s heavyweight grand prix at the semifinal stage.
He faces Machida, who has been there, seen it and done it at the very highest level, having captured the UFC light heavyweight title a decade ago. But “The Machida Era” proved to be short-lived, as he was dethroned in only his second title defense.
Now both men have found themselves in Bellator, where they stand potentially one win away from a shot at championship gold once again. Machida admitted to a rare bout of cage jitters during his split-decision win over Rafael Carvalho in his Bellator debut last time out, while Sonnen is looking to bounce back after his TKO loss to Fedor Emelianenko last October.
Machida will fancy his chances against Bader, having starched him in their 2012 bout at UFC on FOX 4, while Sonnen is happy to stack his wrestling skills against anyone in the world, even an NCAA All-American like Bader. But only one man will get that shot.
One man is a pure striker, the other a pure wrestler. But which exponent of their respective art will have the edge? Take your pick, ladies and gentlemen.
5. Can Aaron Pico bounce back and pass his latest test?
After a shocking debut defeat, everything was looking hunky-dory for Bellator super-prospect Pico; then he ran into Henry Corrales at Bellator 214. One highlight-reel knockout later, Pico was facing the press talking about his stunning KO loss.
Now, after a four-month layoff, Pico (4-2 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) is back and looking to bounce back into the win column at Madison Square Garden, but the Bellator matchmakers haven’t exactly given him a tune-up fight for his return.
Hungarian submission specialist Adam Borics (12-0 MMA, 3-0 BMMA) is undefeated at 12-0, and while he may not possess the concussive one-punch knockout power of Corrales, he will certainly offer a different challenge for the returning Pico.
Pico’s attitude in the aftermath of his loss to Corrales was encouraging, and his approach to the game seems to be on point. Now it’s time for Pico to execute and show the latest iteration of his development as a mixed martial artist.
Will Friday night see another quantum leap forward for the former freestyle wrestling prodigy, or will he experience another bump in the road in his young MMA career?
6. Is Juan Archuleta the new man at 135 pounds?
Since Archuleta (22-1 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) joined Bellator in early 2018, “The Spaniard” has seemingly been on a one-way journey to the top of the organization’s bantamweight division.
Now the former multi-division King of the Cage champion is looking to claim the biggest scalp of his career by defeating former Bellator champ Dantas (21-6 MMA, 11-3 BMMA) in a short-notice 145-pound bout at The Garden.
Archuleta is riding a 17-fight winning streak, with his most recent victory – over Ricky Bandejas at Bellator 214 – propelling him into a bout with Dantas that could see him transform from contender to challenger.
Brazilian Dantas hasn’t finished an opponent since 2014 and is looking to force his way back into contention after losing his title to Caldwell back at Bellator 184.
Archuleta may see that lack of finishes on Dantas’ record and feel that he has a golden opportunity to either stop his man or outwork him for a decision and put himself in pole position to challenge for the belt later this year.
Archuleta told MMA Junkie during fight week that victory in his short-notice fight at 145 pounds this weekend will see him get a title shot at bantamweight. The question now is can “The Spaniard” step up and be the man to challenge for the strap after Bellator 222? We’re about to find out.
For more on Bellator 222, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.
