Fight Facts: Bellator 281 ‘MVP vs. Storley’

Fight Facts is a breakdown of all of the interesting information and cage curiosities on every card, with some puns, references and portmanteaus to keep things fun. These deep stat dives delve into the numbers, providing historical context and telling the stories behind those numbers.

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TOTAL NUMBER OF BELLATOR FIGHTS: 3,132
TOTAL NUMBER OF BELLATOR EVENTS: 283

Bellator MMA wrapped up a short stint in Europe with a fight card that had a little something for everyone, be it wrestling, grappling or violent knockouts. While local fighters largely struggled throughout the night, a few rarities emerged on the 13-fight show. Bellator 281 featured the first Buggy Choke ever seen at a major MMA event, a newly created line of gold and a fan favorite with heavy hands that expects his retirement will actually stick.

Best Laid Plans of Tea and Crumpets: Bellator built its 281st numbered event in London with a slew of local talent, as 10 of 13 bouts contained at least one competitor out of the U.K. Not counting the Britain-on-Britain draw between Alfie Davis and Tim Wilde, fighters from the U.K. notched only three victories opposite six defeats.

Media Widely Varied in Scorecards: After a grinding five-round effort, Logan Storley defeated Michael Page to collect the first interim welterweight strap in company history. Middleweight and featherweight remain the lone Bellator men’s divisions yet to put an interim belt up for grabs.

Slowed Way, Way Down: Each of Storley’s first six career victories ended by knockout within two rounds, while in comparison, five of the last six outings for Storley have gone the distance, with the lone holdout a win due to an arm injury in 2019.

The Formula to Slay the Dragon: To snap a two-fight skid, Fabian Edwards lamped Lyoto Machida with an elbow and follow-up punches in the first round. “The Assassin” has earned exactly 70% of his career wins by stoppage, with all of them clocking in under 5:44 of the fight.

Pannie Kianzad Calls That a ‘Sexy Scramble’: By trapping Denise Kielholtz with a triangle choke and eliciting the tap in Round 2, Kana Watanabe became the third woman in company history to land this move. Ilima-Lei Macfarlane first performed this against Valerie Letourneau at Bellator 213 in 2018, and Leah McCourt followed up with one in 2021 at Bellator 259 against Janay Harding.

MMA Retirements Never Stick: Paul Daley allegedly retired after knocking out Wendell Giacomo. If it holds up, “Semtex” will end his Bellator run with a record of 10-5 with eight knockouts to his credit. The only fighters with more knockouts in Bellator history are Douglas Lima (nine), and Patricky Freire and Page (10 each).

It Won’t Be His Last: Throughout a career that began in 2003, Daley never once performed a submission in any of his 63 fights. All of his 35 stoppages came by knockout, for an 81% knockout rate.

Cameroon with a View: Over the course of three rounds, Cameroon-born Simon Biyong won a decision over then-unbeaten Luke Trainer. It marked only the second time that “Hemle” has won a bout on the scorecards, with his other victories coming due to strikes or forced retirement.

Did Drake Bet On Himself? In just 72 seconds, Daniel Weichel blitzed Robert Whiteford with punches. The stoppage due to strikes is the first for “Drake” since November 2011, and at that time, 16 of the other 25 competitors at Bellator 281 had yet to make their professional debuts.

Passage to Victory: Putting Kate Jackson away late into the second frame, Elina Kallionidou improved her overall finish rate to 78%. The flyweight from Preveza, Greece, has finished each of her last five opponents in victory.

Have Buggy, Will Travel: Oliver Enkamp secured the first Buggy Choke in major MMA history when he tapped out Mark Lemminger early into Round 3. Others across the sport to land this complicated move include Lucas Clay, Gabriel Manuca, Daeri Alderman and Ibragim Askhabov.

Wilde Fight, Wilder Scores: After Wilde lost one point in the first round due to a fence grab that stopped a takedown, his bout with Davis was scored a majority draw. Their fight ruled event is the first for Bellator since 2019, when Elias Mamedov and Itay Tratner fought to a split draw at Bellator 234.

Will Never Shake the Bofando Loss: At an unexpected catchweight, Charlie Ward picked up a decision over the heavy Alan Carlos. Even though Carlos made his pro debut in 2007 compared to Ward’s start in 2015, Ward clocked in three years the elder at 41 years of age.

Barbie’s Dream Decision: After three hard-fought rounds, Chiara Penco settled for the first decision win of her career when she overcame Lanchana Green. The past six victories for “Beasty Barbie” all came by stoppage, with the majority by way of tapout.

Never Say Never Again: Coming into Bellator 281, Page had never lost on the scorecards (21 fights), Giacomo had never been knocked out (11 fights) and Lemminger had never been submitted (16 fights).

Brazilians and Their Linkin Park: Throwing it back to a walkout song used when he was in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Machida selected “Bleed It Out” by Linkin Park. From 2009 to 2013, and once more in 2015, “The Dragon” rolled with that track in the Octagon. Machida lost this Bellator fight by knockout.