Yarsolav Amosov Dominates Logan Storley, Unifies Welterweight Title at Bellator 291

Returning after a nearly two-year absence from the cage, Yaroslav Amosov left no doubt that he is one of the top 170-pound fighters in the world.

The destiny of the Bellator MMA welterweight championship was decided on Saturday at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. Coming into the main event, Amosov (27-0, 8-0 Bellator) sought to defend his crown for the first time against interim champion Logan Storley (14-2, 9-2 Bellator), who sole loss had been a split decision to Amosov in November 2020. It was Amosov’s first fight in 21 months, a layoff prompted by Russia’s invasion of his native Ukraine that saw the undefeated champ return home to active military service. That long hiatus, combined with the popular perception that Storley had improved considerably since their first meeting, saw the line on Amosov contract from nearly three-to-one to a mere -140 by the time they stepped into the cage.

Amosov proved any doubters wrong, looking superb for 25 straight minutes. If anything, he appeared to have improved from his 2011 title win over Douglas Lima, showing faster, more technical striking, even better grappling and a new level of cardio, fighting at a breakneck pace for five rounds without slowing down. He battered Storley with a never-ending stream of blows, hurting him with brutal leg kicks as well as vicious punches to the head. He stifled all the challenger’s takedown attempts with ease and after wobbling Storley, took down the four-time NCAA Division 1 All-American wrestler several times. It was a sensational performance, with Amosov winning 50-45 on all three cards, and making a case for himself as the sport’s best welterweight.

In the co-main, top featherweight contenders clashed when No. 5 Jeremy Kennedy (18-3, 3-1 Bellator) went to war with third-ranked Pedro Carvalho (13-6, 6-3 Bellator). Kennedy won virtually every minute of the fight with his grappling, continually getting to dominant positions, attacking with submissions and landing ground-and-pound, taking the easy decision.

Former lightweight title challenger and No. 10 ranked Peter Queally (13-8-1, 2-4 Bellator) stepped into the cage against Bryce Logan (13-7, 1-4 Bellator). Queally won the first round, but in the second round, Logan scored a thunderous elbow in the clinch that dropped Queally and pounded him out with follow-up punches, garnering his first Bellator victory in style.

Sinead Kavanagh (9-5, 6-5 Bellator) defeated Janay Harding (6-8, 3-5 Bellator) by unanimous decision in a close-fought, entertaining scrap at women's featherweight. Harding defeated Kavanagh in 2018 in a major upset when the fight was stopped due to a severe cut. Harding was a big underdog again on Saturday, but scored consistently with kicks to the legs and body for all 15 minutes, though Kavanagh had her moments with brief bursts of punches, including a flash knockdown in Round 2.

Kicking off the main card, hometown hero Ciaran Clarke (7-0, 7-0 Bellator) confronted Leonardo Sinis (11-6-1, 0-1 Bellator), with Sinis missing weight badly, coming in 2.8 pounds over the featherweight limit. Clarke easily dominated the fight with takedowns and ground-and-pound, doing everything except getting the finish, contenting himself with a lopsided decision triumph of 30-26 on every card.

In the prelims, No. 8 ranked light heavyweight Karl Moore (11-2, 3-0 Bellator), coming off a huge submission win over Karl Albrektsson, fought Poland's Maciej Rozanski (14-4, 1-1 Bellator). Rozanski had some early success, but Moore grinded him out to take the unanimous decision. Bellator mainstays Mike Shipman (15-4, 6-3 Bellator) and Charlie Ward (10-6, 7-3 Bellator) met at middleweight. Ward was constantly talking and playing off the hometown crowd, but it was Shipman who pitched a shutout with his dominant wrestling, taking every round on every scorecard. In an important heavyweight battle, Oleg Popov (16-1, 1-0 Bellator) squared off against ninth- ranked Gokhan Saricam (8-2, 4-2 Bellator). Popov dominated the first two rounds with repeated takedowns, and although Saricam edged out the final stanza once Popov fatigued, it wasn't enough, as Popov took the decision 29-28 on all three official scorecards.

In a clash between young and old, 23-year-old Norbert Novenyi Jr. (6-0, 5-0 Bellator) looked sensational in beating up 38-year-old Andy Manzolo (26-10, 0-3 Bellator) from pillar to post, stopping him late in the first round. At bantamweight, long-time Bellator veteran Brian Moore (16-9, 6-5 Bellator) battled Italian Luca Iovine (15-9, 1-1 Bellator), with Moore having a large striking advantage and Iovine a sizable edge in grappling, with Moore taking the split verdict. Piotr Neidzielski (17-5, 1-1 Bellator), fresh off a big upset of Pedro Carvalho, faced Richie Smullen (10-2-1, 4-1 Bellator), who survived the Pole's repeated guillotine attempts to snag a split decision. Ireland's own Darragh Kelly (3-0, 3-0 Bellator) got a late third-round ground-and-pound stoppage against Jordan Dorval (2-3, 0-1 Bellator). In a battle of young prospects, 21-year-old Liam McCracken (3-1, 0-1 Bellator) and 24-year-old Asael Adjoudj (5-1, 3-1 Bellator) engaged in a pitched battle for 15 minutes in the striking and grappling, with Adjoudj edging it out at the end, triumphing 29-28 on all three scorecards. Undefeated 22-year-old Khasan Magomedsharipov (7-0, 2-0 Bellator) brutalized Rafael Hudson (6-4, 0-1 Bellator) with elbows and punches from top position to force a late first-round stoppage. Jena Bishop (5-0, 1-0 Bellator) used her grappling to dominate Elina Kallionidou (9-5, 2-5 Bellator), taking every round on every judge's card. Prospect Kenny Mokhonoana (5-0, 2-0 Bellator) blasted Craig McIntosh (4-4, 0-1 Bellator) with punches from top position in the first round for the finish in a battle of 6' tall featherweights, Undefeated promotional newcomer Dmytrii Hrytsenko (8-0, 1-0 Bellator) and Daniele Scatizzi (12-7, 3-3 Bellator) engaged in an exciting, back-and-forth striking battle, with Hrystenko taking the well-deserved judges' verdict. In the opening bout, undefeated Steven Hill (7-0, 2-0 Bellator) dominated Joel Kouadja (7-8, 0-1 Bellator) with takedowns and ground-and-pound, attaining a rear-naked choke in Round 2.