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Watch Live MMA Bellator 245 Davis vs Machida 2 2020 09 11 Free DX-TV

MMA Bellator 245 Davis vs Machida 2

Live MMA Bellator 245 Davis vs Machida 2 2020 09 11 Free

Friday night’s main event of Bellator 245 is another example of the division’s depth,

as UFC veterans Phil Davis and Lyoto Machida enter a rematch seven years in the making.

(Paramount Network/DAZN, 10 p.m. ET) inside the Mohegan Sun Arena in Huntsville, Connecticut

MMA Bellator 245 Davis vs Machida 2

The bouts will headline Bellator 245 and Bellator 246 at the “FightSphere” at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., on Sept. 11 and 12.

Bellator MMA’s “FightSphere” at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., has hosted action during this ongoing coronavirus pandemic, but not quite like this.

For the first time ever, the “FightSphere” will hold a massive doubleheader, headlined by Phil Davis vs. Lyoto Machida in a rematch at Bellator 245 on Friday, Sept. 11, and Juan Archuleta vs. Patchy Mix for the vacant bantamweight world title at Bellator 246 on Saturday, Sept. 12.

Bellator 245 Davis vs Machida 2

The cards will also have Cat Zingano and Liz Carmouche making their highly anticipated Bellator debuts,

as Zingano takes on Gabby Holloway in a featherweight tilt at Bellator 245, while Carmouche faces DeAnna Bennett at flyweight during Bellator 246.

Each card will air live on DAZN at 10 p.m. ET. (as well as on Paramount Network in the U.S.).

Davis (21-5-1 no contest) defeated Machida (26-9) by unanimous decision in the latter fighter’s,

home country of Brazil back when they were in the UFC in August 2013. More than seven years later,

Machida will look to avenge that loss in this light heavyweight clash.

The 35-year-old Davis enters the bout coming off a third-round TKO (punches) of Karl Albrektsson last October.

Machida, 42, dropped a split decision to Gegard Mousasi in September during his last appearance in the cage.

MMA Bellator 245 Davis vs Machida 2

Meanwhile, Archuleta (24-2), who is coming off a decision victory over Henry Corrales in January,

will have to hand Mix (13-0) his first loss if he’s going to wrap the bantamweight title around his waist by the night’s end. This fight has the 32-year-old knockout artist dropping down a weight class to make this world title shot happen. Mix, 26, has racked up three straight first-round submissions in Bellator,

as he looks to make his fourth performance with the company his best.

Bellator 245 Davis vs Machida 2

If there’s anything to be learned from re-watching Davis’ victory by unanimous decision over Machida from 2013 in the UFC,

neither fighter believes it will help them in the rematch. Both Davis and Machida acknowledged ,

how much they have evolved as martial artists during the seven-year gap and Machida specifically said he has never been motivated by revenge.

Davis vs Machida 2

“More so than my self belief, it was more of the, ‘I told you so,'” Davis said.

“Machida is a hard guy to land a glove on. That looked very different from any fight he had previously. He doesn’t get taken down a lot and he’s very good at getting up. My confidence did grow. You can do what you do to anyone in the world,

but I think the MMA fans grew some appreciation that there’s something about Phil that is very different.

[Machida] has a different skill set that is hard to match.”

MMA Bellator 245 Live

In terms of what to expect in the rematch, the only thing that hasn’t changed from Machida’s perspective is that he still believes Davis will be looking for takedowns throughout.

“He likes to score points and control the fight. That’s my job to not let him fight. That’s it,”

Machida said. “I’ll be looking for the fight from the beginning. I’ll be looking for the knockout and submission.

But a fight is a fight. Phil Davis is a great fighter and former champion in Bellator. I have to be at my best and be ready for any situation.”

Fight card Bellator 245 Davis vs Machida 2

Phil Davis vs. Lyoto Machida, light heavyweights
Cat Zingano vs. Gabby Holloway, women’s featherweights
Ed Ruth vs. Taylor Johnson, middleweights
Raymond Daniels vs. Peter Stanonkik, welterweights

Prediction

Davis has very quietly produced an exceptional run since leaving UFC for Bellator in 2015,

having gone 8-2 with a pair of split-decision defeats against the division’s best. The problem for Davis when he steps up in class has never been his athleticism or ability to take the fight to the ground when he pleases,

it’s typically whether he throws enough strikes to sway the judges.

MMA Bellator 245 Davis vs Machida 2

Whether or not Davis can consistently take Machida down will certainly go a long way in helping him smother the karate-based style which makes the Brazilian legend so dangerous, just as he did in their first meeting.

But he won’t be able to get there without establishing himself first on the feet and committing with bad enough intention in order to diversify his attack.

Bellator 245

This is still Davis’ fight to win, even with Machida having not yet begun to show major signs of fading due to age.

Davis can help him get closer to getting there by looking to be as explosive and sudden as possible to constantly make Machida feel like he’s a step behind.

As long as Davis commits, he can avoid the type of chess match against a classic counter striker that tends to lead to boring fights and split-decision defeats.