Danny Sabatello on Bellator bantamweight division: “All these chumps are f*cked in the end”
Danny Sabatello sees his rise to the top of Belaltor’s bantamweight division as inevitable.
Sabatello wasn’t even under contract with Bellator two weeks ago, but put the division on notice with a dominant unanimous decision victory over Brett Johns at Bellator 259 on Friday, May 21. The 28-year-old only expects to fight ranked opponents ahead after beating the former UFC contender in his promotion debut.
He is confident he can dethrone current champion Sergio Pettis, but is fine with beating the rest of the division before he gets there.
“I think all these chumps are f*cked in the end, I am going to beat them sooner or later,” Sabatello said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s sooner or later, I am going to get that belt.”
Danny Sabatello is part of a stacked division
Sabatello is still without a win inside the Bellator cage. Johns also made his Bellator debut against Sabatello with his only previous losses coming against current UFC champion Aljamain Sterling and UFC ranked contender Pedro Munhoz.
Sabatello is doing plenty of celebrating, but is already looking ahead. Since he is currently not pegged in the top 10 of the division, “The Italian Gangster” sees a lot of options ahead.
“What’s exciting about this division is it’s kind of getting stacked, people are starting to recognize that,” Sabatello said. “At the end of the day, I don’t care who the f*ck I fight, I’m going to be confident and I’m going to beat them, but I am very hopeful it is a ranked opponent.”
Danny Sabatello wants Jornel Lugo or Josh Hill next
Sabatello is eying possible matchups with undefeated prospect Jornel Lugo and “The Ultimate Fighter” season 18 veteran Josh Hill. With Patchy Mix still tied up with a potential fight with James Gallagher, the Illinois native sees No. 8 Lugo and No. 7 Hill as his best options.
Lugo and Hill both competed recently. Hill dropped a unanimous decision loss to Raufeon Stots at Bellator 258 on May 7, whereas Lugo defeated Cass Bell by unanimous decision at Bellator 246 in April.
Leandro Higo and Darrion Caldwell are other options for him. Higo beat Caldwell via split decision on the same Bellator 259 card this past weekend.
Sabatello is unsure if either Higo or Caldwell will be willing to make a quick turnaround against him.
“I’m not going to get a title shot off of just one win, so to me, what makes sense is a Jornel Lugo or a Josh Hill,” Sabatello said. “Those are two guys who are ranked right now, they don’t have fights, it’s kind of what makes sense.”
“A great f*cking opportunity”
Sabatello is only interested in keeping his momentum rolling under the Bellator banner. The 11-1 contender is here to stay and his debut is a reflection of that.
A win over Johns marked the start of his Bellator career, but also set up what Sabatello considers the beginning of a championship career.
“I am very confident, I believe I can beat anybody in the world,” Sabatello said. “What a great f*cking opportunity it was for me.”
