Photo credit to Bleacher Report
Phil Davis vs Lyoto Machida II Targeted for September 11th Bellator Card
Phil Davis vs Lyoto Machida II is being mapped out for Bellator’s fall schedule. The sequel is in the works to take place in Bellator MMA on a card purportedly being targeted for September 11th. Combate initially reported the fight with MMA Fighting confirming the news via sources close to the fight. The first bout between Machida and Davis took place at UFC 163 in August 2013. Davis won via unanimous decision but the fight was not without a fair share of controversy. Mr Wonderful looks to score a more concrete win this time out as Machida looks to even up the series.
This light heavyweight rematch is an intriguing one on a number of levels. Lyoto Machida is making his return to 205 lbs after a trek to 185 lbs. This middleweight bout saw him lose via split decision to Gegard Mousasi at Bellator 228. A fight that also represented a rematch for Machida. The former UFC light heavyweight champion looks to carve out a path towards the Bellator MMA 205lb title. What better way to do that than by beating a former Bellator light heavyweight champion in Phil Davis? As the promotion fishes out a summer schedule, they’re also clearly looking to book meaningful fights for the fall.
Phil Davis vs Lyoto Machida II
Davis was able to capture the Bellator light heavyweight world title from Liam McGeary at Bellator 163. He would drop it in his first defense to now dual division Bellator champ Ryan Bader at Bellator NYC. Since then, Davis has gone 4-1 with dual two-fight win streaks bookending a loss to Vadim Nemkov a Bellator 209 in November 2018. His last three wins have been finishes and Davis has more momentum heading into this with back to back W’s. A statement win from either man could lead to a future dance with either Ryan Bader or Vadim Nemkov (if the promotion looks to reschedule that title tilt).
