Bellator Featherweight Grand Prix Quarterfinals Set
Bellator concluded the round of 16 of their Featherweight Grand Prix at Bellator 228 last night in Inglewood, California.
Already moving on to the quarterfinals was Emmanuel Sanchez, Derek Campos, Adam Borics, and Pedro Carvalho. In the second part, it was A.J. McKee, Darrion Caldwell, Daniel Weichel, and Patricio Freire who got their hand raised.
Following all the fights, Bellator decided to a selection show where fighters could choose one of four dates, or an opponent if the options was available. In a random draw by picking cards the order and what they choose are as follows.
- McKee received first pick, chose December.
- Borics received the second pick, chose January
- Caldwell received the third pick, chose March
- Weichel received the fourth pick, chose February
- Sanchez received the fifth pick and chose Weichel in February.
- Campos received the sixth pick and chose McKee in December
- Carvalho received the seventh pick and chose Caldwell in March
- Freire received eighth pick and the “champ’s choice,” which gave him the power to override and choose whatever fight he wanted. He chose Carvalho in March. Meaning, Caldwell was shifted to fight Borics in January.
So, in the quarter-finals, the matchups are as follows.
- A.J. McKee vs. Derek Campos – December 2019
- Adam Borics vs. Darrion Caldwell – January 2020
- Emmanuel Sanchez vs. Daniel Weichel – February 2020
- Patricio Freire vs. Pedro Carvalho (featherweight title on the line) – March 2020
Bellator got a ton of props from fans, media, and fighters for the creativity behind this. They let the fighters pick the bracket, and when, where, and who they wanted to fight.
At this time, December is set to be in Hawaii, January at The Forum, and Scott Coker said they are still working on February and March, where February will most likely be on Connecticut.
Who do you think will win the quarterfinal matchups?
