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Bellator 301 results: Raufeon Stots beats Danny Sabatello in thriller, rubs it in during post-fight interview

Nolan King
·2 min read
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Raufeon Stots and Danny Sabatello fought for the second time, Friday at Bellator 301. The winner was the same as in the first bout, but the fight itself was a vastly different affair.

The three-round bantamweight bout was part of the main card at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. Stots (19-2 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) defeated Sabatello (14-3 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).

Unlike the first meeting 11 months prior, Stots vs. Sabatello 2 provided thrilling scrambles, high-offensive output, and momentum swings. Sabatello let his hands and feet go – and even started the bout with a jumping knee.

Sabatello’s takedowns and sweeps also proved to be a major weapon, but Stots often reversed position. Both men found themselves in advantageous positions on the ground. In Round 3, Stots dropped Sabatello with a two-punch combination.

Much to the dismay of Sabatello and his home city crowd, Stots walked away the winner – again. During the in-cage interview with color commentator “Big” John McCarthy, Stots taunted Sabatello and asked him to come back in the cage to shake hands. Sabatello was visibly taken aback by Stots prodding, but was eventually ushered into the back by promotion and commission staff.

The long-standing rivalry extends even prior to their first fight, which took place at Bellator 289 in December 2022. The five-round bout was part of the Bellator bantamweight grand prix and turned out to be a lackluster, control-heavy affair that Stots won by split decision.

Up-to-the-minute Bellator 301 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 301.

Story originally appeared on MMA Junkie