Neiman Gracie vs. Goiti Yamauchi set to headline Bellator 284; Valentin Moldavksy, Ilima-Lei Macfarlane also on card
A battle of submission specialists is set to headline Bellator 284.
Welterweights Neiman Gracie and Goiti Yamauchi meet in the main event of the August 12 event, which takes place at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Bellator officials announced the event’s finalized lineup on Wednesday.
Gracie (11-3) has lost three of his last five bouts, sandwiching wins over Jon Fitch and Mark Lemminger between losses to top welterweights Rory MacDonald, Jason Jackson, and Logan Storley.
Yamauchi (27-5), meanwhile, has won five of his last six fights, including recent back-to-back first-round stoppages of Chris Gonzalez and Levan Chokheli, the latter of which marked Yamauchi’s welterweight debut. Yamauchi’s nine career submissions under the Bellator umbrella are the most ever in the promotion’s history.
Two additional main-card bouts are also official for Bellator 284: Ex-interim heavyweight champion Valentin Moldavsky (11-2) vs. undefeated prospect Steve Mowry (10-0), and former women’s flyweight champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (11-2) vs. Bruna Ellen (6-3).