''Bellator 296: Mousasi vs. Edwards'' (also known as ''Bellator Paris'') was a

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

event produced by

Bellator MMA Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) was an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 by Bjorn Rebney and operated until 2025. The promotion takes its name from ''wikt:bellator, bellātor ...

that took place on May 12, 2023, at

Accor Arena Accor Arena (originally known as the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy), also known as Bercy Arena, is an indoor sports arena and List of concert halls, concert hall in the neighbourhood of Bercy, on the Boulevard de Bercy, in the 12th arrondisse ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France.

Background

The event marked the promotion's third visit to Paris and first since Bellator 280 in May 2022. A middleweight title eliminator bout between former two-time Bellator Middleweight Champion Gegard Mousasi and

Fabian Edwards Fabian Edwards (born 24 March 1993) is an English professional mixed martial arts, mixed martial artist who competes in the Middleweight (MMA), Middleweight division of the Professional Fighters League. He is the younger brother of Leon Edwards, t ...

headlined the event. A Bellator Lightweight World Grand Prix quarterfinal bout between Mansour Barnaoui and Sidney Outlaw was scheduled to serve as the co-main event. However at the end of February, Outlaw tested positive for banned substances and was suspended, and was replaced by former Bellator Lightweight Champion Brent Primus. A bantamweight bout between Brett Johns and Marcirley Alves Da Silva, as well a middleweight bout between Gregory Babene and Kyle Stewart were scheduled for this event. However, the week of the event, Johns pulled out due to staph infection and Stewart was not approved by the commission due to his partial

myopia Myopia, also known as near-sightedness and short-sightedness, is an eye condition where light from distant objects focuses in front of, instead of on, the retina. As a result, distant objects appear blurry, while close objects appear normal. ...

. At weigh-ins, Steven Hill weighed in at 174.8 pounds for his fight against Nicolo Solli – 3.8 pounds over the welterweight non-title bout limit, leading to Solli to refusing to accept the bout. Romain Debienne weighed in at 172.4 lbs, 1.4 pounds over the limit, and was fined a percentage of his purse which went to his opponent.

Results

References

{{2023 in mixed martial arts Bellator MMA events 2023 in mixed martial arts 2023 in French sport Mixed martial arts in France International sports competitions in Paris May 2023 sports events in France

Background

Results

See also

References