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Bellator MMA

Bellator MMA is back at the Gateway to the West. The promotion returns to action on Saturday night in St. Louis, Missouri, with an interesting fight card for competitors looking to make their way into title conversations. Atop the marquee will be a pair of featherweights in that exact position when Mads Burnell takes on Adam Borics looking for No. 1 contender status at Bellator 276.

Burnell (16-3) reinvented himself following a tough 1-2 run in UFC, which included a loss to ranked contender Arnold Allen. Burnell, 28, turned the corner by winning seven straight fights with five finishes. He captured the Cage Warriors Fighting Championship featherweight crown and defeated Emmanuel Sanchez in his third Bellator bout. Burnell's bounce back is rooted in maturity and the principle of performance over results.

"The fight before Arnold Allen, I won that fight, but ever since I started doing martial arts at six years old, that was the single worst performance I've ever put on in any fight," Burnell told CBS Sports. "Even though I won, it felt like a loss. I go in and fight Arnold Allen. I'm spanking him around. I lost that fight, but it felt more like a win to me than the fight I actually won because I went in there and performed. The night before, I didn't perform. That taught me when I'm fighting, I can't be focusing on the result. The only thing I can focus on is the performance. When you perform well, everything will be all good. If not, you can live with yourself."

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Borics (17-1) has been perfect inside of the Bellator cage outside of a significant loss to Darrion Caldwell in the opening round of the Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix. A victory on Saturday should secure the winner a title show, but that could be delayed pending the results of the second A.J. McKee vs. Patricio "Pitbull" Freire fight. Do not expect to see Borics after Saturday unless a title is on the line.

"Yes for sure. Who should I fight next? I've beaten everyone in this division except for A.J. and 'Pitbull', so I'm not going to fight anyone else," Borics told CBS Sports. "I think it's going to be similar to the first fight, but I really don't care. I would face both of them."

When asked to identify their opponent's biggest advantages in the fight, the headliners were dismissive of their counterpart's chances.

"Hmm. I would say the advantage I have is probably my fight IQ and I'm more well-rounded than him. What he has an advantage in is, I don't know," Burnell said. "If I had to give him something that is maybe an advantage is his length."

"I don't think he has a big advantage against me," Borics said. "I feel I've improved a lot and I will show everybody that I am one of the best 145'ers in the world. I'm just ready to go."

On the undercard, a potential middleweight title challenger could emerge when Johnny Eblen meets John Salter. Eblen enters a perfect 10-0 so far in his career just five years into his pro MMA run. Salter recently challenged titleholder Gegard Mousasi but came up short. An Eblen win could earn him a fight against Mousasi later this year, but Mousasi admitted to CBS Sports he had never heard of the 30-year old.

"It's all good because he's going to know who the hell I am when I show up," Eblen told CBS Sports. "Maybe he watches this next fight because he fought John and gets a glimpse of who I am. It doesn't surprise me that he doesn't know who I am. He's probably off in his own world. He's been fighting for years. He's a great competitor. I have a lot of respect for the dude, but I think he's an old lion looking to get taken down. There hasn't been a young lion good enough to take him out yet and I think I'm that young lion."

Check out the full interview with Gegard Mousasi below. 

The co-main event features a light heavyweight showdown between Phil Davis and Julius Anglickas. The pair were entrants in the Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix, but both were eliminated by current champion Vadim Nemkov. Davis bounced back from the defeat by topping Yoel Romero in September. The former champion has only lost twice since 2018 -- both against Nemkov. Anglickas, meanwhile, saw his nine-fight win streak ended in October. All three of his wins under the Bellator banner have come by decision.

The other bout slated for the main card sees Gadzhi Rabadanov take on Jay Jay Wilson in a lightweight contest. Rabadanov has won three of his last four since 2020, including a TKO victory over Daniel Carey in his Bellator debut last July. Wilson, meanwhile, is undefeated at 8-0 with four wins coming by submission and three by TKO. He stopped Pedro Carvahlo on strikes in his last appearance in April 2021.

Here's the fight card for Bellator 276 with the latest odds from Caesars Sportsbook.

Bellator 276 card, odds

FavoriteUnderdogWeightclass

Mads Burnell -220

Adam Borics +180

Featherweight

Phil Davis -310

Julius Anglickas +250

Light heavyweight

Johnny Eblen -310

John Salter +250

Middleweight

Gadzhi Rabadanov -155

Jay Jay Wilson +130

Lightweight

Bellator 276 viewing information

Date: March 12 | Start time: 9 p.m. ET
Location: Family Arena -- St. Louis, Missouri
TV/Stream: Showtime or the Showtime App

Prediction

Mads Burnell vs. Adam Borics: This is really good matchmaking. The consensus No. 2 ranked Bellator featherweights clash to separate themselves from the pack. Both Burnell and Borics are serious submission threats. Burnell likely edges Borics out as the superior submission specialist, particularly with his signature Japanese necktie, but the well-rounded Boric has more ways to win. Burnell's experience at a higher level gives me some comfort in siding with the Mads-man. Burnell via SUB2