Y. Amosov took the Bellator belt to the front lines of the war in Ukraine (Photo: Instagram/Amosov)
Beginning at the end of February, the Russian invasion of Ukraine mobilized several names in the martial arts, who chose to remain or, in some cases, return to the country to help in the war. One of the most striking cases is that of Yaroslav Amosov, Bellator welterweight champion (up to 77 kg), who gave up defending his title to fight in the war.
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Even though he was away from competition and in a fight very different from his usual one, Amosov didn't give up on holding the belt. In a photo published on social media last Friday (1), the champion posed with the Bellator belt alongside other Ukrainian soldiers.
In a video published by Bellator, Amosov is seen leaving a basement with the belt packed. The champion revealed that his mother hid the object before fleeing the country and that, because it was hidden in the basement of the house, the belt survived a bombing.
Undefeated in professional MMA, Yaroslav has a perfect record of 26 wins, the last seven of which have been in Bellator's circular cage. The champion would make his first belt defense on May 13th, against Michael Page, but gave up the fight to defend his country. With that, the organization created an interim welterweight belt to be contested between Page and Logan storley.
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