Bellator 268: Nemkov vs. Anglickas (also known as Bellator Phoenix) was a mixed martial arts event produced by Bellator MMA that took place on October 16, 2021, at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona, United States.
The event was headlined by both of the high-profile semifinal matchups for the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix Tournament and took place at the Footprint Center, home of the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury. Current Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion Vadim Nemkov was to defend his title against Anthony âÂÂRumbleâ Johnson, while current Bellator Heavyweight Champion Ryan Bader faced Corey Anderson in the co-main event. On September 18, it was announced that Anthony Johnson was forced to pull out of the bout due to an illness that will keep him out until 2022. Nemkov instead faced the alternate Julius Anglickas. Anglickas's opponent Karl Albrektsson was rescheduled with Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov.
A bantamweight bout between Brett Johns and Erik Pérez was scheduled for this event. However on October 5, it was announced that Pérez was injured and the bout was scrapped.
At the weigh-ins, Bobby Lee missed weight for his bout. Lee weighed in at 156.8 pounds, 0.8 pounds over the lightweight non-title fight limit. The bout proceeded at catchweight and Lee was fined a percentage of his purse which went to his opponent Nick Browne.
The following is the reported payout to the fighters as reported to the Arizona Department of Gaming. The figures do not include discretionary bonuses or sponsorship money. The amounts do not include sponsor money, discretionary bonuses, viewership points or additional earnings. The total disclosed payout for the event was $1,353,300.
MAIN CARD (10 p.m. E.T., Showtime)
PRELIMS (7 p.m. E.T., YouTube/PlutoTV)