Crowd boos, but Webster's Logan Storley wins Bellator welterweight title in London

Logan Storley is the interim Bellator welterweight champion whether people like it or not.

In the Bellator 281 main event, Storley (14-1 MMA, 9-1 BMMA) utilized his wrestling for the duration of five rounds en route to a split decision (48-47, 47-48, 49-46) over Michael Page (20-2 MMA, 16-2 BMMA).

The decision came much to the disapproval of the London crowd at O2 Arena, who showered Storley with boos upon the official reading from ring announcer Michael C. Williams.

“Don’t boo me,” Storley, who graduated from Webster High School, said during his in-cage interview. “Don’t boo me for winning. I’ll see you on the way out.”

The fight was lackluster and grindy overall. Storley controlled Page for much of the five rounds, but was unable to muster up much significant damage, nor did he attempt a single submission. Page, meanwhile, landed isolated punches as he dipped in and out in his vintage, funky manner.

Judge David Lethaby was the descending judge, while Bryan Miner and Michael Bell sided with one another as the majority.

The interim title was implemented due to the absence of undisputed titleholder Yaroslav Amosov, who joined the Ukraine military to defend his country from the Russian invasion. His timeline for return is unclear.

More:Logan Storley cruises to decision win at Bellator 215

After the bout, Storley referenced a rumored bout between Douglas Lima and Jason Jackson as the fight he thinks will be a No. 1 contender bout should Amosov not be ready to return in the near future.

With the victory, Storley has a three-fight winning streak. His only career loss came to Amosov via split decision at Bellator 252 in November 2020. The bout was a grueling, grapple-heavy affair with both men visibly tired at its end.

With the defeat, Page loses for the second time in his professional career. The defeat snaps a six-fight winning streak that dates back to his only other pro loss: a knockout suffered against Douglas Lima in May 2019.

In high school, Storley won six state Class B high school wrestling titles and then went to the University of Minnesota, earning All-American status for four consecutive years. 

With the title, Storley joins former Webster High School wrestler Brock Lesnar as an mixed martial arts world champion.