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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief
BELLATOR 147
DECEMBER 4, 2015
LIVE FROM SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA
Bellator MMA's 2015 schedule comes to a close tonight with Bellator 147 on Spike. The card features the second Bellator appearance for UFC vet and former Strikeforce Champ Josh Thomson, as he takes on Pablo Villaseca in the main event. The main card also features a featherweight contender bout between Daniel Weichel and Georgi Karakhanyan. We'll have live round by round coverage of tonight's fights as they air, so make sure to follow along with tonight's event with us right here!
FIGHT ONE: VIRGIL ZWICKER VS. BRIAN ROGERS (LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Slow opening minute with only a few kicks thrown out from Rogers. They both exchanged punches. Rogers connected on a right hand that popped Zwicker's head back. They sloppily exchanged power strikes with neither really connecting. Both missed more strikes in the center. Rogers got in some hard kicks to the leg and body. He ducked in for a takedown with just under a minute left and worked from side control. Zwicker eventually scrambled up and escaped, clinching to the bell.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Rogers. Ugly fight.
ROUND TWO: After another dull opening minute, Rogers kicked Zwicker directly between the legs in one of the worst low blows I've seen in a while. Zwicker rightfully took a good amount of his allotted time before continuing. After the restart, Zwicker landed a hard straight right hand that slowed Rogers down. Zwicker landed a couple of inside leg kicks. Rogers jumped in with a knee that landed to the body. A spinning attack was missed, but Rogers got out of a clinch with a right hand. Zwicker swung wildly and grazed Rogers. Rogers moved back ahead and connected on a right hand. Zwicker kicked out Rogers' back leg, then landed a punch as he popped up. Rogers came ahead, ducked down for a takedown and easily brought it to the ground. Zwicker tried to reverse, but had his back taken. He turned into Rogers, who mounted him and started raining down elbows. He went for an Americana, then the arm triangle. He passed over to side control, tightened it up, and forced Zwicker to tap. Was kind of garbage until that final 30 seconds, but real nice finish from Rogers.
WINNER: Rogers via submission (arm triangle choke) at 4:38 of the second round
STAR RATING: (**) The fight was ugly, sloppy, and just not very good overall. Still, nice work from Rogers on that late second round takedown, as his aggressiveness opened up that finish.
FIGHT TWO: ADAM PICCOLOTTI VS. MARIO SOTO (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Piccolotti threw out a few early strikes as he moved forward. He landed a solid left hook and backed out. He shot in and managed to sneak to Soto's back easily. He locked on a body triangle, and held it as Soto tried to roll through. He moved over to mount and attacked for a side control. Soto desperately defended, and being close to the fence helped him, as Piccolotti had to give it up. Soto tried to attack for a leg, but Piccolotti circled out and took Soto's back again. Soto worked to his feet, and eventually forced Piccolotti off of him. Soto landed a right hand. He connected on a few kicks. Piccolotti caught one and landed a body punch. He barely missed on another counter. Soto connected with a left. They traded punches, and Soto got the better of the exchange. Piccolotti continued pressing forward. He landed a couple punches. Piccolotti landed a big left hand at the bell.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Piccolotti. Entertaining round. Good ground work from Piccolotti, and though he landed some strikes, that's clearly not his strong area.
ROUND TWO: Piccolotti caught a kick, then kicked out Soto's back leg to bring him to the ground. He stepped over a butterfly guard attempt to mount. Soto rolled and Piccolotti stayed on him. He took his back, locked on a neck crank, and flattened him out. He didn't have the tightest hold and he gave it up. Soto rolled over and tried to escape the mount. He scrambled and went for a knee bar. Piccolotti landed some elbows and transitioned out to side control. He hopped into mount and landed some big strikes, then Soto gave up his back again. Back to the mount as they both continued to move. Piccolotti landed several hard elbows from the top. Soto got cut up as he tried to defend. Soto gave up his back again. He ate some brutal elbows. Piccolotti locked on a tight, tight rear naked choke that made blood just spurting out of Soto's head. That was gnarly, reminiscent of Joe Stevenson's gushing forehead as B.J. Penn choked him out in 2008, and Soto finally tapped.
WINNER: Piccolotti via submission (rear naked choke) at 3:25 of the second round
STAR RATING: (***-) Entertaining work from Piccolotti on the ground, and an absolutely memorable (for its visceral and brutal nature) finish.
FIGHT THREE: PATRICKY "PITBULL" FREIRE VS. DEREK ANDERSON (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Anderson stepped up early. He missed a few strikes. Pitbull connected on a hard combination, and Anderson smiled. Anderson missed again and barely avoided the counter. He grazed Freire with a head kick. Freire covered up and fired out the counter. He missed a winging strike and had to cover up. Anderson connected on a few strikes at the cage in a solid combination. Anderson landed a couple strikes on the cage. Freire missed a right hand. Anderson ducked under a left hook. Freire shot in. Anderson tried to counter with a guillotine, but Freire scrambled and took Anderson's back. Anderson got up, then dropped to a knee and separated the leg to scramble out to his feet. Anderson then shot in. He picked Freire up and slammed him, but Freire rolled through and wound up on top. In a scramble, Freire tried to take Anderson's back, failed, and wound up on his. He kicked Anderson off and finally got up to his feet. Anderson pawed out a few strikes. Freire landed a nice inside leg kick. They traded brief strikes at the bell.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Freire. Could go the other way, as that one was real close, but I think Freire had a slight edge in the grappling exchanges, and landed some solid strikes as well. Close, though.
ROUND TWO: Freire connected on several strikes in combination as he pressed in early. Anderson landed a few strikes. Freire got in with a straight left. Anderson landed a few strikes of his own. Freire landed a hard outside leg kick. He got in a nice combination. He rocked Anderson with a jump kick to the head and a few strikes. He avoided a shot from Anderson, then landed another short combo. Anderson's nose was bloodied up. Freire blocked a high kick and some other punches. Freire got in a hard knee in a brief clinch. Freire shot in and scored a nice takedown into side control, negating the guillotine attempt from Anderson. Anderson rolled and Freire took his back with a body triangle locked on. Anderson tried to sit up but got dragged down. Freire patiently looked for openings. Anderson tried to escape, but Pitbull held position. He wasn't doing a ton offensively, and he lost position just before the bell with Anderson turning into him.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Freire. Close to 10-8. No question about that round, but Freire could have done a lot more on the ground.
ROUND THREE: Anderson got through with a few strikes early in the round. He backed Freire up to the cage and landed a right hand. Anderson landed a few leg kicks. He kept peppering strikes out, though Freire covered up to block most of them. Anderson landed a hard right hand. Freire connected on a counter left. He landed another, then a knee. Anderson threw out several strikes. Freire then shot in and scored an easy takedown into Anderson's guard. Anderson scrambled out and Freire let him up. Anderson landed a few punches as Freire stepped in. Anderson landed another combination. He got in another jab and Freire shot in. Anderson tried to grab a headlock, but Freire popped out. Anderson got out of the clinch and lit Freire up with a bunch of strikes on the cage. Freire missed a few but backed Anderson off. They traded strikes, but Anderson landed another short combo. Freire landed a hard knee to the body in a clinch. Freire didn't seem to recognize it. Anderson shot in, but ate some elbows on the cage as Freire held it off. Freire scored a switch takedown. Anderson kicked him off, and scrambled up to his feet. Anderson shot in again, but Freire turned into him and wound up on top at the bell.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Anderson. Freire hurt Anderson late, and had slight grappling edge, but he got beat up on the feet that round. This one comes down to how one and three were scored, with two being the only clear frame here. Decision could go either way.
WINNER: Anderson via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
STAR RATING: (**) Not a bad fight, Freire had no urgency to attack for a finish in the second, and let Anderson come back to control the pace in the third. Cost himself on that one.
FIGHT FOUR: DANIEL WEICHEL VS. GEORGI KARAKHANYAN (FEATHERWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: Karakhanyan pressed in early. He caught a body kick but Weichel slipped out. Karakhanyan landed a short combo. Weichel landed a few kicks. Weichel landed a hard right hand followed by a body kick. Nice jab from Weichel. He tossed out another kick that caught Karakhanyan low, halting things briefly. As they restarted, Weichel held to the outside. He got in a right hand, then a leg kick. Karakhanyan connected on a strike. He shot in but got shrugged aside. Weichel landed a few strikes in combination. Things slowed a bit as neither was overly aggressive. Weichel had several strikes blocked. Karakhanyan connected on a left. Weichel landed some kicks to the lead leg. He then popped in with a hard right hand. Karakhanyan landed a few strikes. Weichel went to the body, then blocked a few strikes. He got in a solid push kick to the body. Weichel landed a low sweep kick and followed with a right hand that landed. Weichel tossed out a few minor strikes. They traded late. Weichel got in a right hand before the bell.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Weichel. More overall offense, slightly more aggressive overall.
ROUND TWO: They exchanged early on. Karakhanyan went for a jumping knee that missed its mark. Weichel landed some leg kicks and pawed out the jab. He landed a solid left after Karakhanyan pressed in. Weichel landed a couple nice right hands, and Karakhanyan shook his head as if it did nothing. Weichel landed another left. He landed that sweep kick with a right hand behind it. Weichel landed a push kick. Karakhanyan landed a hard right hand in a good counter. Weichel landed a few strikes in close. Karakhanyan landed another right hand. Weichel landed a nice two-punch combo. Weichel blocked a spinning kick. Weichel got in a body kick at the tail end of a short flurry. Karakhanyan got in a few kicks. Weichel landed with a hard body kick off a right hand. They traded strikes again. Both missed or blocked several. Weichel landed several combinations as Karakhanyan tried to move forward. Weichel landed a front kick to the face. Weichel landed another nice right hand. Weichel landed another short combo. Karakhanyan missed on a couple of attacks before the horn.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Weichel. Karakhanyan just not doing a ton overall.
ROUND THREE:Karakhanyan tried to walk in, but got hit with several strikes in combination. Weichl continued working well on the outside, and partially blocked a spinning high kick. Weichel landed a few jabs. Weichel landed another combo. He continued to stay active. Karakhanyan landed a solid uppercut. Weichel connected again. No urgency from either fighter with time running down. They traded punches in the center. Karakhanyan finally getting an edge. Weichel circled out. He swung and badly missed. They slowed again and neither was doing much. Karakhanyan got in a few strikes late. Karahanyan too little too late there.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Weichel. Slowed down, but continued to force Karakhanyan to fight his pace and avoided any real trouble.
WINNER: Weichel via unanimous decision
STAR RATING: (*+) Methodical, slow fight that just didn't move beyond it's opening pace.
MAIN EVENT FIGHT FIVE: JOSH THOMSON VS. PABLO VILLASECA (LIGHTWEIGHT)
ROUND ONE: After each missed a kick, Thomson landed two hard body kicks. They clinched in the center, and Thomson scored a trip takedown off a body lock. Villaseca tried to control him in a closed guard, and attempted to move his legs up to attack. Thomson stood up and landed a couple hard punches before dropping back down. Villaseca attacked for a leg as Thomson stood again. Villaseca pulled off a sweep, but Thomson tried to set up for a triangle. Thomson turned an inverted armbar attempt into an omoplata, but Villaseca did well to circle out and get to his feet. He grabbed a head lock and landed a couple knees. Thomson pressed in with a knee to the body and they clinched. Villaseca dropped for a takedown attempt, but got stuffed. Villaseca landed a couple strikes as they separated. He landed a nice kick. He went back to the inside of Thomson's lead leg. Thomson pressed in but got turned around at the cage and taken down. He popped up but Villaseca took his back standing. Villaseca scored another brief takedown, holding back position briefly as Thomson got to his feet. Villaseca landed an errant knee and it's the 500th low blow of the night. I think Villaseca wins a prize for that. Thomson recovered quickly and they reset. Thomson ate a kick off a shot, but then pulled off a fantastic trip into Villaseca's guard.
Penick's Scorecard: 10-9 Thomson. Give Villaseca credit, he's going to make a fight out of this. A little out of his element early, but he adjusted well.
ROUND TWO: Villaseca came out firing, landing a few strikes early. They traded, then clinched up. Villaseca turned Thomson around and looked for a takedown. Thomson got a front head lock and started dragging Villaseca to the ground, winding up in half guard. He started working from the top with some solid strikes. He went for an arm triangle, but couldn't get into position to finish it, so he let it go. He postured up and landed several strikes. Villaseca tried to cover up, but he was eating some big strikes. Thomson started pouring down strikes, but Villaseca continued covering up and defending. He finally turned to his side and put his hands on his face, and a few more strikes from Thomson ended it. Thomson's still quite obviously a high end lightweight, easier to look impressive against the unknowns than consistent top ten talent.
WINNER: Thomson via TKO at 3:59 of the second round.
STAR RATING: (**) Villaseca was simply out-classed. Thomson's still a top end guy, and he should be in there with someone like Michael Chandler next. Will Brooks might be out a bit, and that's the fight to make if that's the case.
-Thanks for joining us here tonight! It's a relatively rare off weekend for the rest of the weekend, so enjoy it as we head into three events in three nights from the UFC next week!
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Jamie Penick, editor-in-chief
(mmatorcheditor@gmail.com)
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