BELLATOR 170 LIVE REPORT
JANUARY 21, 2017
INGLEWOOD, CALIFORNIA AT THE FORUM
LIVE ON BELLATOR.COM AND SPIKE TV
Bellator 170 will be live from The Forum in Inglewood, California. The main event features two legendary MMA veterans as Chael Sonnen takes on the “Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz. The co-main takes place in the welterweight division as Brennan Ward takes on Paul Daley in what should be a highly entertaining fight.
The five fight main card rounds out with middleweights Ralek Gracie taking on Hisaki Kato, then in the featherweight division Georgi Karakhanyan goes up against Emmanuel Sanchez and finally Derek Anderson faces off against Derek Campos in a battle of lightweights.
As always, I’ll have live round by round coverage of tonight’s main fights, with quick results and commentary on the prelims. Make sure to follow along right here all night, and follow me on Twitter @FightChampBlog
Prelims – Bellator.com (7/6 PM CT)
Gabriel Green (3-0) vs. Jalin Turner (2-2) – Lightweight 155 lbs.
ROUND ONE: Green comes out moving forward and eats a big right hand. Turner lands a big knee and follows up with strikes as Green goes down and the ref calls it off.
Result: Turner by TKO ( :36 of Round 1)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: Issues with the feed made me miss pieces of the fight. Turner basically dominated.
Jamar Ocampo (2-0) vs. Chinzo Machida (4-2) – Featherweight 145 lbs.
ROUND ONE: Issues with the feed continue. They tie up as the fight starts. Ocampo pushes Machida to the fence and scores a takedown. He has full mount and my feed goes out. Ughhh! The feed comes back a minute into the fight and Ocampo is working ground and pound. Ocampo is taking it to Machida on the ground. He has full mount now. Machida tries to turn but Ocampo stays on him. Machida lands an up-kick that hurts Ocampo and he’s back to his feet.
10-9 Ocampo
ROUND TWO: My feed returns with two minutes left in the second round. Ocampo is in side control.
ROUND THREE: A minute into the last round I get the feed back. Ocampo is working in the clinch. With two minutes left they are on the feet at center. Ocampo pushes Machida to the fence. He pushes off and back to center. Machida lands a head kick and follows up with a huge right hand that drops Ocampo and the fight is stopped immediately.
Result: Machida by TKO (3:38 of Round 3)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: From what I saw of the fight it was all Ocampo. This was a big come from behind win for Machida. Ocampo argued with the stoppage but after seeing the replay it was justified.
Alex Soto (7-3) vs. DeMarcus Brown (4-2) – Featherweight 145 lbs.
ROUND ONE: More issues. From what little I saw it looked like Brown was more active and dictating the action.
ROUND TWO: Soto comes flying out of his corner and lands a nice right to start the round. Brown shakes it off and they square off center cage. Soto circles right trying to get inside. They both miss with wild punches. Front kick for Brown and another side kick. Brown misses a head kick. Soto lands a few jabs. Brown is warned for his fingers. Nice low kick for Brown. Soto returns the favor. Leg kick for Brown. Soto misses a kick to the body badly. Brown showing excellent defense. He misses a jab and also a head kick. Soto lands a nice leg kick. They each swing wildly as the round ends.
10-9 Soto
ROUND THREE: This a close fight from what I’ve seen so far. Both fighters miss kicks to open the round. Soto lands a combination. They both miss leg kicks. Soto controlling the cage from what I’ve seen. Brown continues to get walked down this round. Brown has to get more active. Soto lands a leg kick. A jab and a leg kick for Brown. Soto lands a nice inside leg kick. Brown slowing from all the leg kicks. Soto with his lands low trying to goat Brown. Soto with more leg kicks. They start throwing haymakers inside ten seconds with nothing of significance landing.
10-9 Soto
Result: Soto by UD (29-28, 29, 29-28)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: Soto just destroyed Brown with leg kicks in rounds two and three. Brown’s offense really slowed the final round and didn’t land anything of significance.
Keith Berry (15-13) vs. Kevin Casey (9-5-1) – Middleweight 185 lbs.
ROUND ONE: They miss jabs to start. Leg kick lands for Casey. Nice left for Casey. Casey blocks a kick from Berry. Casey working in the clinch. Berry gets off. Back to center and Casey lands a big left that drops Berry. Casey pounces and is working ground and pound. He has Berry against the fence. Berry gets to his feet. Back to center. Berry with a kick to the body. Big right hand drops Berry again. Casey landing big shots from top position. He works for full mount and has it. Casey postures up and lands more right hands. Berry just trying to survive the round. Berry pushes Casey off and gets to his feet. Back to center and the round ends.
10-8 Casey
ROUND TWO: Berry was lucky to survive the first round. They each miss with jabs. Combination jjust misses for Berry. They square off center octagon. Kick to the body lands for Casey. Nice level change and takedwon for Casey. Berry works from full guard. He peppers Casey with short punches. Casey looks tired and is just laying on Berry. The ref encourages more action. Berry with short strikes to the side of Casey’s head. Another warning from the ref. Casey not doing much of anything from on top. He postures up and lands elbows. The ref stands them up. Berry with a nice right and follows with a kick to the body. Berry looking like the fresher fighter. Berry stalks Casey down as the round ends.
10-9 Berry
ROUND THREE: Inside leg kick for Casey. Berry walking Casey down. Berry misses a punch and Casey tries for a double but has no energy to finish. Nice combination for Berry. Casey doing nothing on offense. Casey misses with an uppercut. Berry with a body punch. Leg kick lands for Berry. Casey misses with a left. Casey shoots and again can’t finish. Combination scores for Berry. They trade jabs. Short left lands for Casey. Berry pressing the action. Berry lands a jab. Casey back peddles away from Berry as the round ends.
10-9 Berry I have it a draw. It will be interesting to see how the judges scored the first round.
Result: Majority Draw (29-27 Casey, 28,28)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: The score of 29-27 for Casey is surprising. The other judges had it right. Casey almost finished Berry in the first round, but it was all Berry in rounds two and three.
John Mercurio (8-7) vs. Guilherme Bomba Vasconcelos (8-3) – Welterweight 170 lbs.
ROUND ONE: Bomba stands center cage. Nice leg kick for Mercurio. Bomba with a takedown. He peppers Mercurio with right hands against the fence. Mercurio tries working to his feet. Bomba keeps him down. Mercurio rolls and is out. Back to center. Bomba takes the center of the octagon and stalks Mercurio down. He pushes Mercurio to the fence and scores with a takedown. Bomba has his back. Mercurio works to his feet. He turns into Bomba and is out. Back to center. Bomba lands a right. Leg kick for Mercurio. Bomba catches a kick and has another takedown. Mercurio’s defense has been excellent but it’s been all Bomba. The round ends with Bomba landing knees to the body.
10-9 Bomba
ROUND TWO: Bomba takes center cage. Bomba throws a few jabs and lands a big right hand that drops Mercurio. He follows with a few more strikes that land, Mercurio is out and the fight is stopped.
Result: Bomba by TKO ( 0:41 of Round 2)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: All Guilherme Bomba Vasconcelos in this one. He dominated from the opening horn. Excellent performance.
Main Card – Spike TV (9/8:00 p.m. CT)
Derek Campos (17-6) vs. Derek Anderson (14-2) – Lightweight 155 lbs.
ROUND ONE: Campos misses to the body. They both miss with jabs. Anderson with an inside leg kick. Anderson goes for a head kick but Campos blocks it. A left for Campos gets through. They stand center cage. Combination from Campos lands partially. A left over the top lands for Campos. Inside leg kick for Anderson. Anderson lands a big right. They are trading big shots at center cage. Campos lands a combination. Two straight lefts for Anderson. They both duck big punches. Anderson with an inside leg kick. Both fighters willing to trade inside the pocket in this one. Big right for Anderson. Anderson finishes the round landing big shots. A very tough round to call. I’ll go with Campos but with zero confidence.
10-9 Campos
ROUND TWO: Anderson comes out and lands. They trade big shots. Not much defense in this one folks. Both guys are swinging away. Both are bloodied. Anderson lands an inside leg kick. Campos blocks a kick to the body. They both miss with strikes. Center cage. Campos with a knee to the body. Anderson lands two quick jabs. The pace in this fight is crazy. Anderson looks to clinch but Campos pushes him away. Anderson misses a spinnng head kick. Campos lands a big uppercut that drops Anderson but he recovers quickly. Both fighters stand. Campos clinches against the fence. Anderson pushes him off and back to center. Campos goes for another uppercut and just misses. Anderson fans on two quick jabs. They trade punches as the round ends.
10-9 Campos (This can very easily be one round each.)
ROUND THREE: Campos opens with a leg kick. Andrson goe sto the body with a kick. They clinch against the fence for a second and back to center. Left for Campos. Another left gets through. Campos clinches on the fence. Anderson pushes him off. Campos blocks a kick to the head. Campos with a level change and shorts for a takedown. Anderson is up quickly. Both fighters trading strikes at center cage. Big combination lands flush for Anderson. Campos loses his mouth piece. Anderson goes for a takedown after he hurts Campos on the feet. Campos reverses and has top control. Anderson tries to turn. Campos takes the back. He goes for a RNC but Anderson slips out. Both fighters back up. They clinch against the fence and the fight ends.
10-9 Anderson
Result: Campos by UD (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: An excellent fight. That was a very hard fight to score. I agree with the decision. A fun way to start tonight’s card!
Georgi Karakhanyan (26-6-1) vs. Emmanuel Sanchez (13-3) – Featherweight 145 lbs.
ROUND ONE: Karakhanyan takes center cage. Karakhanyan blocks a kick to tthe head. They trade kicks. They each go for kicks to the body that land. They clinch and Karakhanyan runs Sanchez to the fence. Karakhanyan takes Sanchez down. Sanchez works to his feet. Karakhanyan tries for a hook but can’t get it. They clinch against the fence. Karakhanyan with a tenacious wrist cinch. Sanchez turns into Karakhanyan. Karakhanyan breaks Sanchez down to the ground. Sanchez tries working back up. Sanchez reverses and has Karakhanyan’s back. He has both hooks in as Karakhanyan stands and waits out the final seconds of the round.
10-9 Karakhanyan, but a close round so I can see it going the other way as well.
ROUND TWO: Sanchez lands a straight left. Karakhanyan runs Sanchez to the fence. Sanchez works out. Sanchez lands a combination and scores a takedown. Sanchez tries to land ground and pound but Karakhanyan defending well. Sanchez postures up and lands a few strikes. Sanchez in half mount and landing some nice ground and pound. Karakhanyan working hard from underneath. Karakhanyan lands an up kick illegally. The ref stops it to check on Sanchez. He’s fine and they are positioned back to the same position. Sanchez lands an illegal knee to the head of Karakhanyan while he was down and the fight is stopped again. The ref calls for the doctor to check on Karakhanyan. He took two knees to the head while down. A point is deducted from Sanchez. Back to action. Sanchez comes out in a flurry landing strikes. He gets the takedown and has the back. He works for the choke. He has a body lock but can’t sink in the choke as the round ends.
9-9
ROUND THREE: Sanchez comes out with multiple kicks to the body and head with nothing landing flush. Karakhanyan takes advantage of Sanchez being off balance and gets a takedown. Karakhanyan trying to land ground and pound from top position. Sanchez looking for an armbar from underneath. Sanchez turns and Karakhanyan takes his back. Karakhanyan has a body lock against the fence. The action stalls. Karakhanyan gets more active and moves away from the fence looking for more space. Sanchez tries to bridge but can’t get out of the body lock and the round ends.
10-9 Karakhanyan (I can see a draw out of this one.)
Result: Sanchez by Majority Decision (28-28, 28-27, 28-27)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: Tough fight to score. I expected some wacky scores from this one. I can’t argue with the decision though. Disappointing effort from Karakhanyan, but a big win for Emmanuel Sanchez.
Hisaki Kato (7-2) vs. Ralek Gracie (3-0) – Middleweight 185 lbs.
ROUND ONE: They square off center cage. Gracie misses with a kick. Kato returns one of his own. Gracie lands a kick to the body. He lands another. Gracie clearly keeping distance. Kato misses with a kick. Gracie misses a big overhand right. Slow start to this one. Kato lands an inside kick. Crowd booing. They circle right not doing anything. Kato lands a strike to the body. The crowd is getting restless. Kato lands an inside leg kick. Superman punch lands for Kato. He follows with another big right and Gracie goes down. Kato pounces and looks to finish. Gracie recovers and gets back to his feet. They circle as the round ends.
10-9 Kato
ROUND TWO: Inside leg kick for Kato. Gracie misses a head kick. Kato staying extremely patient. The crowd begins to boo over two minutes into the round. Kato misses a leg kick. No offense what so ever from Gracie. The ref pulls them in and sks for more action. Kato lands a few strikes and backs off. Kato misses a superman punch. Gracie has shown absolutely nothing in this fight so far. I have no idea what Kato is waiting for. Inside leg kick for Kato. Gracie lands a side kick. Kato lands an inside leg kick. Gracie with a half hearted shoot in which is stuffed easily. They circle. Kato throws a few more punches and the round ends.
10-9 Kato (This is an awful fight!)
ROUND THREE: Leg kick for Kato to open the round. Another leg kick. If Gracie has thrown ten punches in this fight I’d be shocked. He lands a straight right just to prove me wrong. Gracie shoots and is stuffed. He works Kato with strikes in the clinch. Kato shrugs him off and lands a few big shots. GGracie looked hurt, but he rebounds with a takedown. Gracie in top control. Kato lands strikes to Gracie’s head from underneath. Gracie transitions to full mount. Gracie postures up and lands big right hands that cuts Kato above the right eye. Kato weathers the storm as the round ends.
10-9 Gracie
Result: Kato by UD (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: That was a terribly boring fight. I don’t know what Kato’s game plan was going in but for some reason he just never seemed to want to engage. As far Gracie, he just didn’t have enough offense. His takedown attempts were easily fought off. Just awful. The crowd had every right to crap all over that one.
Paul Daley (38-14-2) vs. Brennan Ward (14-4) – Welterweight 170 lbs.
ROUND ONE: They square off center cage. They trade punches. Ward catches Daley’s kick and puts him down but doesn’t follow up. Ward with a takedown. Daley up quickly. Back to center. Left hook for Ward. Nice level change and Ward scores a takedown. Daley tries to work back up. Ward has one hook in. Daley is up. Ward works the body in the clinch. Daley lands a spinning back elbow that stuns Ward. They separate. Daley demolishes Ward with a flying knee and Ward is out cold. Fight over!
Result: Daley by TKO ( 2:27 of Round 1)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: Sweet Jesus that was a brutal knee that put Ward out! Ward was having success with the takedown, but wow. Just wow! Daley calls out Rory MacDonald. Please book Daley against Page.
Chael Sonnen (28-14-1) vs. Tito Ortiz (18-12-1) – Light Heavyweight 205 lbs.
ROUND ONE: No touch of the gloves. Leg kick from Sonnen. Tito with a takedown. Sonnen reverses and looks for a submission. Sonnen gets to half guard and has a choke. Ortiz slips out and is in full mount. Ortiz landing ground and pound. He takes Sonnnen’s back. He has a choke locked in. He squeezes, it’s tight. Sonnen taps.
Result: Ortiz by submission (2:03 of Round 1 – RNC)
Grocke’s Viewpoint: Ortiz kept the choke on for a few seconds longer after Big John Calls the fight off which was B.S. Ortiz was in trouble early but he was able to get out. His strength was the difference here. Sonnen looks nothing like he did when he was in UFC. I don’t know how competitive he’s going to be going forward. Ortiz got the win he wanted and now he can finally retire for the final time.
I have to admit I liked what he said regarding his retirement. Thanking his mother came from the heart and allowing his son to leave his gloves in the middle of the cage was a nice touch.
That’ll do it for me. Thanks for following along and be sure to follow me on Twitter @FightChampBlog.
Goodnight.
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