Bellator Preliminary Card (DAZN)
Anthony Figueroa def. Samuel Romero via Unanimous Decision
Chuck Campbell def. Joseph Ramirez via Unanimous Decision
Josh San Diego def. Joe Neal via Split Decision
Jeremiah Labiano def. Justin Smitley via TKO (Elbows and Punches) Round 1, 3:28
Arlene Blencowe def. Amber LeiBrock via TKO (Slam and Punches) Round 3, 1:23
Cas Bell def. Ty Costa via Submission (Armbar) Round 2, 3:00
Adam Piccolotti def. James Terry via Unanimous Decision
Main Card (DAZN)
Gaston Bolanos vs. Ysidro Gutierrez (Featherweight/145)
Round 1: They’re working against the cage early on. Bolanos is stalking. Gutierrez connects with a left hand and Bolanos returns a head kick of his own. Bolanos connects with a solid kick to the body. Bolanos secures a body lock and forces the fight against the fence. Good head movement by Bolanos as Gutierrez rushes towards him. Bolanos changes level and tosses Gutierrez down to the mat but he pops right back up. Bolanos completes a double leg as the round ends. 10-9 Bolanos
Round 2: They are feeling each other out early. Bolanos connects with a front kick and follows it up with a left hook. Gutierrez is down, and Bolanos is on him! He is landing some hard shots on a prone Gutierrez and this fight is over!
Result: Gaston Bolanos def. Ysidro Gutierrez via TKO (Punches) Round 2, 1:37
Keri Melendez vs. Dakota Zimmerman (Strawweight/115)
Round 1: Melendez connects early with a big forearm and then a knee! Melendez scores with a takedown and Zimmerman is in defense mode. Melendez lifts Zimmerman up from her own guard and slams her down to the mat! Melendez is ferocious! Zimmerman is looking for a sweep, but she appears to be outmatched here on the ground. Zimmerman is attempting a triangle and Melendez might be in trouble here. Her arm is safe though, so she isn’t in trouble right now. Zimmerman switches to the armbar and Melendez is trying to move with her! Its hard to tell how deep the armbar is but she isn’t tapping. 10-9 Melendez
Round 2: They’re working against the fence early. Zimmerman is attacking with punches and she’s keeping Melendez from getting off the fence. Melendez reverses the position and she’s landing some hard knees against the fence. She’s landed five or maybe six unanswered knees to the body of her opponent. Zimmerman has no answer for the knees or the clinch. 10-9 Melendez
Round 3: Zimmerman scores with a takedown early. Melendez completes a sweep though and she is now in top position. Back on the feet and Melendez connects with a left hand. Zimmerman appears to be the much fresher fighter at this point. Melendez lands a solid jab, but she is showing some serious signs of fatigue. Zimmerman is looking for a takedown, but Melendez is fighting it with just under two minutes remaining in the round. Zimmerman is controlling things against the fence and Melendez is in real trouble here of losing a decision. I know I gave the second round to Melendez, but it was VERY close. Zimmerman pulls guard and Melendez comes down on her into half guard with thirty seconds left in the round. 10-9 Zimmerman (29-28 Melendez)
Result: Keri Melendez def. Dakota Zimmerman via Split Decision
Aaron Pico vs. Leandro Higo (Featherweight/145)
Round 1: Pico is connecting to the body early on. Higo connects with a solid combination. Higo is having success with his low kicks, but Pico is very aggressive. Pico is attacking but Higo is avoiding most of the big shots! Pico connects with a left and then a right hook and Higo is down! Pico is swarming him! The ref is letting it go though and Higo is somehow back on his feet! My god this is a beating! Higo is stumbling all over the ring and Pico drops him with another shot and finally the ref steps in! This fight is over! It was honestly hard to keep up with the shots that Pico was landing. His hands move so incredibly fast…it’s hard to believe that he is such a good wrestler because his boxing is just superb. Absolutely incredible.
Result: Aaron Pico def. Leandro Higo via TKO (Punches) Round 1, 3:19
Douglas Lima vs. Andrey Koreshkov (Welterweight/170) Quarter Final Bout of Welterweight Grand Prix
Round 1: Lima makes first contact with a hard kick to the body. Koreshkov returns a spinning back kick that lands. They’re exchanging low kicks and its violent. Koreshkov is looking for a takedown but Lima is defending well. Koreshkov went for a trip but Lima defended it they’re back against the fence. They’re fighting for under hooks but neither guy is finding an advantage. Slow round. 10-9 Koreshkov
Round 2: Koreshkov opens up with a hard kick to the body. Remember that these guys are 1-1 against each other. Lima won the last fight via KO to win the Bellator Welterweight Championship, a title that he has since lost. Lima is throwing low kicks and Koreshkov is mostly looking to counter. They’re trading kicks in the center. Lima connects to the body and then connects with a grazing left hook. More kicks are being traded mostly to the legs. Koreshkov secures a body lock and forces the fight against the fence. He is in control with a pair of under hooks. Lima creates a bit of separation and lands a solid elbow just as the round ends. 10-9 Koreshkov but the fight is very close, and the action is not very diverse. They’re doing a lot of trading back and forth and neither guy can do anything in the clinch.
Round 3: Lima connects with a low kick but slips to the mat. Koreshkov takes advantage and forces Lima against the fence. Koreshkov is controlling the fight against the fence with about two and a half minutes left in the round. Lima creates some separation and they are back in the center of the cage. Lima connects with a solid kick to the body. Koreshkov is not throwing with much volume and he’s allowing Lima to tear into his lead leg with low kicks. Koreshkov drops for a double leg but Lima sprawls. Koreshkov is looking for a leg but Lima is controlling him. Koreshkov scrambles and eats a knee as he climbs back to his feet. Koreshkov again drops for a double leg but Lima stops it with a pair of under hooks as the round ends. 10-9 Lima
Round 4: Lima is connecting early with low kicks. Koreshkov may need to make some adjustments to his game plan because the takedown has not come easy tonight. Lima connects with a low kick and Koreshkov will get a moment to recover. Back to the action and Lima connects to the head and body. Koreshkov drops for a takedown but again Lima defends it. They’re back against the fence but neither guy is having much luck gaining control. Koreshkov connects with a solid elbow over the top but in doing so he loses his position and Lima is now controlling him against the fence. Koreshkov moves in with a high knee but Lima avoids it with just under thirty seconds left in the round. Lima connects with a solid right hand in the waning seconds of the round! 10-9 Lima
Round 5: Koreshkov is moving backwards and Lima is attacking in spurts. Lima lands a solid left hook. It really seems like Koreshkov had a game plan and when it failed he didn’t have a backup. Koreshkov moves in for a takedown, but Lima sprawls and he takes the back of Koreshkov. Lima is attacking with a rear naked choke and this fight is over!
Result: Douglas Lima def. Andrey Koreshkov via Technical Submission (Rear Naked Choke) Round 5, 3:04
Wanderlei Silva vs. Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (Heavyweight/265)
Round 1: Both guys look every bit of 45 years old but that’s besides the point. These fights are cool and hopefully Bellator keeps giving guys like this a place to compete. Both guys are showing respect early. Silva is throwing jabs which is…unusual. Rampage connects with a left hand and it staggers Silva! Silva connects with a knee as they separate. Silva connects with a looping left hook, but Rampage wears it well. Silva throws up a head kick and misses but he connects with a flailing right hook in the process. Silva connects with a front kick to the face, but it didn’t have much sauce on it and Rampage uses the opportunity to close the distance. Rampage is controlling things against the fence, but Silva is looking for a separation. Silva connects with a big hook and Rampage felt it but landed a follow up shot of his own. 10-9 Silva
Round 2: Rampage connects with a short jab to start the round. They’re both swinging wildly and they’re both connecting. Rampage connects with a solid shot and Silva might be hurt there. Rampage is controlling things against the fence. Rampage lands a hard knee against the fence. Silva escapes and they have a brief flurry before Rampage forces things back against the fence. Rampage connects with a hook, but Silva returns a couple hooks of his own. They are moving as slow as humanly possible, but they are throwing a decent volume of strikes. Rampage connects with a left and then a right hook and Silva is down. Silva is trying to defend himself, but Rampage is landing lots of shots here and its all over.
Result: Rampage Jackson def. Wanderlei Silva via TKO (Punches) Round 2, 4:32
©Gegard Mousasi vs. ©Rory McDonald* for Bellator Middleweight Champion
*Bellator Welterweight Champion
Round 1: McDonald connects with a solid leg kick early in the round. Mousasi returns a solid jab. McDonald lands a solid right hand. Both guys are taking is slow so far. We are seeing the typical cerebral approach from Rory McDonald. Mousasi has a pretty notable size advantage, I should have mentioned that earlier on. Mousasi connects with a hard-right hand and McDonald felt it. McDonald eats a hard jab as he moves in for a takedown and it halts him in his tracks. The jab is becoming a problem for McDonald. 10-9 Mousasi
Round 2: Mousasi drops for an Iminari Roll early in the round but Mousasi counters it and lands some serious shots on the ground. McDonald recovers guard, but Mousasi is really beating him up here on the ground. McDonald is busted open and Mousasi is continuing to land solid shots. McDonald is trying to work off his back, but the skill difference isn’t great enough, and Mousasi is just so much bigger. This seems like a losing formula for McDonald. Mousasi moves into mount with two minutes left in the round and he is landing some hard elbows from the top and this fight is over! Absolutely dominant performance by Gegard Mousasi! But watching this fight was something else…the size difference was very real.
Result: Gegard Mousasi def. Rory McDonald via TKO (Punches and Elbows) Round 2, 3:23
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