Bellator 110 results: 'Rampage,' 'King Mo' advance to 205 tourney final
Bellator MMA officials rolled the dice by putting Quinton Jackson and Muhammed Lawal on opposite sides of its latest four-man light heavyweight bracket. On Friday night, that decision paid off.
The organization’s Season 10 opener on Spike TV from the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., saw both “Rampage” and “King Mo” get past their respective foes in what will set up one of Bellator’s most significant tournament finals to date.
In the main event, Jackson (34-11 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) continued his attempt to revive his career with another impressive knockout victory, this time against former Bellator champ Christian M’Pumbu (18-6-1 MMA, 3-3 BMMA).
Jackson said the fight was personal after M’Pumbu claimed he would retire the former UFC light heavyweight champion at the pre-fight weigh-in. Jackson showed exactly what he thought about that statement when he dropped his foe with a series of short right hands on the ground that spelled the end of the contest a the 4:34 mark of Round 1.
While the 35-year-old opted to implement a patient strategy with a low output of offense, he managed to find the opportunity to put M’Pumbu away for his first two-fight winning streak since 2011.
After recording the victory, Jackson had one of the most emotional post-fight interviews in recent memory as he nearly came to blows with his next opponent, Lawal.
“Listen, these guys they think I’m finished,” Jackson said immediately after his victory. “(M’Pumbu) said he’s going to retire me. I took that personal. Bellator, you don’t know what you’re messing with.”
“King Mo” gets past Zayats to reach 205 final
Muhammed Lawal(12-3 MMA, 4-2 BMMA) needed a victory over Mikhail Zayats (22-8 MMA, 3-2 BMMA) in the most desperate of ways, and while it was far from the best showing of his career, he got the job done. Even though Lawal struggled to get his combinations off, was rarely able to complete takedowns and appeared to tire out rather quickly, it was still enough to edge the Russian over three rounds. Even after winning every round against Zayats, his performance was not one that left viewers with high hopes for his future as the lackluster affair was blasted with a chorus of boos from the crowd. With that said, “King Mo” still positioned himself to be one victory away from being the sixth fighter in Bellator history to win multiple tournaments. Regardless of how he got there, that’s still a commendable feat.
Bessette thrills home fans with split win over Nunes
Matt Bessette(13-4 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) was presented with the most high-profile fight of his career against 10-time UFC/WEC veteran Diego Nunes (18-6 MMA, 0-2 BMMA), and he made the best of the opportunity with a thrilling upset victory over the well-traveled Brazilian. The two 145-pound sluggers put on the best fight of the night as they went toe-to-toe for the majority of the three-round affair. While each man had his high points in the back-and-forth match, Bessette ultimately proved to be the more effective striker in the judges’ eyes and was awarded with the split-decision victory. While Nunes came out with a much more aggressive game plan than he’s shown in recent years, Bessette managed to survive the storm and settle into a rhythm of his own. The 29-year-old gained more confidence as the bout wore on, and by the end it was evident he felt superior to his opponent. He was right, as he walked away with the biggest win of his career.
Green moves past “The Marine”
In the Spike TV opener, Mike Richman (16-4 MMA, 5-3 BMMA) was downed in a Bellator tournament for the third time in his tenure with the organization, as this time he was bounced in the featherweight quarterfinal round by Desmond Green (10-2 MMA, 2-1 BMMA). Green said prior to the fight that he planned to time takedowns for crucial points in the fight in order to take rounds and ultimately earn a decision victory. That strategy went pretty much as well as it could for the 24-year-old, as he utilized superior grappling and more effective standup to outpoint Richman for a decision victory, taking scores of 30-27 and a pair of 29-28s.
Martinez upsets Yamauchi to move to 145 semifinals
The second of two featherweight tournament quarterfinals to take place on the preliminary card saw Will Martinez (8-2-1 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) upset highly touted prospect Goiti Yamauchi (16-2 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) in a competitive, grappling-heavy affair. Yamauchi’s downfall in the fight was his complacency from the bottom position while he searched for a fight-ending submission. When the fight was on the feet, Martinez was mostly effective in imposing his will and was able to avoid absorbing any meaningful blows. Expectations weren’t very high for Martinez going into the tournament, but he continued to impress inside the Bellator cage and is still undefeated with the promotion.
Weichel taps out Cleve to move on in 145 tourney
Daniel Weichel(32-8 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) showed the finishing instincts that have earned him a stoppage rate of more than 75 percent when he dropped Scott Cleve (14-4 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) with a massive overhand right and finished the job with a rear-naked choke. The first of four tournament quarterfinals on the night saw a feeling-out process between the two fighters in the first few minutes, but once Welchel saw the opportunity to secure the 20th submission victory of his career, he didn’t pass it up.
Complete Bellator 110 results:
MAIN CARD
Quinton Jackson def. Christian M’Pumbu via knockout (strikes) – Round 1, 4:34
Muhammed Lawal def. Mikhail Zayats via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) – light-heavyweight tournament semifinal
Matt Bessette def. Diego Nunes via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28) – featherweight tournament semifinal
Desmond Green def. Mike Richman via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) – featherweight tournament quarterfinal
PRELIMINARY CARD
Will Martinez def. Goiti Yamauchi via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) – featherweight tournament quarterfinal
Daniel Welchel def. Scott Cleves via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 3:46 – featherweight tournament quarterfinal
Saul Almeida def. Andrew Fisher via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Egidijus Valavicius def. Atanas Djambazov via knockout (knee) – Round 1, 0:48
Ryan Quinn def. Andrew Calandrelli via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Josh Diekmann vs. Manny Lara ruled a no-contest (accidental eye poke) – Round 1, 0:18
Marvin Maldonado vs. Rico DiSciullo ruled a no-contest (illegal knee) – Round 1, 1:53
