Bellator Fighting Championships: 2011 Season

[INDYjon22]

Bellator Fighting Championships is finally returning for its 2011 season. I personally can't wait to see BFC back in action and wanted to create a general banter thread for it. Of course, this thread will also be used to keep the tournaments and shows updated as well. So here it is, the first show and beginning of the first tournament of the 2011 season.

Bellator Welterweight Tournament Quarterfinals
Jay Hieron vs. Anthony Lapsley
Lyman Good vs. Chris Lozano
Dan Hornbuckle vs. Brent Weedman
Rick Hawn vs. Jim Wallhead

Zoila Frausto vs. Karina Hallinan
Waachiim Spiritwolf vs. Jaime Jara
Poppies Martinez vs. TBA
Josh Herrick vs. Brandon Bender
Jesus Castro vs. Paul Ruiz​

The WW tournament will kick off tonight and my god do we have some awesome fights they may go down in the Semifinals, but those guys have to get through the first round first. Jay Hieron, Lyman Good and Dan Hornbuckle are all exciting fighters and are the favorite to win this whole thing. Good is a former champion, Hornbuckle is a BFC veteran and Hieron is just a well rounded fighter who has fought a long time.

It will also be interesting to see how Zoila Frausto does. This woman is a beast and one of the more entertaining female fighters to watch.

Should be a great show to kick of the 2011 season and the WW tournament. The card for next week will be updated as soon as BFC 35 has concluded.

 

[INDYjon22]

The quarterfinals have come and gone and Bellator is off and running, but not without controversy. Jay Heiron is the heavy favorite to win the Welterweight tournament, but his fight last night was stopped way to early. Hopefully Anthony Lapsley gets another shot at getting back in the tournament if someone gets hurt, much like Ryan Thomas got to do last year. Two of the other winners last night were not that surprising and were expected to move on. Though there was a bit of an upset in the Hornbuckle/Weedman fight. Weedman is no push over but it was still a bit surprising to see him defeat the Bellator veteran. Lyman Good looked good and put a hurting on Chris Lozano's eye. Rick Hawn also looked solid in what was mostly a boxing match. The semifinals should be fairly interesting.

Now, next week card will mark the beginning of the Lightweight tournament.

Bellator Lightweight Tournament Quarterfinals
Rob McCullough vs. Patricky Freire
Carey Vanier vs. Lloyd Woodard
Marcin Held vs. Michael Chandler
Ferrid Kheder vs. Toby Imada​

Rob McCullough is a very tough guy and might be the favorite to win the entire tournament this season. Carey Vanier has been very solid as of late winning 8 of his last 9 fights, only losing to another fighter in this tournament Toby Imada. Which brings me to the two time finalist Imada. He is always a dangerous fighter with some sick BJJ. Look out for another run for the championship. It won't be easy, he has possibly the toughest first round fight. Ferrid Kheder is another very dangerous opponent. It will be very interesting to see how the first round plays out, with some very exciting second round fights potentially.

 

[ITurnGirlsGay]

Pretty impressed with Weedman. Getting the upset over someone expected to go pretty far in this tournament.

That's really good for Bellator, though, it shows that they have depth. They aren't just relying on the same fighters to carry their organization.

 

[INDYjon22]

Last Saturdays Bellator show had several upsets but that should lead to some more interesting fights in the semifinals. Bellator veteran Toby Imada wins once again. This guy has really built up a nice niche in Bellator. Prospect Patricky Freire pulled off the upset against WEC veteran Rob McCullough. Undefeated Lloyd Woodard also picked up the upset against Bellator veteran Carey Vanier. Not as huge of an upset but still a good win. And Michael Chandler kept his undefeated record in tack. Every first round fight ended by stoppage at some point, which leads me to believe that the rest of this tournament should be very explosive.

On to this Saturdays card. Here's what's in store.

Bellator Featherweight Tournament Quarterfinals
Georgi Karakhanyan vs. Patricio Freire
Zac George vs. Wilson Reis
Eric Larkin vs. Kenny Foster
Daniel Straus vs. Nazareno Malegarie

Roli Delgado vs. Jameel Massouh
John Bryant vs. Jake Rosholt
Jeremy Spoon vs. Jerrod Sanders
Brandon Shelton vs. Adam Snook​

I don't really know much about any of the fighters in this tournament besides Patricio Freire, but I still look forward to seeing these guys in action. Patricio is the brother of Patricky Freire and both guys are very exciting. Patricio is coming off of a loss and it will be interesting to see if he rebounds.

The undercard will see two former UFC fighters make their Bellator debuts. Roli Delgado will look to win his third straight fight since being cut by the UFC and Jake Rosholt will try to get his second win in a row. Rosholt has a checkered record, but one of his wins really stands out. That being a submission victory over Chris Leben at UFC 102. Wins for both men will go a long way in helping them find more consistent work in Bellator.

 

[INDYjon22]

Unfortunately I did not get a chance to see Bellator last night since UFC 128 was going on as well, but here is a rundown of what happened.

Patricio Freire won his fight by KO. Both Freire brothers are very good and both have advanced to the semifinals of their respective tournaments. Patricio took the fight by KO in the third round considering he is the only guy in this tournament I am familiar with he is my choice to win it.

Wilson Reis made short work of Zac George. Reis is a deadly fighter with only 2 loses, one of which is at the hands of Patricio Freire which should make for an interesting storyline going into the semis if they face each other.

Kenny Foster also advanced with a submission victory over Eric Larkin, who was previously undefeated. And, Daniel Straus kept his 11 fight win streak alive with a decision victory over Nazareno Malegarie.

Also, Roli Delgado and Jake Rosholt both picked up victories in their Bellator debuts. This will definitely assist both men in finding a more stable job should they choose to stay with Bellator.

Bellator 38 will mark the beginning of the very first Light Heavyweight tournament in the promotions history. Here's what it will be looking like.

Bellator Light Heavyweight Tournament Quarterfinals
Daniel Gracie vs. Tim Carpenter
Chris Davis vs. Christian M'Pumbu
Raphael Davis vs. D.J. Linderman

Nik Fekete vs. Richard Hale​

Daniel Gracie is a member of the Gracie family but this will only be his second fight since 2006. He won't have an easy fight seeing as Tim Carpenter is undefeated at 6-0. Chris Davis is on a 3 fight win streak which have all been finished by way of strikes. His opponent, M'Pumbu, will be looking to get back in the winning ways. Raphael Davis only has one loss on his record and is currently riding a 9 fight winning streak which includes 7 submission wins, 1 TKO and a decision. His opponent, D.J. Linderman also only has one loss, which should lead to a very interesting fight. And finally, Nik Fekete is undefeated at 4-0 and has a victory over Ovince St. Preux. He will be facing Richard Hale who is on a 2 fight win streak.

The Bellator Light Heavyweight tournament doesn't have any real big name fighters in it, but should work as a great way to help some of these guys get some recognition. I expect great things from the LHW tournament.

 

[X]

It was my first time watching Bellator last night, but I definitely liked what I saw. Some damn good fights in the continuing light heavyweight tournament, Hale vs. Fekete was a good fight that ended with another inverted triangle choke submission, which makes it two weeks in a row that's happened in Bellator, pretty crazy. DJ Linderman looked really impressive against Raphael Davis and was able to finish him in the third round decisively. I'm sure Bellator is probably bummed about the main event though with Daniel Gracie losing, I imagine they were probably hoping Gracie would win this tournament and give them an established MMA "name" like the Gracie name is to potentially draw for them but Tim Carpenter wasn't going to be having any of that clearly.

Enjoyable show, glad I DVRed it.

 

[INDYjon22]

Great to hear that X. Bellator is like my baby, unfortunately I have been neglecting it the last few weeks because of personal shit, but that inverted triangle was sick as fuck. What makes it all the more amazing is that it was a Light Heavyweight who pulled that thing off. If the first round of the LHW tournament is any indication then it will be great from start to finish. Bellator is a great way of seeing some of the better, but lesser known fighters in the world such as Hector Lombard, Alexander Schlemenko, and Eddie Alvarez. I also just read something about MTV2 being happy with Bellator which is some good news for the new joint venture between the two.

Here's what is coming up this weekend.

Bellator Lightweight Championship
Eddie Alvarez (No. 6 LW) vs. Pat Curran

Bellator Welterweight Tournament Semifinal
Lyman Good vs. Rick Hawn

Bellator Lightweight Tournament Semifinal
Toby Imada vs. Patricky Freire

Ben Saunders vs. Matt Lee
Dave Jansen vs. Scott McAfee
Greg Rebello vs. Dan Cramer
Mike Winters vs. Ryan Quinn
Matt Veach vs. Rene Nazare
John McLaughlin vs. Blair Tugman​

It's interesting to note that they are breaking up the semifinals for the Welterweight and Lightweight tournaments. Regardless, both fights look great on paper. Rick Hawn is a terrific judo fighter, but Lyman Good is an awesome up and comer and the former champion. Also, Freire vs. Imada should be explosive. I really don't see that one going the distance. Freire lives up to every bit of his nickname, "pitbull", and Imada is a wizard on the ground.

Ben Saunders promotional debut will also be interesting to watch. Regardless of how his last fights in the UFC went he is still a very good fighter who has a ton of potential, just needs to get back on a hot streak.

And, the long awaited Alvarez vs. Curran fight is finally going to go down. Both guys like to slug it out so I don't think this one will go the distance either. Alvarez has fought some of the best in the world and won, it will definitely be his fight to lose. Curran is an explosive fighter but I worry that he doesn't have the experience to win and I wonder how good he will be coming off of his injury. Ring rust will most likely play a factor, but lets hope not. Should be awesome.

 

[X]

So I caught the main event of tonight's show on MTV2 earlier, the Eddie Alvarez vs. Pat Curran fight, and I have to say I was kind of disappointed. Pretty average fight for the most part with alot of feeling out in the first few rounds, Curran didn't have that "killer instinct" they talk about though and never seemed to be the aggressor in the fight, always hitting counter-punches and other defensive maneuvers. He tried a few shots towards the end but by that point he had already lost the last 4 rounds pretty clearly, so it just wasn't the best effort and fight from Curran I thought. Now either Curran has a great chin, or Alvarez's striking is terrible, because Alvarez kept tagging him again and again through out every single round, but not once did any of his punches even seem to make Curran stumble, let alone take him out. I don't know, I was expecting more from this fight seeing as it was hyped as a title fight, but it was pretty average stuff I thought. I haven't seen the rest of the show though, so I'll save my thoughts of the rest of the show for later.

 

[X]

So I watched the rest of last night's show this morning and it was much better than the main event. Ben Saunders vs. Matt Sung Lee was a freaking war, and Lee was bleeding nastily after the first round from more than one cut, so much so that by the time the 3rd round came around they tried to keep going but he was just bleeding too badly and the doctor had to call it, which was the right call if you saw Lee. Still, for two and a half rounds they had a great fight and both men impressed me, Lee has a hell of a chin to eat some of the shots he took in this one and still fight back, and Saunders was aggressive and dominant through out the entire fight. Great fight.

Rest of the show was good too. Lyman Good and Rick Hawn had a decent little fight with Hawn looking very impressive with his incredible Judo skills. Patricky Pitbull made a huge impression on me as well with his AWESOME KO of Imada with a Muay Thai knee. Seriously, that knee was SICK, he totally rocked Imada to his core and you could tell he didn't know where he was after that, unable to stand on his feet without stumbling before another quick punch made the ref stop it. Seriously one of the best knees I've ever seen in an MMA fight, highlight reel stuff for sure.

So yeah, disappointing main event like I said in my last post, but the rest of the show was very good. I'm really liking Bellator and look forward to next week's show.

 

[INDYjon22]

Bellator 40
Ben Askren vs. Nick Thompson

Bellator Lightweight Tournament Semifinal
Lloyd Woodard vs. Michael Chandler

Bellator Welterweight Tournament Semifinal
Jay Hieron vs. Brent Weedman

Tyler Stinson vs. Nathan James
Eric Prindle vs. Josh Burns
David Rickles vs. Dylan Smith
Cody Carrillo vs. Michael Osborn​

Here is the line up for tonight's card. Bellator Welterweight champion finally returns to the cage against the old timer Nick Thompson. Should be an alright fight but I don't really see Thompson coming close to winning. I hope he does though because I cannot stand Askren. Woodard vs. Chandler should be a nice little scrap. But, the real fight of the night should come from Jay Hieron vs. Brent Weedman.

 

[ITurnGirlsGay]

Ben Askren actually made a twitter post about his plan for this fight, so it shouldn't come as any surprise as to what he intends to do.

I'm sorry that my ability to use my intelligence to make a game plan which plays to my strengths and wins offends so many people

It's pretty apparent that Askren intends to grind out Thompson tonight. I pretty much lost respect for Askren after the Thomas fight, which is why I'm assuming you don't like him, Jon. I can't imagine it's his style.

I'm excited for Hieron, too. I've loved Jay since his first fight with GSP and absolutely fell in love with his style when he fought in the IFL. His losses have come against some pretty good fighters minus Goulet, but I think he's got a strong shot at winning this thing and cannot wait to catch the replay after Strikeforce.

 

[INDYjon22]

Ben Askren actually made a twitter post about his plan for this fight, so it shouldn't come as any surprise as to what he intends to do.



It's pretty apparent that Askren intends to grind out Thompson tonight. I pretty much lost respect for Askren after the Thomas fight, which is why I'm assuming you don't like him, Jon. I can't imagine it's his style.

I just don't dig the dude. He's a good enough fighter but he strikes me as a pompous ass. I don't care if a guy is a wrestler or not but Askren just brags about it and to me he is probably the most boring fighter in all of MMA right now. I hope Thompson smashes him but that just isn't realistic. A man can hope though can't he?

 

[ITurnGirlsGay]

I just don't dig the dude. He's a good enough fighter but he strikes me as a pompous ass. I don't care if a guy is a wrestler or not but Askren just brags about it and to me he is probably the most boring fighter in all of MMA right now. I hope Thompson smashes him but that just isn't realistic. A man can hope though can't he?

Yeah, he definitely sounds like a pompous ass. I've checked out his twitter a couple times and he's got a sense of entitlement that I just don't understand. I can't believe I'm actually about to say this, but people who think Fitch is boring should watch an Askren fight. That guy hasn't had a finish since his first fight with Thomas and HE was the one who told the ref it was over when it was clearly not over.

You're not alone, Jon, I always root for Askren to lose, I just don't think it's likely tonight. Thompson has always struggled with high level wrestlers, Hornbuckle, Kennedy, Shields, Okami, and Ebersole, but he DID beat Alvarez, so I suppose you can dream.

 

[jmt225]

This is exactly why I hate the fact wrestlers are taking over the sport. Those motherfuckers are not true martial artist. They're jock prat boys with a terrible attitude about the sport who only worry about themselves.

The fact is, MMA, like EVERY sport, is entertainment. And it is a fighter's job to be somewhat entertaining. For Ben Askren to sit there and say fuck you to all the fans, that he is willing to waste everybody's time and money simply to win, just shows how much of a prick him and most wrestlers in the sport are.

MMA was a sport built intended for true martial artist, not these moronic collegiate wrestlers who have nothing to do once they graduate college.

And while Askren gets a little credit for his honesty, he could still be more humble about it all. He comes off as such a smug jerk. I really, really hope he gets seriously injured, either tonight or sometime in the near future. I know that's a fucked up thing to say, but someone needs to make an example of wrestlers with this kind of attitude and show these assholes that simply just being a good wrestler isn't enough to survive in this sport.

Just as Sakuraba came along as the "Gracie Hunter" when it looked impossible for a Japanese fighter to ever beat a Brazilian fighter, there will be a "Wrestler Hunter" sometime in the near future above 145. Mark my words.

 

[INDYjon22]

Bellator 41
Joe Warren vs. Marcos Galvao
Zach Makovsky vs. Chad Robichaux

Bellator Featherweight Tournament Seminfinals
Patricio Freire vs. Wilson Reis
Kenny Foster vs. Daniel Straus

Rudy Aguilar vs. Carlos Flores
Anthony Birchak vs. Tyler Bialecki
Michael Parker vs. Nick Piedmont
Alex Garcia vs. Jose Diaz​

Alright, so BFC 41 takes place tonight and it will feature one of Bellator's own home grown talents in Joe Warren. Warren is a bit of a character but is a very solid fighter who can hang with a lot of the top guys. I don't know a whole lot about Galvao but I suspect he will present a nice challenge for Warren.

Zach Makovsky is another home grown guy in Bellator who has a ton of potential to be a big name fighter in time. He is currently riding a 6 fight win streak and is undefeated in Bellator. His opponent, Robichaux, is undefeated and very tough. Should be a great fight.

The Featherweight semifinal fights are both intriguing. The vicious Patricio Freire wil collide with Wilson Reis. Freire should have the advantage everywhere except maybe on the ground. The other semifinal fight is between Foster and Straus. Both guys are pretty evenly matched so this one could go either way.

 

[INDYjon22]

Bellator 42

Bellator Light Heavyweight Tournament Semifinals
Richard Hale vs. D.J. Linderman
Tim Carpenter vs. Christian M'Pumbu

Ronnie Mann vs. Josh Arocho
Jerod Spoon vs. Luiz Nogueira
Chris Bell vs. Jared Hess
Shane Howell vs. Mark Oshiro
Chris Guillen vs. Mark Holata
Owen Evinger vs. Brandon Shelton​

Bellator 42 will center around the Light Heavyweight tournament which is off to a great start. If the quarter finals were any indication as to how this tournament is going to be then the semifinals should be a blast to watch. 3 of the 4 guys that remain finished their first round opponents so I expect some awesome finishes tonight. I really love how Bellator builds its own stars much like the UFC did in the early days. It's a lot of fun to watch.

 

[X]

Just finished watching last night's show, fairly good card. The first match, the Nogueira-Spoon fight, was awesome and probably the fight of the night, both men looked impressive and I was shocked by how strong of a chin both men have because they were eating some serious bombs in that one. Good stuff.

Rest of the card wasn't as impressive. I was disappointed to see Tim Carpenter knocked out so quickly by M'Pumbu, but considering the massive weight cut he made for the fight I wasn't surprised to see it and actually expected him to lose because of that. He didn't even realize he had been KOed either, so you know he's got to be sorely disappointed in himself. I like both guys though and would be glad to see them again.

Also, what the fuck is up with Bellator plugging TNA Impact every week? I'm confused by this partnership deal they've apparently got going.

Main event was pretty good though. Linderman is an entertaining guy and it was fun watching him and Hale stand up and bang for three rounds. Entertaining little fight.

Kind of bummed there's no show next week (right Jon?), I seem to recall them advertising next week as being a highlight/hype show for the Welterweight Title tournament finals in 2 weeks. I like both Hieron and Hawn and wouldn't mind seeing either guy become the inaugural champ.

 

[INDYjon22]

Just finished watching last night's show, fairly good card. The first match, the Nogueira-Spoon fight, was awesome and probably the fight of the night, both men looked impressive and I was shocked by how strong of a chin both men have because they were eating some serious bombs in that one. Good stuff.

Rest of the card wasn't as impressive. I was disappointed to see Tim Carpenter knocked out so quickly by M'Pumbu, but considering the massive weight cut he made for the fight I wasn't surprised to see it and actually expected him to lose because of that. He didn't even realize he had been KOed either, so you know he's got to be sorely disappointed in himself. I like both guys though and would be glad to see them again.

Also, what the fuck is up with Bellator plugging TNA Impact every week? I'm confused by this partnership deal they've apparently got going.

Main event was pretty good though. Linderman is an entertaining guy and it was fun watching him and Hale stand up and bang for three rounds. Entertaining little fight.

Kind of bummed there's no show next week (right Jon?), I seem to recall them advertising next week as being a highlight/hype show for the Welterweight Title tournament finals in 2 weeks. I like both Hieron and Hawn and wouldn't mind seeing either guy become the inaugural champ.

I dig M'Pumbu a lot so I was really happy to see him pick up the KO win last night. The dude is an undersized Light Heavyweight who is banging with some big dudes and winning. I really respect that. Linderman/Hale was a fun fight. I'm not really a big fan of either guy but they put on a good show.

Luis Nogueira and Ronnie Mann both looked very good last night. I can't wait to see either of them back in action. They both have very bright looking futures.

I would be more bummed about next weekend if it wasn't for two things. First of all I won't be in town so I wouldn't be able to watch anyways and the second is that UFC 129 is next weekend and Bellator is playing it pretty smart by not putting a shot up against that powerhouse. Bellator would have gotten crushed. That said, I hope Jay Heiron wins, nothing against Rick Hawn, I just like Heiron more and I think he stands a better chance of knocking Ben Askren off for the title and that's all I really want. I can't stand that punk as champ anymore.

 

[INDYjon22]

Bellator 43
Bellator Welterweight Tournament Final
Jay Hieron vs. Rick Hawn

Joe Riggs vs. Bryan Baker
Chase Beebe vs. Jose Vega
Zak Jensen vs. Neil Grove
Bill Albrecht vs. David Rickles
George Burton vs. John Bryant
Vince Lucero vs. Ron Sparks
Mike Schatz vs. Michael Osborn​

Bellator returns tonight after a week off. We will finally crown the season 3 Welterweight champion and what a hell of a fight it should be. The very well rounded Jay Hieron will face off against the judo practitioner and undefeated Rick Hawn. Should be a great fight to watch unfold. My money is on Hieron because he has a ton of experience and skill but Hawn shouldn't be counted out. He is a very talented dude.

Other things of note include Joe Riggs stepping into the Bellator ring. Riggs has been around for a long time and has been fairly successful, he even holds a victory over Nick Diaz. It will be interesting to see what he does in Bellator or if this will just be a one time deal. Also, I firmly believe that Zak Jensen vs. Neil Grove will be an awesome little slugfest. Both guys can hit hard and I hope they just go at it tonight. Should be fun to watch.

 

[INDYjon22]

Shit, I meant to comment on last weeks show earlier then today but it simply slipped my mind. Not to much to report from last week. Heiron and Hawn had a very solid and competitive fight. As expected Heiron walked away as the tournament winner and the next in line for Ben Askren's title, but Rick Hawn proved that he has what it takes to hang with best of Bellator, say what you will but Bellator does bring in some very talented dudes at Welterweight. I can't wait to see where Hawn goes from here. Also, Joe Riggs fought and lost. This kid had a ton of talent but he has just never been able to live up to it. Damn shame, but a feel good story to see Bryan Baker walk away with the win and a fiancee. Now, here's tomorrows card:

Bellator 44
Hector Lombard vs. Falaniko Vitale

Bellator Lightweight Tournament Final
Patricky Freire vs. Michael Chandler

Alexander Shlemenko vs. Brett Cooper
Bryan Goldsby vs. Anthony Morrison

Jeff Lentz vs. Anthony Leone
Giedrius Karavackas vs. Sam Oropeza
Azunna Anyanwu vs. Randy Smith
Gemiyale Adkins vs. Jay Silva​

Lombard has been one of Bellator's two biggest draws so far, along with Eddie Alvarez, and he has put on some very good fights. He faces a very seasoned and tough fighter in Falaniko Vitale, who holds some big wins to his name. The victory that stands out the most to me was he freak KO victory over Matt Lindland a few years when Lindland knocked himself out. I expect Lombard to win but this could be his biggest test to date.

Also, they very dangerous Patricky Freire will fight Michael Chandler to crown the Lightweight tournament champion. Freire is a very vicious KO artist and has been a lot of fun to watch so far. Chandler is undefeated and has shown good all around skills so far in his career. Personally, I will be betting on Freire to win but this one really could go either way.

And finally, Alexander Schlemenko returns to Bellator for the first time since his championship defeat to Hector Lombard last year. Schelmenko is an excellent striker who is virtually always a joy to watch. I cannot wait to see him back in action again.

Bellator 44 has a ton of potential to be the best Bellator show to date. It has one of the promotions biggest stars as well as two top prospects and a dangerous striker all tapped for the show. I can't wait to see it.

 

[INDYjon22]

Bellator 45
Bellator Light Heavyweight Tournament Final
Richard Hale vs. Christian M'Pumbu

Bellator Featherweight Tournament Final
Daniel Straus vs. Patricio Freire

Karl Amoussou vs. Sam Alvey
Luis Santos vs. Nicolae Cury
Joseph Abercrombie vs. Ben Parpart
Shawn Jordan vs. John Hill
Tim Ruberg vs. Mike Fleniken
Rene Nazare vs. Kalvin Hackney​

Tonight will mark the conclusion of both the Light Heavyweight tournament and the Featherweight tournament. Both fights should be excellent to watch. I have really become a big fan of Christian M'Pumbu and his ability to finish fights by way of strikes, so I will be pulling heavily for him in his fight.

I have also made no secret about my fondness for the Freire brothers and once again one of them is fighting tonight. Patricio has some very deadly striking and I really want to see him fight Joe Warren again. But, he must get past Daniel Straus first. Straus is a grinder and also has some solid submission skills. It'll be interesting to see if Freire can properly utilize his striking or if Straus will be able to grind out the decision.

 

[INDYjon22]

Bellator 48​

Bellator Summer Series Featherweight Tournament Final
Pat Curran vs. Marlon Sandro (No. 5 FW)
Cole Konrad vs. Paul Buentello
Ricco Rodriguez vs. Seth Petruzelli
Rene Nazare vs. Juan Barrantes
Nik Fekete vs. Mark Griffin
Saul Almeida vs. Tateki Matsuda
Dan Cramer vs. John Clarke
Ryan Quinn vs. Brett Oteri
Andrew Calandrelli vs. Matt Nice​

I apologize for not updating this as regularly as I should but I have been really busy with work this summer and haven't had the time to follow Bellator as closely as I was in the beginning. That said, Bellator returns tonight with a great card, especially for those fans who love Heavyweights. Not to mention what should be a great fight between Pat Curran and Marlon Sandro to determine the next contender for Joe Warren's belt.

Pat Curran has proven himself to be an exciting fighter with what appears to be a bright future in MMA. A win here would gain him his second title shot but in a different weight class. Curran has good wrestling and some power in his hands. His opponent Marlon Sandro is the fifth ranked Featherweight in the world today. He is a well rounded fighter who could give many Featherweights a tough fight. Personally I see Sandro being able to out strike and work his way to a decision victory and then a much anticipated fight with Joe Warren.

The Bellator Heavyweight champion will also be in action, facing off against The Headhunter Paul Buentello. Cole Konrad is undefeated and a great wrestler. Buentello has awesome power in his hands but I think Konrad's superior wrestling will ultimately get him the win via decision. This should be a great test for Konrad though seeing as Buentello is no pushover.

And, Seth "The Kimbo Killer" Petruzelli will face off against UFC veteran and former champion Ricco Rodriguez. Petruzelli is a very solid fighter, but can never put it together when he is in the big show. Rodriguez is an MMA legend, in my opinion, and is riding a 12 fight win streak. Both guys should match up pretty well but I think Ricco's experience will get him the win. I am feeling a second round stoppage, probably by submission.

Should be a fun card.

 

[JWGunslinger]

Saw Ricco Rodriguez vs Seth Petruzelli and Pat Curran vs Marlon Sandro, both had outcomes I was hoping for

Petruzelli got a much needed win that basically saved us from losing him to retirement when he knocked out the former UFC Heavyweight champ at the end of the first round with a ducking right followed by some signature Silverback ground n pound. It seems like this win has not only motivated him to keep fighting but maybe take another run at the UFC hopefully, he did say that he really likes fighting at heavyweight even though he's very small, he likes having a speed advantage over them.Dana White was contemplating bringing Ricco back to the UFC so maybe Seth beating him warrants another shot on the big stage. Whether he does go back to the UFC or fights in smaller promtions, I am very happy he got the win and look forward to the next time we get to see him in action.

Pat Curran had a killer finish after battling with Sandro head to head, he notched up a nice head kick knock out and won the featherweight tournament. Can't wait to see more from Curran, he's only 23 and since starting his pro career in 2008 he's 16 and 4.

 

[INDYjon22]

“Batman” has a new home.

Kurt Pellegrino will make his Bellator Fighting Championships debut Nov. 26 against Patricky Freire at Bellator 59. The UFC veteran made the announcement during the Bellator SpikeTV.com preliminary stream Saturday. Bellator 59 will emanate from Caesar's Hotel and Casino in Atlantic City, N.J.

Pellegrino returns from a brief leave of absence, as the lightweight elected not to renew his UFC contract in May. Prior to taking his break, the 32-year-old had lost back-to-back contests to George Sotiropoulos and Gleison Tibau at UFC 116 and 128, respectively. Prior to those losses, the New Jersey native had won four consecutive Octagon contests, besting Thiago Tavares, Rob Emerson, Josh Neer and Fabricio Camoes in succession.

The elder of the “Pitbull” brothers, Freire has won five of his last six contests. The muscular Brazilian joined Bellator in March, knocking out Rob McCullough and Toby Imada en route to a finals berth in the promotion's fourth-season lightweight tournament. Freire would falter in the final against Michael Chandler, however, losing a unanimous decision to the Xtreme Couture MMA representative at Bellator 44 in May.

Solid pickup for Bellator and a very interesting match up. I have never been a huge Pellegrino fan but I can't deny the guy has some serious skill. I am, however, a big Freire brothers supporter. They are incredibly tenacious and violent in the cage. It's a blast to see. Pellegrino has to get this fight to the ground if he wants to survive because I see Patricky murdering him on the feet. Should be a fun fight and probably puts the winner in the next Lightweight tournament.

 

[The Best]

Great show so far. I will probably right something up about it after the event, but yet I said that for ufc 134.

Batman is huge hear in NJ, and he will probably roll through their semi-weak lightweight division. He is very exciting in my opinion, and I'm looking forward to watching him. He has great striking, and a solid ground game. Huge addition for Bellator.