After 15 months of waiting, fans in attendance for “Bellator MMA: Lima vs. Koreshkov” at the Mohegan Sun Arena and those watching live on Spike were treated to a championship clash between Douglas “The Phenom” Lima (26-6) and Andrey “The Spartan” Koreshkov (18-1) for the Bellator MMA Welterweight Title.
After five grueling rounds, the judges appointed by the Mohegan Tribe Athletic Commission unanimously awarded the 170-pound belt to the challenger [48-47, 50-45, 50-45].
Lima was unable to fend off the relentless takedown attempts of “The Spartan,” who spent a good duration of the fight on his back. “The Phenom” came on strong with about 10 seconds remaining in the fight, but it was too little, too late. The 24-year-old Russian left Connecticut with his first victory in a year and a championship belt tightly wrapped around his waist.
“It’s not my belt it’s our belt. I did it for my friends, family and fans,” Koreshkov said. “I respect all fighters. I wish my next competitor luck in fighting against me.
Paul Daley Stops Dennis Olson, Calls Out Josh Koscheck
In Friday’s co-main event, Paul “Semtex” Daley (36-13-2) exploded on Dennis Olson (14-8), unleashing an arsenal of punches that forced referee Dan Miragliotta to stop the contest at 1:12 of round two.
Daley has now won two straight since returning to Bellator MMA after a nearly three-year hiatus. The 32-year-old Englishman fended off takedowns and bided his time before pummeling Olson with shots that crumpled the New Hampshire native into a heap on the mat.
After the bout, “Semtex” had a few choice words for Bellator MMA’s newest signee Josh Koscheck, who sat cageside after cornering Honeycutt earlier in the night.
“I’m a perfectionist. When anybody fights me they always fight their best. I prepared for a tough fight, I would’ve liked to take him out the first round, but I felt his strength,” Daley said. “I caught a kick and I was pretty comfortable in his guard even though I was caught in a couple of combinations.”
“Josh Koscheck and I are going to get our fight soon,” Daley added. “I don’t like him and we’re going to settle it in this Bellator cage.”
“Irish” Crushes “The Leprechaun”
“Irish” Brennan Ward (11-3) knocked out Roger “The Leprechaun” Carroll (16-12) with a vicious right hand at 2:06 of the first round. Ward was supposed to have fought Gavin Sterritt, but after the Wolfslair product withdrew from the fight, and was released from the promotion, Carroll stepped in on short notice.
Carroll was looking to fight “Irish” on the mat, showcasing his black belt in jiu-jitsu, but Ward smartly kept the bout upright and eventually landed one of his patented strikes that ended the night for “The Leprechaun.”
After the scrap, Ward made it clear that his move to welterweight is for the foreseeable future.
“Every time I fight here, I do it for the fans, these fans have my back. I have the best fans in the world,” Ward said. “I knew it was a matter of time before he went down. It was a pretty vicious shot, but I can’t help but throw bombs.
“You know I’ll take anyone. This division is tough, it’s really thick,” Ward continued. “I think I’m one of the top guys in my division. You don’t want to fight me, especially at Mohegan Sun.”
“The Cutt” Leads to No Contest Against Paul Bradley
What was shaping up to be a great welterweight bout between Chris Honeycutt (6-0, 1 NC) and Paul Bradley (22-6, 1 NC) ended in a no-contest following an accidental clash of heads at 2:47 of round two.
Both wrestlers were trading takedown attempts and shots on the feet, but after Honeycutt accidentally head butted Bradley, which opened a cut near the eye of the San Diego native, the ringside physician instructed referee John McCarthy to call a stop to the bout.
The inconclusive ending definitely created a sense of unfinished business between the two welterweight grapplers. It’s worth noting, until “Bellator MMA: Lima vs. Koreshkov,” neither fighter had been involved in a no contest.
“Venom” Bites “Bad News” Bears
In the opening main card bout of the evening, Michael “Venom” Page (8-0) continued his winning ways against Rudy “Bad News” Bears (16-14), stopping his foe with a walk off punch at 1:05 of the opening frame.
MVP has been on the shelf since October of last year, but the layoff didn’t slow down the Brit in the slightest, as he avoided everything Bears had to offer and then countered with vicious precision. The 28-year-old has now finished seven of his eight opponents.
After the fight, “Venom” made it clear that he is back with a vengeance.
“The one and only MVP is back,” Page said. “This is what I do all day, I’ve been training for this. I’m a precision fighter and I don’t just throw punches. I think everyone saw exactly what kind of statement I made tonight.”
Preliminary Results:
Dean Hancock (2-0) viciously finished Alex Dunworth (2-2) with unabated strikes at 2:14 of round two. It wasn’t the referee that called a stop to the action, but Dunworth’s corner man Joe Lauzon who threw in the towel for his fighter.
The sole women’s fight on the Bellator 140 card did not disappoint, as Kaline Medeiros (5-4) wrenched the arm of Sarah Payant (1-1) with a kimura, forcing the Massachusetts native to tap out at 3:24 of the opening frame.
Continuing the trend of submission finishes on the preliminary portion of the card, Ryan Quinn (11-5) finished Waylon Lowe (15-7) via guillotine choke at 2:47 of round two. With the win, the Connecticut native has now won four of his last five bouts.
In a rematch that was seven months in the making, Remo Cardarelli (5-2) defeated Billy Giovanella (8-4) via unanimous decision [30-27, 29-28, 29-28]. The pair of bantamweights have now traded wins in their first two meetings.
Kin Moy (7-2) came from behind to defeat Blair Tugman (7-6) via triangle choke submission at 3:01 of round three. Tugman was taking the fight to his opponent on the feet and mat, but out of nowhere, Moy secured the slick maneuver and took home his seventh professional win.
In the lone heavyweight tilt of the evening, Parker Porter (6-4) finished Eric Bedard (6-6) via Americana submission at 2:51 of round two. The victory is Porter’s first under the Bellator MMA umbrella.
In the opening bout of the evening, Ilya Kotau (1-0) made quick work of Nicolas Sergiacomi (1-1), defeating his fellow welterweight via rear-naked choke at 2:17 of round one.
