Before the event started, Bellator 172 was doomed to disappoint most of the people who tuned in.
Just a few hours ahead of the first fight of the night, news broke from MMA Fighting's Ariel Helwani that Matt Mitrione, who was supposed to face MMA legend Fedor Emelianenko in the main event, was forced out of the card because of illness. While the card itself was no one-fight affair, sporting a number of interesting names, the entire build to the event was focused on the former Pride champion and his massive foe.
Naturally, this made Bellator and Mitrione the biggest losers by a significant margin.
Bellator has pulled strong ratings with throwback names like Ken Shamrock and Tito Ortiz, and they were no doubt hoping to hit a home run Saturday with Emelianenko's promotional debut. But while this was a setback for Bellator, it is way worse for Mitrione.
The veteran heavyweight has never won a title, doesn't have a major memorable highlight and doesn't have a win over a past or present champion from a major promotion. A win over an all-time great would have been a legacy-making moment, but instead he spent Bellator 172 on a hospital bed in agonizing pain.
The biggest winner, meanwhile, was one of the de facto main eventers, Patricky Freire. The Brazilian was in a high-risk, high-reward position against a UFC veteran and former Strikeforce champion in Josh Thomson and made the most of the situation with a devastating knockout win.
Who else won the night? And who lost? Read on to find out.
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