Bellator 172 was supposed to be the return and promotional debut of Fedor Emelianenko. Unfortunately, that didn't happen, but Saturday night's card still ended with a bang.
Patricky "Pitbull" Freire and Josh Thomson took center stage for the card's main event after Matt Mitrione was forced out of the main event fight against Emelianenko with an illness, per MMAjunkie.
With Emelianenko out, Freire was the one who brought the excitement to the card. In a first round that was mostly spent gauging distance and rhythm for both fighters, it was Pitbull who broke the relative silence with an overhand right that crashed into Thomson and sent him tumbling to the mat.
For Mike Sloan of Sherdog, it was enough to see the opening round for Pitbull:
That right hand turned out to be a harbinger of things to come. After an incidental headbutt rocked Thomson even further in the second frame, the Brazilian landed a thundering right uppercut that put Thomson to the floor and signaled the beginning of the end.
Freire's win over Thomson is a mild upset, but the fashion in which it happened is huge. E. Casey Leydon of MMA Fighting noted how long it's been since someone has been able to finish the MMA veteran:
After the bout, Freire was quick to drum up some interest in a bout with champion Michael Chandler.
However, Michael Stets of MMA on SiriusXM was quick to point out why it might be foolish to expect Pitbull to get the next shot at Chandler or do well if that's the case.
Overall, it was a night Bellator has to be a bit disappointed with given the last-minute loss of the main event. Still, the night had its moments, including some impressive finishes, controversy and the apparent end of a former UFC contender's career.
Here's a look at the complete results from the event along with an in-depth look at the fights from the main card.
Main Card
- Patricky Freire def. Josh Thomson via knockout (punches) – Round 2, 0:40
- Cheick Kongo def. Oli Thompson via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-25, 30-25)
- Anatoly Tokov def. Francisco France via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 2:24
- Veta Arteaga def. Brooke Mayo via TKO (doctor stoppage) – Round 3, 4:04
- Mauricio Alonso def. Josh Koscheck via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:42
Prelims
- Nikko Jackson def. Cesar Gonzalez via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
- J.J. Okanovich def. Zach Andrews via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 2:26
- James Terry def. J.C. Llamas via unanimous technical decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Gaston Bolanos def. Abner Perez via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:53
- Diego Herzog vs. Martin Sano declared a majority draw (28-27, 28-28, 28-28)
- Justin Tenedora def. Roque Reyes via submission (face crank) – Round 2, 4:59
Cheick Kongo vs. Oli Thompson
Cheick Kongo may have some name recognition, but he isn't the most exciting fighter in the world.
Oli Thompson—a former strongman—is one of the most exciting heavyweight fighters in Bellator. He's only been to a decision seven times in his career.
It was Kongo's efficient style that won out in the evening's co-main event. Kongo became the seventh fighter to take Thompson to a decision in a fight that wasn't particularly close. Kongo swarmed Thompson with pressure in the clinch, in the stand-up, but mostly on the ground.
Bellator's Phil Davis gave a shoutout to Kongo's clinch, which gave Thompson fits and closed the distance effectively:
The end result was a lopsided decision victory that saw Kongo earn multiple 10-8 rounds without putting the fight in danger of being finished aside from the overall inactivity of Thompson.
This fight was a bit of a sad commentary on the heavyweight division in Bellator. This is one of the better matchups the organization can put together with its current roster, and the championless division might just not have a lot to offer other than a fight for the aging Emelianenko at this point.
Francisco France vs. Anatoly Tokov
One reason Emelianenko decided to sign with Bellator was the organization's willingness to take other members of his team in. That meant a big opportunity for Emelianenko's teammate Anatoly Tokov on the main card of this event.
Although his heavyweight mentor wasn't able to fight, Tokov did take advantage of the opportunity. The middleweight earned a stoppage victory in the second round over Francisco France.
It didn't come without its scary moments, though. France showcased some slick jiu-jitsu in the first round, nearly sinking in an armbar among other submissions before Tokov worked his way back to the feet.
Then, in the second round, the 27-year-old showed the explosive power that makes him an interesting prospect going forward:
He landed a crushing right hand that turned the fight on a dime and earned himself his first Bellator win. He took the ground and bludgeoned France with crushing ground-and-pound.
After the fight Tokov admitted to being a bit surprised on the ground:
That's something he'll need to shore up if he wants continued success with his new promotion.
Veta Arteaga vs. Brooke Mayo
It isn't a good night of MMA without some good old-fashioned controversy, and Bellator 172 found some in Veta Arteaga vs. Brooke Mayo.
For more than two rounds, Arteaga and Mayo exchanged heavy leather in an exciting fight. Mayo was able to score in grappling exchanges while Arteaga landed consistently on the feet with both punches and kicks that set up an even fight going into the third and final round.
It was then that Mayo's poor standing defense came back to bite her. A massive right hand blew up a huge hematoma over the Bellator newcomer's eye:
Eventually the doctor was called in to take a look at the injury and waved the fight off, thus awarding Arteaga with the TKO victory.
Mayo was visibly upset with the decision, pleading with the referee that she could see. MMA Fighting posted a picture for fans to decide whether the fight should have continued:
Controversial stoppage or not, this was a fun fight that fans probably wouldn't mind seeing run back with a less polarizing finish.
Josh Koscheck vs. Mauricio Alonso
Josh Koscheck used to be a UFC title contender. He didn't look anything like that against Mauricio Alonso.
The 39-year-old Koscheck had the lights turned out by Alonso in the first round of the opening bout of the main card on Spike. The former four-time All-American elected to stand and strike with Alonso in the first round, and it turned out to be to his major detriment.
Alonso was able to touch up the aging veteran twice before finally landing the punch that would finish the fight. Shaheen Al-Shatti contextualized the not-so-graceful fall of Koscheck:
Bellator passed along a highlight of Alonso's crisp striking that put Koscheck away:
The one-sided loss marked six straight losses. With a loss in his Bellator debut, it's hard to imagine the welterweight has any value left for the organization.
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