The most romantic city in the world was on hand for the Bellator 296 card on Friday at the Accor Arena in Paris.
Middleweight contender Fabian Edwards (12-2, 8-2 BMMA) took a step out of his older brother’s shadow after outlasting middleweight legend Geggard Mousasi (49-9-2, 7-3 BMMA) over five rounds in Bellator MMA 185 – Lound Title Eliminator bout.
In a back-and-forth fight, Edwards proved sharper on his feet than the 37-year-old Musasi. Heading into the final round, the contenders appeared tied on the scorecards, before a body lock gave Edwards control throughout most of the fifth round. With the win, Edwards set himself up with a shot at Bellator Middleweight Champion Johnny Ibelin (13-0, 9-0) on September 23 in Dublin.
In the co-main event, former Bellator Lightweight Champion Brent Primus (12-3, 10-3 BMMA) advanced to the semifinals of the Bellator Lightweight Grand Prix after a grueling unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47) Over the hometown of champion Mansour Bernawi (20-5, 1-1 BMMA).
Primus and Bernawi opened the first round trading punches like crazy. Someone must have forgotten to tell the Warriors that the match was scheduled for 25 minutes, because the two spent the first segment exchanging the best of the other. Al-Barnawi was able to get the better of him on his feet before Primus returned to his wrestling advantage in the fourth period. Taking the exhausted Bernaoui to the ground in the last two rounds was the boost Primus needed to set himself up for a date with lightweight leader Usman Nurmagomedov.
Former Bellator welterweight champion Douglas Lima (33-11, 15-7 BMMA) has moved up to middleweight, but he’s got everything he can handle against Costello van Stennis.
Lima started slow leg kicks with Van Stennis before the latter ended the round with a master takedown. Sensing his deficit on the scorecards, Lima was able to take the pace and display the scorpion speed that made him such an impressive champion. Lima outlasted Van Stenes over the final two rounds, slamming the “Spaniards” over the head with straight punches and powerful lunges. After three rounds of work, Lima finally smashed a quadruple slide with a unanimous decision victory (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
Thibaut Gotti’s return home could not have been better. The 36-year-old former UFC fighter kicked off Paris’ main card with a bang after Kane dispatched Moses in two rounds. Gotti (17-6, 2-1 BMMA) got the crowd to its feet in the first round after knocking down the Briton with a two-piece combination.
Musa (14-5, 3-3 BMMA), after defeating Georgy Karakhanyan, was knocked out for the second round with a fire in his gut. “Danger” Gouti backed up with heavy hooks and pressings. Gotti, with his back to the fence, returned with the barter before finally landing a right hook to Moses’ jaw.
Moses smashed to the canvas before Gotti capped off his victory by knockout with a pair of hammers at the 3:58 mark..
After opening the main card, Gouti called out Tim Wilde (16-4-1, 4-1-1 BMMA) for a lightweight bout. Wilde impressed earlier in the day with a professional three-round bout against Christopher Gonzalez.
In another move, Jose Augusto Azevedo Barros (8-4, 1 NC; 2-2 BMMA) snapped a losing streak with a unanimous decision victory over Simon Byung in a light-heavyweight move. Biyong (9-3, 2-2 BMMA) entered looking for a third straight win, but all he could find were Augusto’s constant punches to his feet. Romain Depin (9-4, 1-0 BMMA) lost weight for his welterweight clash with the lanky Burama Kamara (5-3, 1-2 BMMA) but that didn’t stop him from finishing the reel in the second round. (1:04). Asil Adjouj (6-1, 4-1 BMMA) defeated fellow Frenchman Georges Sassou (4-3, 2-3 BMMA) by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27). Fabacare Diatta (9-1, 3-1) welcomed Bellator newcomer Kerr Harvey to the organization in blistering fashion, beating the Scotsman with a clear unanimous decision victory (30-27, 30-27, 30-26). Takestan favorite Sarvarjon Khamidov maintained his unbeaten record (15-0, 2-0 BMMA) and dominated France’s Kevin Pechey (18-6, 0-1 BMMA) with relentless pressure before the end.
Beachy broke with a naked choke from behind late in the third round (1:33). Hometown favorite Yves Landau (19-9, 4-1 BMMA) beat Piotr Niedzielski (18-5, 1-2 BMMA) in a unanimous decision over the featherweight limit. Saul Rogers’ win over Davey Gallon was immediately rescinded to a no contest yet
Wrong ruling by referee Jacob Montalvo. Luca Boclet defeated Oliver Encamp by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28). Former flyweight contender Denise Keilholtz passed Paula Cristina dos Santos Silva via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27) in the only women’s bout on the card.