COMPLETE EVENT PHOTOS HERE — VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS HERE
FRESNO, California. (Lub rau hli ntuj 17, 2016) — It was a rematch over three years in the making, it was a fight that was scheduled, cancelled and re-scheduled, thiabon Friday ntawm “Bellator 156” inside Save Mart Center, Marcos Galvao (17-7-1) tiv tiag Eduardo Dantas (18-4) was also a barnburner of a main event with the Bellator MMA Bantamweight Championship on the line.
Galvao, 33, walked into the arena with the belt in tow, riding high on his memorable victory at the expense of Joe Warren nyob rau hauv 2015. But over the course of 25 feeb, Dantas put a halt to any momentum “Loro” had, peppering his former training partner’s left-eye with punches, until it swelled shut. Galvao tried valiantly to slow the pace of “Dudu” through grappling, but the 27-year-old did enough to earn the nod from the California State Athletic Commission judges and take back the belt that he claimed was his all along.
With the defeat, Galvao’s four-fight winning streak was snapped, while Dantas has now pieced together two consecutive victories. The Nova Uniao product will now set his sights on the winner of Darrion Caldwell tiv thaiv Joe Taimanglo ntawm “Bellator 159,” a bout that will determine the new No. 1 contender for Dantas’ freshly won title.
Chidi Njokuani ‘Bang Bangs’ His Way to Knockout Victory
The co-main event of the evening featured contrasting styles, nrog Chidi Njokuani (15-4) looking to keep the fight at length and utilize his height and reach advantage, thaum lub sij hawm Thiago Jambo (18-5) worked hard to close the distance and compete on the inside. “Chidi Bang Bang” won out, cracking the gut of Jambo with a kick that folded the Brazilian to the mat. Njokuani pounced, landing left and right punches until referee Mike Beltran waved the fight off at2:39 ntawm qhov kawg puag ncig, giving the Las Vegas native a knockout win. After the scrap, the 28-year-old made his interview concise, telling the welterweight division: “anyone can get it.”
John Salter Taps Brandon Halsey via Triangle Choke
Throughout the lead up to Friday tus event in Fresno, Brandon Halsey (9-2) made it clear that fans watching would see a new and improved “Heev nyuj,” and while the former Fresno State Bulldog did demonstrate a new array of striking, nws yog John Salter (12-3) who stole the show. The 31-year-old Wilmington, N.C. resident caught Halsey on the mat with a triangle choke submission, forcing him to tap out after 4:03 nyob rau hauv thawj puag ncig. Keeping with the trend of his career thus far, every fight Salter has won has been via submission, furthering his claim for a shot at the promotion’s 185-pound belt.
Honeycutt Impresses Hometown Crowd in Middleweight Debut
In the opening main card contest of “Bellator 156: Galvao vs.. Dantas,” Fresno’s own Chris Honeycutt (8-1) welcomed Mikkel Parlo (13-3) back to the Bellator MMA cage with a complete 15-minute performance, building upon the wrestling pedigree he’s known for with a newfound dynamic striking arsenal. Usually Parlo, a Danish fighter who had not competed for the Scott Coker-led promotion since 2014, gets the better of his opponents when the fight stays upright, tab sis on Friday, nws yog “Lub Cutt” who got the better of the punching exchanges. Nyob rau hauv lub kawg, it was the 27-year-old Honeycutt who walked away with a unanimous decision, pushing out his current winning streak to two bouts and improving to 4-1 under the Bellator umbrella.
Preliminary Card tau:
Jermaine McDermott (3-0) yeej Blake Watkins (5-1) via TKO at :20 ntawm puag ncig ib
Paul Ruiz (7-3) yeej Chris Buron (5-1) ntawm cais kev txiav txim siab (30-27, 28-29, 30-27)
Javy Ayala (9-5) yeej Roy Boughton (14-8) via TKO at 3:02 ntawm puag ncig ib
Nick Bustamante (4-1) yeej Antoine Smith (2-6-1) ntawm feem ntau txiav txim (28-28, 29-27, 29-27)
Jose Cabezas (6-8) yeej John Paul Elias (3-1) via knockout at :25 ntawm puag ncig ib
Chris Lewis (1-0) yeej Myron Smith (2-3) via TKO at 4:48 ntawm puag ncig ib
Luis Jauregui (4-2) yeej Ryan Tobar (3-3) ntawm unanimous kev txiav txim siab (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Ben Reiter (17-1-1) yeej A.J. Matthews (8-5) ntawm unanimous kev txiav txim siab (30-26, 30-26, 30-26)
Carrington Banks (5-0) yeej C.J. Keith (8-4) ntawm unanimous kev txiav txim siab (30-25, 30-26, 30-26)