UFC and Bellator stars claim big wins on a packed night of MMA

Has the Korean Zombie done enough to earn a potential bout with Max Holloway?

Chan Sung Jung

By / UFC / 5 years ago

Saturday was a big night of MMA for fans prepared to put in the long hours, with UFC Fight Night in Greenville, Connecticut following hot on the heels of Bellator’s huge 19-fight card in London.

There were talking points aplenty as some of the biggest names on show, plus a few new faces, made headlines on a busy night for the sport.

THE KOREAN ZOMBIE DOES THE BUSINESS

We said South Korean superstar Chan Sung Jung was an excellent price to defeat betting favourite Renato Moicano at UFC Greenville, and “The Korean Zombie” didn’t let us down.

Chan starched Moicano in just 58 seconds to bounce back from his last-second loss to Yair Rodriguez last time out and push his claims for a possible shot at the title later this year.

Chan fought for the title once before, against Jose Aldo at UFC 163 in August 2013, but a dislocated shoulder sustained mid-fight scuppered any chance he had of winning on that occasion.

Now he looks ready for another shot, and a potential bout with Max Holloway would make for a fantastic fight at some point in the future.

“BIGI BOY” SERVES UP BIG KO

Remember Allen Crowder? He was the guy who gave controversial UFC heavyweight prospect Greg Hardy all sorts of problems before the former NFL star was disqualified. Well, he returned to action last night, and got absolutely flattened by one of the UFC’s scariest additions to the heavyweight division.

Jairzinho “Bigi Boy” Rozenstruik took his MMA record to 8-0 with a scary finish as he stopped Crowder in just NINE SECONDS.

With the UFC seemingly hell-bent on giving Hardy a big push, last night’s win by Rozenstruik makes us wonder. Maybe they’re pushing the wrong guy…

Rozenstruik vs Hardy? We’d watch.

LOVATO DETHRONES MOUSASI

Everybody knew he was good, but few believed Rafael Lovato Jr. had enough all-round MMA skills to dethrone seasoned veteran and reigning Bellator middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi in the main event of Bellator London on Saturday night, but that’s exactly what he did.

Lovato was too relentless, too strong and too determined for Mousasi as he edged out a super-close contest via majority decision to capture the Bellator middleweight title.

His win was the final act of a packed night in the capital. Here’s what else happened on a busy night at Wembley Arena.

DALEY WINS CRAZY WAR

Paul Daley and Erick Silva served up the fight of the night as they went toe to toe in a thrilling three-rounder, but while both men made it to the final bell, it was Daley who dominated.

The Brit absolutely hammered Silva with huge shots that would have finished lesser opponents many times over. But the Brazilian, whose punch resistance came into question after some damaging defeats in recent years, showed he still has a solid chin as he took Daley the distance.

It was Daley’s night, though as he gave the Wembley crowd exactly what they paid for.

CHALMERS EARNS HIS STRIPES

Aaron Chalmers was determined to show the improvements of his ground game when he faced Fred Freeman, and the former star of Geordie Shore did just that, submitting his man with a triangle choke.

It gave him a welcome win after suffering his first defeat in his previous outing, and also saw him earn a stripe for his belt from his jiu-jitsu coach.

The secret of his success? Well, one of them was his choice of walkout music, as he admitted he pinched Darren Till’s walkout tune, Neil Diamond’s classic “Sweet Caroline” to get him all fired up for the fight.

It worked a treat.

GALLAGHER CLAIMS HARD-EARNED WIN

The always-confident James Gallagher was made to battle for the full three rounds, but the Irishman did enough to earn himself a unanimous decision victory.

There had been a lot of bad blood and tension between the two camps heading into the contest, but Gallagher maintained his respect for opponent Jeremiah Labiano and his head coach, despite confronting one of the American’s other teammates during a heated press conference exchange.

But in the fight Gallagher and Labiano battled back and forth in a close contest that saw the Irishman edge out the win, before celebrating in front of the press backstage with a bottle of Conor McGregor’s Proper Twelve whiskey.

AND FINALLY…

British lightweight prospect Alfie Davis claimed a unanimous decision on the Bellator London preliminary card, but his win over UK-based Brazilian Jorge Kanella made headlines for other reasons than his performance.

During the fight, referee Kevin MacDonald deducted a point for something I’ve never seen in a fight before – sticking a toe up an opponent’s bum.

Yes, Kanella aimed a kick squarely at Davis’s rear-end as slo-mo replays brought oohs, aahs and gasps of disbelief from the London crowd.

A toe up the bum? Only in MMA…

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