Tonight, the Mid-Atlantic Center in Iowa was treated to an awesome night of MMA as Bellator presented a stellar promotional card that was televised on the Spike Television Network. The event was capped off by a welterweight championship battle between Douglas Lima and Rick Hawn. The televised undercard featured three exciting matches. Here are the results:
The telecast opened with a three round lightweight tournament clash between Derick Campos (14-3-0) and Patricky Pitbull (12-5-0). Both men came out looking to box with Pitbull flashing the faster hands and seemingly heavier blows. Campos, a native Texan, heated towards the end of the opening rounds as he landed hard shots to the body and head. The second opened with both men letting the leather fly: Pitbull landed the harder shots, to include a left to chin that deposited Campos on the cage floor. Pitbull proceeded to ground-and-pound the Texan, leading to the referee halting the assault. With the win, Patricky Pitbull booked his slot in the lightweight tournament final.
The action continued with a three round welterweight bout between veterans Karl Amoussou (16-5-0) and David Gomez (16-7-0). Amoussou shot out of the gate with lighting quick combinations that found their mark on Gomez’s face and body. Amoussou was able to control the action and land at will as Gomez seemed hesitant to engage his faster adversary. Amoussou continued vertical dominance as he doubled and tripled his jab, keeping the Mexican-American at bay. Gomez aggressively attacked in the opening of the second stanza and was able to land but Amoussou was able to take his aggressor to the ground and almost submitted Gomez via heel hook but missed his opportunity. Gomez kept the pressure on and was able to land some serious artillery on Amoussou’s face but Amoussou returned fire and landed his own hard shots. Both combatants had their moments in the final minute, making it a tough round to score. Amoussou regained his distance in the final heat and started to land the more telling blows in the first half of the round. Gomez, appearing exhausted, began to shoot wide blows that occasionally hit flesh but did not seem to have much power left. In the end, the judges awarded Karl Amoussou a split decision by scores of 29-28 (twice) with the third card (29-28) favoring Gomez. It was a close match, but ConvictedArtistMagazine.com agreed that Amoussou was the victor.
The co-main event was another lightweight tournament semifinal prizefight as American Derick Anderson (11-0-0) met Polish-born Marcin Held (17-3-0) in a match listed for three rounds. Held went to work on his specialty: submission. The Polish fighter quickly took Anderson down and was looking for a leg lock to end it. Anderson defended well and was even able to land hard punches but Held kept searching for a leg lock submission. Anderson kept avoiding the submission by rolling with the Polish Jiu-Jitsu specialist and pounding often. Held attempted to show that he was able to hold his own while on his feet as he traded punches with the American. Halfway through the round, Held went to the ground and put Anderson in a leg triangle, causing the American to tap out. With the victory, Marcin Held will face Patricky Pitbull in the lightweight tournament final.
The final televised competition was for the Bellator welterweight strap as American Rick Hawn (18-2) encountered Brazilian Douglas Lima (25-5) in the cage. The fight was scheduled for five heats. In the prefight interview, Lima said, “I’m going to throw like Mike Tyson.” The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialist had a knockout in mind and came out looking to land power punches in the opening round. Hawn kept his distance early, using a lot of lateral movement as Lima stalked. The Brazilian continued to move forward behind his left jab and with less than 80 seconds in the round, Lima landed a vicious right kick strike to Hawn’s left leg that led the American to the ground. Hawn was able to compose himself but was sent to the mat again via another horrid leg strike. Lima managed to land some hard shots but the American was able to survive to hear the bell. Hawn seemed to be having leg pains as the second go underway as Lima’s powerful strikes punished his opponent with every blow. The former American Olympian seemed outmatched and appeared to want out of the fight. The Brazilian kept controlling the distance and continued to strike from a safe distance. Lima sent Hawn back to the floor with less than two minutes left in the second, prompting the American’s corner to call it a night for the outgunned American. The stoppage was a good decision by the corner as Hawn could no longer stand on his own accord. The conquest signified the commencement of Douglas Lima’s Bellator welterweight championship reign.
Sergio L. Martinez
www.convictedartist.com
