411's Bellator 91 Report 2.28.13
Posted by Mark Radulich on 03.01.2013
Attila Vegh defeated Christian M'Pumbu by unanimous decision to become the new Bellator Light Heavyweight Champion! Saad Awad demolished Will Brooks to advance to the finals of the season 8 Lightweight tournament! David Rickels earned unanimous decision victory over Jason Fischer to advance to the finals of the Lightweight tournament and more! For all of the details check out 411's Bellator 91 Report 2.28.13!
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PRELIMS
Middleweight Bout: Yair Moguel (187.6)* vs. Brennan Ward (184.9)
ROUND ONE: Ward starts with a jab. They trade a bit and Ward takes Moguel down. Ward takes his back. Ward tries for a rear-naked choke. He gets and Moguel taps. Well that nice and quick!
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER – Brennan Ward by submission (rear-naked choke) at 0:57 of round 1.
Heavyweight Bout: Josh Appelt (245.1) vs. Josh Lanier (212)
ROUND ONE: Lanier's nickname is Big Country...THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE! Appelt come straight across and mashes Lanier into the cage. They trade knees in the clinch. Lanier turns him around but Appelt turns him right back. They break away. Appelt throws wild hooks, Lanier tries a takedown but Appelt stuffs him. They rest against the cage again. Lanier tries for a single leg against the fence and he gets it. Appelt moves top position. Lanier throws up a triangle. Appelt escapes and stands up. Appelt nails him with a huge left hand. Lanier clinches and knees him to the body. The ref breaks them up. Lanier takes shoots again but Appelt sprawls. Lanier locks up Appelt with his legs. He tries for an armbar but Appelt pulls away. Appelt knocks Lanier down with a left. Lanier gets back up but is hit with an uppercut! Appelt follows with a knee and we're out of time.
SCORECARD: Appelt 10-9
ROUND TWO: Lanier throws a head kick and Appelt belts him with that left! Appelt donkey kongs his way to victory!
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER – Josh Appelt by TKO at 0:16 of round 2.
Bantamweight Bout: Adrian Cruz (135.5) vs. Nick Gonzalez (135.4)
ROUND ONE: Cruz starts with a leg kick. Gonzalez throws a left hook and Cruz shoots through it getting a takedown. Cruz smothers Gonzalez using short elbows. Cruz seems like he is trying to pass guard but Gonzalez is stifling him. They are stood up. Leg kick from Cruz. Front kick from Cruz is followed by a takedown. He immediately takes his back. Gonzalez moves him to half guard. Gonzalez pushes him to full guard as he tries to pass. Cruz uses an omoplata attempt to sweep and he lands in side control. Gonzalez moves him back to half guard. In an attempt to get full mount, he ends up on Gonzalez' back just as the round ends.
SCORECARD: Cruz 10-9
ROUND TWO: Both men come out swinging. Gonzalez throws a superman punch and stuffs a takedown. Cruz keeps up the pressure and pushes Gonzalez into the fence. Leg kick from Cruz. Cruz shoots, Gonzalez sprawls and Cruz takes his back. Gonzalez stands up but Cruz knees him in the head. Cruz tries for a single leg. He goes chest-to-chest, still trying to force him down, and then he does. He gets a "scarf-hold armlock!" There's something you don't see every day.
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER – Adrian Cruz by submission (scarf-hold armlock) at 3:00 of round 2.
Bantamweight Bout: Josh Montoya (135.4) vs. Ed West (135.9)
ROUND ONE: West comes out jabbing. Leg kick from West. Montoya lands a leg kick. West kicks him back. Montoya with a hard right. They are trading lots of strikes here. Montoya catches a kick and jabs at Wests face. They trade kicks. Montoya catches another kick. Head kick from West is blocked. This has been a back and forth kick boxing affair. Montoya nearly stumbles from successive leg kicks. West is chopping away at Montoya's legs. Three successive leg kicks from West! West throws a flurry of kicks. West just misses with a spin kick. Montoya comes forward a combo.
SCORECARD: West 10-9
ROUND TWO: The fighters resume their back-and-forth affair. Body kick from West. West throws a series of rights and lefts. Montoya is looking for a KO punch but West proves to be elusive. Jumping knee from West. Head kick from West. Big right from Montoya. Montoya comes forward but can't connect. West lands a shot to the body. NICE!!! Ed West lands a straight head kick KO! See that Dantas, West is coming for ya!
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER – Ed West by KTFO at 2:51 of round 2.
Featheweight Bout: Andres Quintana (145.5) vs. Russell Wilson (145)
ROUND ONE: They trade in the center of the cage and Wilson goes for a takedown. Quintana gets right back to his feet. Wilson throws some kicks to the body and takes Quintana down again. Quintana gets back to his feet but Wilson stays with him. Wilson stays on the leg, softening him up with knees. Wilson gets a trip but Quintana is back up again. Quintana has spent the majority of this round fighting Wilson off of his leg. Quintana tries for an inverted triangle. Wilson drives through and Quintana loses the position. Quintana tries for an armbar, Wilson waves off the ref like it ain't no thang. Wilson escapes and tries for a guillotine but runs out of time.
SCORECARD: Wilson 10-9
ROUND TWO: Wilson comes out swinging. Quintana with a leg kick. Wilson shoots for a takedown. Wilson tries for a kimura. He can't get it so he let's it go and they stand up. Qintana lands a combo of punches. Body kick from Quintana. Wilson misses a superman punch. Quintana lands a step-in knee as Wilson shoots for a takedown. Wilson completes it. Wilson looks for mount against the cage. Quintana gets back to his feet. Wilson works on the single leg again. Back elbow from Wilson. As Wilson goes for the single leg he alternates with punching Quintana. Quintana is focused on blocking the takedown so he's leaving his face unprotected. Quintana goes goes down but looks for a heel hook.
SCORECARD: Wilson 10-9
ROUND THREE: Wilson comes forward but Quintana lights him up! Quintana smashes his face with 3 knees and down goes Wilson! Quintana finishes him off with strikes. The ref appears to have stopped the fight due to Wilson's face gushing blood. I'm pretty sure his nose is broken.
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER – Andres Quintana by TKO at 0:32 of round 3.
Welterweight Bout: Blas Avena (170.7) vs. Lenny Lovato (170.9)
ROUND ONE: Lovato comes straight at Avena. He counters with a hook and barely misses Lovato. Both men are doing a lot of hard swinging but neither are connecting. Avena starts to have some success with leg kicks. Lovato comes forward with his hands down and Avena blasts him with a counter right! He pounces and that's all folks!
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER – Blas Avena by TKO at 1:40 of round 1.
I would like to point out at this time that we're nearly done with the prelims and we've less than an hour until the Spike proper broadcast. That's my kind of prelim!
Women's Bantamweight Bout: Holly Holm (135.2) vs. Katie Merrill (135.4)
ROUND ONE: Merrill throws a leg kick. Holm circles for a bit. Merrill moves in a ties up Holm. Holm turns her into the fence. Merrill knees her to the body. Merrill switches position. Holm throws a series of knees and then backs away. Body kick from Holm. Holm uses her jab and continues to circle. Merrill lands a hard shot. Merrill tries for a single leg. Holm defends and backs away. Body kick from Merrill. Holm lands a hard jab. Liver kick stuns Merrill. They tie up but Holm backs out again. Holm comes forward another hard liver kick. Another kick and Merrill catches her leg, trying to get her to the ground. She does but the round ends.
SCORECARD: Holm 10-9
ROUND TWO: Holm starts with a one-two. Merrill is very tentative to start round 2. Spinning back kick from Holm misses the mark. Holm lands a kick and Merrill dives for a takedown. Holm throws a kick, Merrill tries to drag her down, which allows Holm to defend and land a series of strikes. Holm kicks to the body again and Merrill takes her down. Holm stands up and the same thing happens again. Holm gets back up. Holm lands a right to the body and Merrill doubles over in pain. Holm knocks her down with a straight left and we're done! Next up Rousey vs Holm - 10 Million BUYS!
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER – Holly Holm by TKO at 3:02 of round 2.
MAIN CARD
Lightweight Tournament Semifinals Bout: Jason Fischer (155.6) vs. David Rickels (155.7)
ROUND ONE: Rickels comes out aggressively to start. Fischer circles away. Leg kick from Rickels. Spinning back fist catches Fischer. Rickels lands a right hand followed by a jump knee. Fischer goes to the body but is countered. Leg kick stumbles Fischer. Fischer hits back with a hard right hand. They tie up and Fischer lands a knee. Rickels lands a knee to the body. Fischer clubs Rickels with a right hand. Counter right from Fischer finds the mark. They exchange leg kicks. They tie up against the fence. Rickels lands a big uppercut. Fischer backs away. Another uppercut from Rickels. Fischer ties up Rickels to end the round.
SCORECARD: Rickels 10-9
ROUND TWO: The action picks right up as the fighters go at each other hard. They clinch up and careen into the fence. Fischer lands a right as he breaks away. Knee to the belly by Rickels. They go to the ground and Rickels is in full guard. Fischer goes for an armbar but Rickels is putting a lot of weight on him. Rickels pulls out of it. Fischer reverses position. Rickels throws a lot of punches and slaps from the bottom. Rickels gets back to his feet. Rickels lands a short hook. Fischer tries for a single leg.
SCORECARD: Rickels 10-9
ROUND THREE: The fighters exchange leg kicks. Rickels is cut pretty bad over the eye. They grapple on the ground and Rickels hammers Fischer about the face. Rickels pushes Fischer on to his back. He dives on Fischer landing a bomb. Rickels goes for a kimura. Fischer defends and gets out of it. Rickels hammers on Fischer's face. Rickels gets to full mount. Rickels pounds on Fischer! Fischer has nothing for Rickels at this point. Rickels tries for a rear-naked choke. He can't get it so Rickels resumes pummeling Fischer. Rickels tries for an armbar. Fischer ends the round in top position but is out of time.
SCORECARD: Rickels 10-8
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER – David Rickels by unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27X2).
Lightweight Tournament Semifinals Bout: Saad Awad (155.5) vs. Will Brooks (156)
ROUND ONE: Leg kick from Brooks. The tie up in the center of the cage. Awad lays in a ton of uppercuts and Brooks runs for i! Brooks tries to get away from Awad but he just continues to smash him until Herzog finally stops this fight. Yikes. Lots of luck David Rickels.
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER – Saad Awad by KO at 0:43 of round 1.
Light Heavyweight Championship Bout: Christian M'Pumbu (201.6) vs. Attila Vegh (204)
ROUND ONE: Leg kick from M'Pumbu starts us off. He hits another won. Vegh launches an overhand right. After a lot of circling and parrying, Vegh smashes M'Pumbu who is knocked on his duff. Vegh pounces and M'Pumbu grabs for a leg. Vegh ends up on his back. Vegh eats a big punch standing up. M'Pumbu goes for a standing guillotine. Vegh tries to punch his way out but M'Pumbu lets him go. Leg kick from M'Pumbu and then more circling/parrying. Vegh misses with an overhand right, clinches up and throws M'Pumbu. M'Pumbu transitions to the back as the round ends.
SCORECARD: Vegh 10-9
ROUND TWO: Front kick from M'Pumbu. Vegh comes forward, smacks M'Pumbu who runs backwards away from him. Front kick from M'Pumbu. Vegh rushs forward and clinches up. More leg kicks from the champion. Another front kick from M'Pumbu. Vegh goes on the attack again and M'Pumbu tries for a takedown. M'Pumbu shoots again and Vegh sprawls. Vegh works from guard. Vegh tries for a knee bar. M'Pumbu defends and ends up in full mount. They roll and now M'Pumbu takes his back.
SCORECARD: Vegh 10-9
ROUND THREE: Leg kick from M'Pumbu. M'Pumbu circles away. Vegh knocks him down. Vegh works from full guard. M'Pumbu tries for a triangle/arm bar submission. M'Pumbu hammers at him from the bottom. Vegh gets to full mount. M'Pumbu pushes him back to half guard. Vegh cuts M'Pumbu with a sharp elbow. Vegh smashes him with hammerfists to end the round.
SCORECARD: Vegh 10-9
ROUND FOUR: M'Pumbu starts with a kick. Vegh throws an overhand and M'Pumbu appears to pull guard. Vegh elbows M'Pumbu. M'Pumbu stands up. Vegh lands a counter right. Vegh lands another M'Pumbu is on the run. Vegh lands another and follows with a big knee. M'Pumbu shoots for a desperation double leg. Vegh hammers on his ribs and face. The ref breaks them up. M'Pumbu attempts a takedown but it is blocked.
SCORECARD: Vegh 10-9
ROUND FIVE: Left hand from M'Pumbu. Vegh lands a knee and then clinches up. Right hand from Vegh. Body kick from M'Pumbu. Big right from Vegh. Leg kick from M'Pumbu. They both start to trade a little more. M'Pumbu has eaten a lot of shots flush to the chin but remains on his feet. Vegh comes forward and delivers a knee to the face. They clinch against the cage. The ref breaks them up. Less than 30 seconds are on the clock. Vegh circles and runs out the clock.
SCORECARD: Vegh 10-9
OFFICIAL RESULT: WINNER AND NEW CHAMPION – Attila Vegh by unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46, 50-45).
