Bellator Fighting Championships 41
April 16, 2011

Cocopah Resort and Casino,
Yuma, Arizona, United States

Non Title Bout

Catchweight (137 lbs)
Bellator featherweight champion Joe Warren (7 – 1 – 0) won a contentious unanimous decision over Marcos Galvao (9 – 4 – 1).  Warren, who is the Bellator featherweight (145 lb) champion, moves from [#6FW] to [#4BW].  Warren is now on a 5 fight win streak.  Consensus was that Galvao won rounds 1 and 2, while Warren won round 3.  Many people are calling the decision for Warren a “robbery.”  Galvao, who was on a 3 fight win streak prior to this loss, moves from [#108FW] to [#51BW].  Both men intend to fight in the upcoming bantamweight tournament coming up in September.

Bellator Featherweight Tournament Semifinal

Featherweight (145 lbs)
Patricio Freire (16 – 1 – 0) defeated Wilson Reis (12 – 3 – 0) by brutal KO due to punches at 3:29 of round 3.  The bout was relatively even up to the end, with Freire using his reach and counter striking game to edge out a slight advantage.  Freire found the chinks in Reis’s armor, and finally capitalized on them in the third round, overwhelming his opponent of shorter stature.   Freire jumps 10 spots up from [#21] to [#11]. His one loss comes to current featherweight champ [#4BW] Joe Warren.  He will face [#15] Daniel Straus in the finals of the season 4 featherweight tournament.  Reis drops 9 spots from [#22] to [#31].  2 out of 3 of Reis’s losses, who had never been stopped prior to this loss, come at the hands of Freire.

Non Title Bout

Bantamweight (135 lbs)
Bellator bantamweight champion Zach Makovsky (13 – 2 – 0) defeated Chad Robichaux (11 – 1 – 0) by TKO due to punches at 2:02 of round 3.  Makovsky used his superior wrestling to stifle the unorthodox offense of Robichaux.  A thrilling affair with many scrambles, Robichaux put forth a valiant attempt in his loss to the 135 lb champ.  Makovsky, who is on a 7 fight win streak, falls 1 spot from [#8] to [#9].   Robichaux, who was ranked at  [#37Fly], fell off the rankings.  Robichaux, an 11 year veteran of the sport, has won 10 of his 11 victories by submission.

Bellator Featherweight Tournament Semifinal

Featherweight (145 lbs)
Daniel Straus (16 – 3 – 0) defeated Kenny Foster (9 – 3 – 0) by submission due to guillotine choke at 3:48 of the 3^rd round.  Straus, who is on a 12 fight win streak, moves up 2 spots from [#17] to [#15].  Straus used throws and superior clinchwork to vex Foster.    Straus will meet [#11] Patricio Freire in the finals of the season 4 featherweight tournament.   Foster, who dropped 3 spots from [#109] to [#112], is 8-2 in his last 10.

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These are the results from this past Saturday and how they affected the fighter’s rankings.

Ringside MMA 10 – Cote vs. Starnes
April 9, 2011
Bell Centre,
Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Middleweight (185 lbs)

UFC veteran Patrick Cote (14 – 7 – 0) defeated fellow UFC vet Kalib Starnes (12 – 6 – 1) by unanimous decision.  Cote, who was on a 3 fight losing streak inside the UFC, jumps 34 spots from [#95] to [#61].  Starnes, who is 3-2 in his last 5, drops 22 spots from [#73] to [#95].

Welterweight (170 lbs)

TUF veteran Seth Baczynski (13 – 6 – 0) defeated Alex Garcia (6 – 1 – 0) by TKO due to punches at 2:44 of the 2^nd round.  Baczynski, who is on a 2 fight win streak (both by stoppages due to strikes), bounds 58 spots up from [#186] to [#128].  Garcia, who rattled off 6 stoppage wins in a row prior to this loss, plummets 151 spots from [#228] to [#379].

Featherweight (145 lbs)

Michael Gagnon (7 – 1 – 0) defeated Rejean Groulx (5 – 1 – 0) by TKO due a slam at 3:47 of the 3^rd round.  Gagnon, who is on a 5 fight win streak (all by stoppage), jumps 43 spots up from [#115] to [#72].  Groulx, who has finished 4 of his 5 victories by stoppage, plummets 109 spots from [#136] to [#245].

Light Heavyweight (205 lbs)

Roger Hollett (12 – 3 – 0) defeated Martin Desilets (11 – 3 – 0) by TKO due to punches at 1:39 of the 2^nd round.  Hollett, who is on a 4 fight win streak, jumps 55 spots up from [#102] to [#47].  Desilets, who was on a 4 fight win streak, drops 25 spots from [#43] to [#68].

Lightweight (155 lbs)

Iraj Hadin (6 – 3 – 0) won a unanimous decision over Derek Gauthier (6 – 3 – 0).  Hadin, who is 3-2 in his last 5, jumps 67 spots from [#219] to [#286].  Gauthier, who is 2-3 in his last 5, remains unranked.

Lightweight (155 lbs)

Bellator veteran Mike Ricci (6 – 1 – 0) defeated Jesse Ronson (5 – 2 – 0) by TKO due to punches at 3:12 of round 1.  Ricci, who rebounded from a loss to Bellator lightweight tournament champion [#44] Pat Curran, jumps 51 spots from [#295] to [#244].  Ronson, who is 1-2 in his last 3, remains unranked.

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In Episode 3, [#182 WW] Justin Edwards joined Team Dos Santos as an alternate, replacing Keon Caldwell.

In the third opening round fight, Team Dos Santos’ Ryan McGillivray defeated Team Lesnar’s Len Bentley by a majority decision (20-18, 20-18, 19-19), advancing to the quarter-finals.

The current win tally is 2 Team Dos Santos, 1 Team Lesnar.

Here’s who remains:

[#113] Anthony Ferguson

[#182] Justin Edwards
episode 3: alternate taking place of Keon Caldwell

[#179] Myles Jury
episode 1: forced to withdraw due to an injury

[#200] Ryan McGillivray
episode 3: moved on to quarter-finals with a majority decision win (20-18, 20-18, 19-19) over Len Bentley

[#247 LW] Ramsey Nijem

[#289] Chuck O’Neil
episode 1: alternate taking place of Miles Jury

[#321] Charlie Rader

[#364] Shamar Bailey
episode 1: moved on to quarter-finals with a 20-18 unanimous decision win over Nordin Asrih

[#387] Clay Harvison

[#441] Chris Cope
episode 2: moved on to quarter-finals with a 29-28 overtime unanimous decision win over Javier Torres

[#475] Len Bentley
episode 3:lost a majority decision win (20-18, 20-18, 19-19) to Ryan McGillivray

[NR] Nordin Asrih
episode 1: lost a unanimous decision (20-18) to Shamar Bailey

[NR] Michael Bowman

[NR] Keon Caldwell
episode 2: withdrew from competition

[NR] Zachary Davis

[NR] Javier Torres
episode 2: lost an overtime unanimous decision (29-28) to Chris Cope

Maximum Fighting Championships 29 – Conquer
April 8, 2011
The Colosseum at Caesars Windsor,
Windsor, Ontario, Canada

MFC Welterweight Championship

Welterweight (170 lbs)

Douglas Lima (18 – 4 – 0) blasted UFC veteran Terry Martin (21 – 9 – 0) and won by TKO due to punches at just 1:14 into round 1.  Douglas Lima moves up 15 spots from [#51] to [#36].  Lima is on a 6 fight win streak- winning 4 by stoppage, 3 by submission.  Martin drops 37 spots from [#69] to [#106].  Martin is 3-2 in his last 5.

MFC Light Heavyweight Championship

Light Heavyweight (205 lbs)

Ryan Jimmo (15 – 1 – 0) won a unanimous decision over Strikeforce vet Zak Cummings (13 – 3 – 0).  Jimmo, who is undefeated in 15 bouts, stays ranked at [#22].  Cummings, who has won 3 of his last 5 all via stoppage, drops 2 spots from [#81] to [#83].  Cummings was an injury replacement for [#36] Emmanuel Newton.

Lightweight (155 lbs)

UFC veteran Marcus Davis (18 – 9 – 0) defeated Curtis Demarce (10 – 9 – 0) by split decision.  Davis, who stayed ranked at [#59], won his first fight after being cut from the UFC following a less than stellar 1-4 run.  Davis most recent loss was a KO due to a punch at the hands of to [#23] Jeremy Stephens.  Demarce jumps 33 spots up the rankings from [#266 ] to [#230].  Demarce is on a 2 fight losing streak, both by split decision.  Prior to the 2 losses, Demarce was on a 7 fight win streak.

Lightweight (155 lbs)

UFC veteran Hermes Franca (21 – 11 – 0) defeated Robert Washington (9 – 3 – 0) by KO due to a punch at 0:26 into the 2^nd round.  Franca, who was ranked at [#202WW], moves into the lightweight “Top 500” at [#166].  Franca is on a 2 fight win streak, stopping both of his opponents.  Washington, who remains unranked, has lost 3 of his last 5, 2 by KO.

Welterweight (170 lbs)

UFC veteran Pete Spratt (22 – 19 – 0) defeated Demi Deeds (15 – 9 – 0) via submission due to an armbar at 4:19 of round 2.  Spratt, who has lost 3 of his last 5 all to chokes, bounds 51 spots forward from [#213] to [#162], gaining his 9th career victory via submission.  Deeds, who was ranked at [#351LW] moves into the welterweight “Top 500”at [#459].  Deeds is on a 3 fight slide, losing all 3 by submission.

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Bellator Fighting Championships 40
April 9, 2011

First Council Casino,
Newkirk, Oklahoma, United States

Non Title Bout

Welterweight (170 lbs)
Ben Askren (8 – 0 – 0) won a unanimous decision over Nick Thompson (38 – 14 – 1).  Askren remains ranked at [#21] with this victory.  Askren showed true positional dominance on the ground, thoroughly flustering Thompson in all 3 rounds.  Nick Thompson drops 1 spot from [#128] to [#129].  Thompson, who is on a 4 fight losing streak and has not won since February of 2009, announced his intention to retire following the bout.

Bellator Welterweight Tournament Semifinal

Welterweight (170 lbs)
Jay Hieron (21 – 4 – 0) defeated Brent Weedman (18 – 6 – 1) via unanimous decision.  Weedman was the aggressor for much of the bout, but the judges felt Hieron’s boxing earned him the victory.  Hieron breaks into the top ten, jumping 5 spots from [#15] to [#10].  He will face [#47] Rick Hawn in the finals of the season 4 welterweight tournament.  Now Hieron is 11 spots higher than Bellator welterweight champ Ben Askren.  Brent Weedman drops 2 spots from [#28] to [#30].  Prior to this loss, Weedman was on a 3 year, 10 fight win streak.

Bellator Lightweight Tournament Semifinal

Lightweight (155 lbs)
Michael Chandler (7 – 0 – 0) won a unanimous decision over Lloyd Woodard (11 – 1 – 0)  Chandler used superior wrestling to control the taller Woodard throughout the fight.  Chandler, who bounds 109 spots forward from [#161] to [#52], advances to the finals to face [#51] Patricky Freire.  Chandler had stopped all his opponents prior to this bout.  Lloyd Woodard falls 20 spots from [#46] to [#66].  Woodard suffered defeat for the first time on Saturday night, but he has much to offer and should be back in the Bellator cage soon.

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Strikeforce – Diaz vs. Daley

April 9, 2011
Valley View Casino Center

San Diego, California, United States

Strikeforce Welterweight Championship

Welterweight (170 lbs)

Nick Diaz (25 – 7 – 0) extended his winning streak to 10 in his dazzling finish over Paul Daley (27 – 10 – 2) by TKO due to punches at 4:57 of the 1^st round.  Daley, who was just 3 seconds shy of being saved by the bell, protested the stoppage by “Big” John McCarthy.  However, Daley looked unsteady when he was helped up onto his stool, leading one to believe that the stoppage may have been justified.  Diaz and Daley rocked each other numerous times throughout the truncated tussle, but the legendary chin of Diaz allowed him to recover and prevail.  Daley has never been stopped by strikes in his career prior to this loss.  With this win, Diaz moved up 2 spots, eking past [#5] B.J. Penn and [#4] Jon Fitch to rest at [#3].  Diaz has more or less beaten everyone in the Strikeforce welterweight division except for unbeaten [#35] Tyron Woodley.  Paul Daley was on a 4 fight win streak prior to this loss, and is 8-2 in his last 10.  After suffering his first TKO loss due to strikes, he will want to come back with an emphatic victory to prove he is still a top tier welterweight.  A bout with fellow loser to Nick Diaz, [#32] Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos would most likely produce fireworks on the feet, propelling the victor back into title contention.  Daley drops 8 spots from [#8] to {#14].

Strikeforce Lightweight Championship

Lightweight (155 lbs)

Gilbert Melendez (19 – 2 – 0) brutalized Tatsuya Kawajiri  (27 – 7 – 0) and won via TKO due to elbows at 3:14 of the 1^st round.  Melendez truly made a statement by dominating fellow top ten competitor Kawajiri in such shocking fashion.  Ironically it was his elbows, which are newly allowed in Strikeforce, that forced the stoppage.   Melendez, like his teammate Nick Diaz, does not have a paucity of talent available for him to face.  A rematch with [#4] Shinya Aoki or a bout against [#28] Justin Wilcox could prove interesting. The cross promotional dream match between Melendez and Bellator lightweight champ [#5] Eddie Alvarez would always be appealing.  Melendez moves 2 spots up the ranks from [#4] to [#2], usurping [#3] Gray Maynard’s previous spot.  Melendez is on a 5 fight win streak.  Tatsuya Kawajiri has suffered two hard 1^st round defeats in the last year, and these have both shown sizeable chinks in his armor.  Kawajiri did not impress in his Stateside debut, and should look for bouts with [#13] Jorge Masvidal or [#50] Pat Healy.  Kawajiri drops 2 spots from [#9] to [#11].

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