Bellator 122: "Koreshkov vs. McDonough" takes place TONIGHT (Fri., July 25, 2014) from inside Pechanga Resort & Casino in Temecula, California, and the event marks the dawn of a new era.
Scott Coker, former Strikeforce boss, has been put in charge of the promotion after Bjorn Rebney was let go a few weeks back. The second event of the organization's "2014 Summer Series" will be the first event under Coker's tenure.
Former welterweight title challenger Andrey Koreshkov looks for a second crack at the title, as he squares off against Adam McDonough in the season 10 welterweight tournament final. The co-main event features Brett Cooper vs. Brandon Halsey in the middleweight tournament final, as both men will battle for a chance to challenge champion Alexander Shlemenko at a later date.
Also on the card, Phil Baroni faces Karo Parisyan in a scrap featuring former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) stars, and Liam McGeary takes on Egidijus Valavicius in a light heavyweight tournament semi-final bout.
We'll be here all night long to bring you LIVE Bellator 122 results below, including quick results of the under card action on Spike.com (7 p.m. ET), as well as play-by-play updates of the Spike TV broadcast that starts at 9 p.m. ET.
Many of our readers check in before, during and after the televised warfare to share their thoughts on all the exciting action. Therefore, feel free to leave a comment (or 122) before you leave and chat with all the other Maniacs during the show -- it always turns out to be a great discussion.
Now, onto the action!
Check below for the latest Bellator 122 results (Note: This will go from the bottom up; therefore, scroll toward the bottom for the latest detailed round-by-round action).
BELLATOR 122 MAIN CARD RESULTS
Andrey Koreshkov def. Adam McDonough via unanimous decision (30-27x3)
Brandon Halsey def. Brett Cooper via submission (armbar) at 2:09 of R1
Karo Parisyan def. Phil Baroni via knockout (strikes) at 2:06 of R1
Liam McGeary def. Egidijus Valavicius via TKO (strikes) at 2:10 of R1SPIKE.COM "PRELIMS" UNDER CARD
Kelly Anundson def. Philipe Lins via TKO (injury) at 1:40 of R1
Bubba Jenkins def. Poppies Martinez via TKO (strikes) at 4:10 of R1
Fernando Gonzalez def. Karl Amoussou via unanimous decision (29-28x3)
Saad Awad def. Joe Duarte via TKO (strikes) at 1:18 of R1Dmitriy Sosnovskiy vs. Manny Lara
Sergio Rios def. Stephen Martinez via knockout (strikes) at 0:20 of R2Linton Vassell vs. Virgil Zwicker
Augusto Sakai def. Matt Frembling via TKO (strikes) at 3:32 of R3
BELLATOR 122 MAIN CARD PLAY-BY-PLAY
170 lbs.: Adam McDonough vs. Andrey Koreshkov
Round 1: They touch gloves. Koreshkov opens with a leg kick while backing up his opponent. McDonough circling near the cage, and Koreshkov goes high with a head kick that misses. Spinning back kick misses for Koreshkov, too. McDonough shoots for the single leg, and Koreshkov stuffs it, followed by a kick to the chest. McDonough misses a head kick. Two left hooks from Koreshkov get blocked. Spinning back kick misses for McDonough. Spinning back kick partially lands for Koreshkov, but McDonough blocks most of it while he's up against the cage. Jab by Koreshkov. Koreshkov comes forward, and lands an uppercut. Koreshkov sprawls to stuff a takedown, and lands another leg kick. Koreshkov lands a good left while McDonough backs up. McDonough does a Buffer 360 while thinking about throwing something. Body shot from Koreshkov, and McDonough ties him up against the cage. McDonough escapes but gets hit with a left hand. Flying knee hits McDonough's body, and he eats another left.
Round 2: McDonough shoots, but gets stuffed. Leg kicks land for Koreshkov. McDonough misses with a left hook. Koreshkov backing him up, and McDonough unsuccessfully shoots again. Leg kick from McDonough, and he misses an overhead left. Massive spinning back kick lands flush from Koreshkov, and McDonough goes flying. He tries to shoot for the takedown, and Koreshkov is tied up with him. Koreshkov moves him against the fence, and they separate after a few seconds of tussling. Head kick misses for McDonough. McDonough goes for another single, and moves to his back with Koreshkov holding his leg. Koreshkov joins him on the mat, and stands back up. McDonough turns on his stomach, and Koreshkov lands a few punches from the side. With McDonough back on his feet, he's looking predictable and uneasy. Left hook lands for Koreshkov, and he smothers him against the cage. Koreshkov ends up on top of a grounded McDonough, and the latter scrambles back to his feet. Uppercut lands for Koreshkov, and he's stalking McDonough. Spinning back kick lands to the body, and McDonough is trying to move out of the danger zone.
Round 3: Left lands for McDonough. Koreshkov barely lands a kick to the body. McDonough goes low with a kick. Koreshkov moves forward with a combo, and McDonough runs away. McDonough hasn't really landed a good punch the entire fight, and Koreshkov just has to worry about leg kicks. They keep coming from McDonough, and he gets hit to the body. Left hand rocks McDonough back. The American shoots, and Koreshkov sprawls. Koreshkov flirting with a guillotine, but McDonough explodes out and fails to hit his foe with something significant. Another single leg stuffed from Koreshkov, and Koreshkov laces him with a huge knee to the body. McDonough now on his back, with Koreshkov in full guard. "Big" John stands them up, and McDonough is slow to get up. More leg kicks from McDonough with no risks. He gets hit with a right hand, and goes for the takedown right at the end.
Final result: Andrey Koreshkov def. Adam McDonough via unanimous decision (30-27x3)
--end--
185 lbs.: Brandon Halsey vs. Brett Cooper
Round 1: They opt not to touch. Cooper is getting backed up a bit. Halsey pressing forward, and shoots. He scores the takedown, and starts to land some elbows in side control. Halsey transitions into an armbar, but Cooper has his legs up high and defending well. Halsey being patient, and rolls Cooper over. Halsey still doesn't have it fully locked in. Halsey waits, and locks it in, flattening the arm with Cooper on his knees. Halsey secures the tap and that is just bananas. It looked as if Halsey was setting up a kimura towards the end, and transitioned into an armbar. Crazy stuff.
Final result: Brandon Halsey def. Brett Cooper via submission (armbar) at 2:09 of R1
--end--
205 lbs.: Liam McGeary vs. Egidijus Valavicius
Round 1: As always, Valavicius' play-by-play name is "Vala." Anyhow, they touch gloves. Vala comes forward and eats a jab. McGeary with a leg kick, followed by one from Vala. McGeary lands a front kick. Vala clocks him with a right hand, and McGeary brings him towards the cage in a clinch. McGeary trying to bring his foe to the mat, but Vala is defending well. McGeary lands a few good knees, and Vala eats a big punch as they separate. Vala is already bloodied. Vala comes forward, but mistimes his strikes. Big uppercut from McGeary, and Vala is covering up against the cage. McGeary laying some big punches and knees on him, and Vala is doing nothing but covering up on his feet. After landing some monstrous power shots, referee Steve Davis steps in and McGeary gets his eighth finish. Pretty brutal stuff.
Final result: Liam McGeary def. Egidijus Valavicius via TKO (strikes) at 2:10 of R1
--end--
170 lbs.: Phil Baroni vs. Karo Parisyan
Round 1: They don't touch gloves. Leg kick from Karo. Karo misses with a right. Karo with another leg kick. Baroni comes forward, but doesn't land. Karo lands a left hand in a flurry. Karo lands another left hand as Baroni comes forward. Baroni misses with a shot to the body. Baroni gets hit with a right hand. Baroni can't find the range just yet, and is getting hit with counter shots. Another left hook from Karo, and he clinches with Baroni. Karo breaks away from Baroni on the fence. Jab clocks Baroni. Karo lands an uppercut, and Baroni is down. Karo working right hands, and Baroni is still down. Karo landing, and Baroni is taking all sorts of lefts and rights. Big John steps in, and it's over.
Final result: Karo Parisyan def. Phil Baroni via knockout (strikes) at 2:06 of R1
--end--