Bellator headed to the desert last night (April 16, 2011) to host its forty-first event. The promotion made its first ever stop at the Cocopah Resort and Casino in Yuma, Arizona.
Headlining the event, which aired live on MTV2, was a 137-pound catchweight bout between current Featherweight Champion Joe Warren and WEC veteran Marcos Galvao.
Another Bellator champion competed in non-title action as bantamweight belt-holder Zach "Fun Size" Makovsky battled undefeated veteran Chad Robichaux.
The Bellator season four featherweight semifinals were also going down on the main card. Wilson Reis, Patricio Freire, Daniel Straus and Kenny Foster all duked it out for an opportunity to advance to the finals and earn a shot at Warren's title.
How did everyone fare?
Complete Bellator 41 results and play-by-play after the jump.
Main Card (Televised):
137 lbs.: Joe Warren def. Marcos Galvao via unanimous decision
145 lbs.: Patricio Freire def. Wilson Reis via knockout at 3:29 Round 3
135 lbs.: Zach Makovsky def. Chad Robichaux via TKO at 2:02 Round 3
145 lbs.: Daniel Straus def. Kenny Foster via submission (guillotine choke) at 3:48 Round 3Preliminary Card (May not be broadcast):
135 lbs.: Anthony Birchak def. Tyler Bialecki via submission (brabo choke) at 4:06 Round 1
145 lbs.: Nick Piedmont def. Michael Parker via split decision
185 lbs.: Brendan Tierney def. Dano Moore via submission (armbar) at 0:49 Round 1
265 lbs.: Carlos Flores def. Rudy Aguilar via TKO at 1:19 Round 1
Hemmi here!
137 lbs: Joe Warren (6-1) vs. Marcos Galvao (9-3-1)
Round one: Warren comes out striking and clinches with Galvao. Galvao takes him down and lands in back mount throwing big punches but Warren gets back to his feet and takes top position on the ground against the Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ) black belt. Galvao sweeps and stands up, clinching with Warren. Warren throws some nice inside knees and attempts a throw but Galvao stays with him and takes Warren down again. Warren again stands up and attempts a half-hearted guillotine choke and fails with a spinning throw attempt. Both men clinch again and Warren throws some solid knees but Galvao again takes him down but Warren again pops back up. Warren gets in deep with a clinch but Galvao spins away. Warren lunges in with some big power strikes but doesn't land anything too cleanly. Warren slams Galvao to the canvas in the final 10 seconds. Very close round, could have gone either way but I'll go 10-9 Galvao for his superior position and takedown advantage.
Round two: Galvao opens with two big flying knees that connect but Warren walks through them. Warren is being very aggressive and kinda sloppy with his striking and Galvao lands some solid strikes. Warren backs away and throws a knee of his own followed by a head kick. Both men crash into each other with strikes and Galvao throws another knee that connects. Warren clinches but can't score anything big. Solid body punch from Warren and he clinches again, pushing Galvao into the fence. Galvao brushes him to the side and Warren wades in with big strikes. Another throw attempt from Warren fails. Galvao throws a solid knee that lands again. Warren's pace is slowing and Galvao is countering his aggression from the outside. Another big knee from Galvao and Warren clinches and finally scores a big takedown. Galvao is chilling in full guard with his hands behind his head and Warren doesn't do much damage from top position as the round concludes. 10-9 Galvao. We could be in for our first "super-fight" upset.
Round three: Warren and Galvao trade strikes and Warren shoots for a double leg and scores a takedown. Galvao does a fantastic job of staying active from bottom and gets back to his feet. Warren is relentless with his takedown attempts and he lands a solid takedown again. Galvao using the butterfly guard and he's keeping Warren off balance. Warren opens up with some ground and pound from full guard but he needs to pass if he wants to do enough damage to finish this fight. Warren working some elbows from deep inside Galvao's guard. Warren turns up the heat in the last 10 seconds of the round but he can't get a finish as the final bell sounds. 10-9 Warren
WOW! Warren wins a unanimous decision. One judge even scored it 30-27. That's sad. Not even a split decision. Galvao deserved better than that. This decision is likely going to undo all the great performances in the first three fights.
Final result: Joe Warren defeats Marcos Galvao via unanimous decision
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145 lbs: Patricio Freire (15-1) vs. Wilson Reis (12-2)
Round one: Both men test the waters early but land nothing significant in the first minute. Reis clinches along the fence but "Pitbull" circles to the outside. Pitbull throws a big overhand rights but Reis ducks it and is looking for a takedown. Freire stuffs it and both men clinch. Pitbull throws a big right head kick that connects but Reis remains composed and pushes Freire into the fence. Pitbull circles out and scores the first takedown of the fight, dropping Reis against the fence but Wilson pops back to his feet. Pitbull lands a solid knee as Reis is on his way up. Reis charges in and eats a big left hand from Freire. Reis throws some nice short inside punches right before the final bell. 10-9 Pitbull
Round two: Reis lands a nice leg kick and follows it up with a body kick. Freire throws a short inside knee but Reis avoids it and Reis responds with a jumping knee. Pitbull connects with a short 1-2 combination but Reis goes for a takedown attempt to retaliate. Pitbull explodes forward and jumps on Reis' back standing. Reis throws Pitbull over his head but Freire responds with a triangle attempt. Reis slips out and lands in Freire's guard. Definitely a stalemate in terms of submission skills here. Freire wall-walks to his feet and Reis shoots for a takedown. Freire attempts a jump guard guillotine but can't lock it in and pops back to his feet. Reis remains in the clinch and pushes Pitbull into the fence trying to muscle him around. Freire circles out but Reis pushes him into teh center of the cage and throws several knees to the thigh. Jump knee attempt from Pitbull but Reis avoids it and finishes the round pushing him into the fence. 10-9 Reis
Round three: Reis clinches early looking to get inside and Freire lands a solid left hand. Very nice 1-2 combination from Freire and he follows it up with a knee. Reis is trying to work his stand up but he's a little too wild and he's ducking his head when he throws. Not very accurate. Pitbull is countering well now. Double body kicks from Reis but both are blocked. Pitbull lands a solid right hand and Reis is stunned. Freire pushes forward and unloads with a tremendous flurry. Reis goes down! Reis turtles and works his way back to his feet but Freire turns up the heat and just hammers Wilson Reis with a plethora of power punches that connect on Reis' chin and send Reis to the canvas. Patricio "Pitbull" Freire advances to the finals again with a highlight reel stoppage!
Final result: Patricio Freire defeats Wilson Reis via knockout at 3:29 of Round 3
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135 lbs: Zach Makovsky (12-2) vs. Chad Robichaux (11-0)
Round one: Makovsky closes the distance and Robichaux latches on a guillotine immediately. Makovsky passes to side control and looks relaxed. Robichaux can't finish the choke from this position and he's just wasting energy. Robichaux finally lets the submission hold go and retains full butterfly guard. Makovsky lands a nice left hand from above and Robichaux explodes to his feet. Robichaux spins forward throwing big flashy strikes but they hit nothing. Makovsky goes for a toss and both men flip on the ground and get back to their feet quickly. Robichaux clinches and throws a head kick as he exits. Makovsky lands a nice lunging left hand and scores another which allows him to take Robichaux down. Makovsky effortlessly passes to side control but Robichaux uses a beautiful sweep and gets back to his feet. Makovsky shoots for a takedown and Robichaux finishes the first round holding him in a head lock. Very entertaining first round. 10-9 Makovsky
Round two: Makovsky opens with two head kick attempts that are blocked. "Fun Size" shoots and takes Robichaux down,l immediately passes to side control. Very nice strategy by Makovsky. Makovsky passes to mount, takes Robichaux's back and locks in a rear naked choke. It's tight but somehow Robichaux slips out. Very flashy spinning pass attempt by Makovsky from side control but Robichaux stays with him. Makovsky drops down with a big left hand and passes Robichaux's guard like butter. Makovsky is wearing Robichaux down here. Robichaux tries to get to his feet but Makovsky rides him immediately back down. Makovsky looking for an arm triangle and Robichaux is using the "telephone" defense and retains half guard to escape. Robichaux explodes to his feet and pushes forward very aggressively with a sense of urgency. Makovsky uses the aggression agains thim and picks Robichaux up and slams him to the canvas. Robichaux throws an illegal upkick but it doesn't faze "Fun Size" and the round finishes with the champ on top. 10-9 Makovsky
Round three: Robichaux opens with a side kick and spinning back fist and pushes forward aggressively. He's leaving himself very open and Makovsky takes him down easily when he's off balance. Makovsky passes to mount quickly and Robichaux gives up his back. Makovsky is dropping huge ground and pound to the side of Robichaux's head and Robichaux is not fighting back and the ref stops the fight. Damn! Very impressive showing by Zach Makovsky.
Final result: Zach Makovsky defeats Chad Robichaux via TKO at 2:02 in Round 3
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145 lbs: Daniel Straus (15-3) vs. Kenny Foster (9-2)
Round one: They're fighting outside, this is pretty awesome. Still daylight in Arizona. Foster aggressively pushes forwards with a flurry but Straus catches him and pins him against the fence. Straus arm-drags Foster to the ground and takes Foster's back standing when he gets to his feet. Foster escapes and both men reset. Foster clinches and throws a nice knee and an right inside hook. Foster follows it up by pushing Straus into the fence in the clinch. Both men trade some dirty boxing to the body and Straus circles away from trouble. Big body kick from Daniel Straus. Straus throws Foster but he immediately pops back to his feet. Daniel knees Foster as they separate from the clinch. Big flying knee from Straus! It stuns Foster and Straus takes him down along the fence. Straus finishes the last minute of the round on top dropping some ground and pound and it was enough to seal the round. 10-9 Straus.
Round two: After nearly a minute of posturing, Straus pushes forward and clinches Foster against the fence. Straus has a left underhook but Foster pushes him away and creates space. Big left haymaker misses for Foster. Foster aggressively letting loose with knees and uppercuts and may have tagged Straus but he doesn't seem fazed. Superman punch from Foster lands but Straus scores a beautiful takedown and he's got Foster in a front headlock against the cage. Foster grabs Straus' wrist and tries to stand but Straus muscles him back to the canvas. Foster quits trying to stand and pulls guard and Straus pounds his body and takes Foster's back as Foster rises to his feet. Straus tries to get fancy but Foster slips out the backdoor and escapes as both men reset. Straus connects with a left hand and takes Foster down right before the final bell. 10-9 Straus
Round three: Foster looking to land something big early because he needs a finish but he's only hitting air. Straus shoots for a takedown but gets stuffed. Both men clinch and Straus throws a solid knee and drops down for a takedown along the fence. Foster drops to his back, pulling guard, not the best decision. Foster's guard is wide open and Straus is very active from on top, dropping respectable ground and pound. Straus passes to half guard and drops some hammerfists to the body. Straus wraps up Foster's head looking for a guillotine choke and it looks really tight! Straus mounts and Foster is forced to tap out. Fantastic performance by Daniel Straus!
Final result: Daniel Straus defeats Kenny Foster via submission (guillotine choke) at 3:48 of Round 3
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