Bellator 111 results recap for 'Dantas vs Leone' from Thackerville, Oklahoma, on Spike TV

Bellator MMA continued its tenth season earlier tonight (Fri., March 7, 2014) with "Dantas vs. Leone" live from the WinStar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma.

The main event saw Bellator bantamweight champion Eduardo Dantas defend his title against Anthony Leone thanks to a second-round rear naked choke submission. Dantas set the submission up by an absolutely beautiful transition from a standing position into back mount. The win marks Dantas' second successful defense of the Bellator 135-pound strap since capturing it from Zach Makovsky at Bellator 65.

Dantas will next defend his title against season nine tournament winner, and former Bellator featherweight champion, Joe Warren.

In the first bout of the televised portion of tonight's card, former Bellator 265-pound champion Alexander Volkov defeated Mark Holata to advance to the quarterfinal round of the season 10 heavyweight tournament. The Russian made short work of Holata, dropping him with a series of punches during a takedown attempt. From there Volkov quickly pounded the American out on the mat for a first round technical knockout victory.

Elsewhere in the heavyweight tournament bracket, a battle between two former pro kickboxers ended by way of submission when Mighty Mo submitted Peter Graham with a head and arm choke in the third round. The win marks the 43-year-old Mo's second consecutive submission victory inside the Bellator cage.

Former UFC fighter Lavar Johnson picked up his first Bellator win with an opening round technical knockout victory over Ryan Martinez. The stoppage came in the last minute of a round that saw Johnson spend a few minutes on his back absorbing ground-and-pound strikes. With the win, Johnson advanced to the quarterfinal round of the 265-pound tournament.

On the unaired preliminary portion of the evening, Blagoi Ivanov defeated Rich Hale via unanimous decision to move on to the next round of the heavyweight tournament. Bellator returns to Spike TV next Friday (March 14, 2014) featuring a rematch between recently crowned featherweight champion Daniel Strauss and former champ Pat Curran.

For complete Bellator 111 results and live play-by-play click here.