Bellator 149 recap
By Joe Billi
3/1/2016, 7:15 a.m.
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It’s been over a week since Bellator 149, the hearts have been restarted and the complaints filed. But this card that featured names such as Guillard, Shamrock, and Gracie, left an empty feeling in the stomachs of MMA fans that looked forward to this night of nostalgia.
In recent years, Bellator has made some solid moves when it came to bringing in well-known talent. They acquired Cheick Kongo, Tito Ortiz, Ken Shamrock, Royce Gracie, and Benson Henderson, to name a few. But the problem with these acquisitions is they are only a Band-Aide for a wound that needs stitches. As far as popularity, the UFC far surpasses Bellator, and although these fighters are names that UFC fans already know, it will probably only cause a temporary spike in ratings. The new Bellator fighters all have one thing in common; the time in winding down, some should have hung the gloves up years ago. That statement comes from a night of fights that were, for lack of a more accurate word, mediocre.
Daniel Pineda Vs. Emmanuel Sanchez
Let’s start with the first fight of the main card, Pineda versus Sanchez. In the beginning, Pineda came out of the corner explosive and looking to take the fight to the ground. He showed excellent take down skills and exposed Sanchez’s lack of take down defense. Things soon took a turn when Pineda found that he was too worn out to take the fight to the ground anymore, and this is where Sanchez showed off his superior striking ability that continued till the final bell. At the end of the bout Sanchez found himself the victor by split decision.
Linton Vassell Vs. Emanuel Newton
Similar to their last fight, that ended in a fifth round submission by Newton, Linton Vassell proved to the fight community that he is an outstanding grappler and his fists from the top are lethal. Vassell would make it a point to keep the fight on the ground mostly because overall dominance and desperate groin strikes by Newton that came while the fight was standing. Newton proved that Vassell was too much for him, leading to an easy win for Vassell by unanimous decision.
Derek Campos Vs. Melvin Guillard
Melvin Guillard is a well-known name for any fans of the UFC, so to see him fighting in Bellator really gives you a perspective on where his career has gone. Looking at a list of Guillard’s 52-fight career, you can see the sting of loses in his last 10 fights and they don’t end there. That being said, this fight said a lot about Campos. He is the only person other than “Cowboy” Cerrone to knockout Guillard in his 52-fight career. This was done by letting Melvin tire himself out with wild offense while allowing Campos to wait for the perfect time to counter the already depleted Guillard. Campos would use an exceptional kickboxing performance to bring this fight to a close in the second round by knock out.
Dada 5000 Vs. Kimbo Slice
This fight was something special. Two men with clubs for arms wore themselves out swinging, until one was lucky enough connect, and the other one died (temporarily). Kimbo connected with a slow motion hook that caused Dada 5000 to collapse and his heart to stop beating. Dada’s heart was restarted and he spent seven days in a Houston hospital, only being released a few days ago. This medical issue couldn’t have anything to do with the fact that even though Dada lost over 30 pounds for the fight he still looked wildly unhealthy for a professional fighter. Fat people have heart attacks sometimes, it’s science.
Ken Shamrock Vs. Royce Gracie
Much like their last two fights, this once also ended with Ken Shamrock bitching. Looking old and overly juiced, Shamrock managed to fall victim to Gracie’s clinch where he was hit with a lot of knees and a groin strike. Shamrock’s delayed, almost flop like, reaction to the strike, lead to the referee to missing the strike and a ground and pound finish for Gracie.
When asked about the controversial fight, Gracie stated that those moves were allowed back when he was fighting, whether the strike was intentional or not is still ambiguous. Shamrock has recently filed a complaint with Bellator about the fight, demanding the bout is declared a “no contest” and a rematch is scheduled. But honestly, for the sake of the sport and the health of these two fight legends, I would like to see this contest put to rest, no matter how much Ken Shamrock complains.
Bellator has made some moves in the right direction recently, but should really be looking to use these established fighters to generate more money from events and persuade young talent that may have went to the UFC. Overall, it was an eye opening night for most MMA fans. It showed the world that the fighters we grew up with are slowly fading out and that despite the familiar faces; Bellator still has a long way to go.