Bellator Milan | Bellator MMA
Bellator Milan: “Edwards vs. van Steenis” is set to air today (Sat., Sept. 26, 2020) from Allianz Cloud in Milan, Italy. The Middleweight division sees two contenders square off for supremacy as undefeated Fabian Edwards (9-0) faces Costello van Steenis (12-2).
Bellator Milan’s main card will air on Channel 5 (United Kingdom) and YouTube (United States) at 5 p.m. ET. MMAmania.com will deliver results for the full card and comprehensive play-by-play for the televised portion of Bellator Milan below.
Many readers check in before, during and after the fights to share their thoughts on all of the action. Feel free to leave a comment about the bouts and chat with all the other Maniacs during the show — it’s always a lot of fun!
BELLATOR MILAN QUICK RESULTS:
Fabian Edwards vs. Costello van Steenis — van Steenis SD 28-29, 28-27, 29-28.
Mike Shipman vs. Pietro Penini — Shipman UD 30-27 X3.
Will Fleury vs. Kent Kauppinen — Fleury UD 30-27 X3.
Nicolo Solli vs. George Hardwick — Hardwick UD 30-27 X3.
Ion Pascu vs. Stefano Paterno — Pascu UD 29-28, 30-27 X2.
Akonne Wanliss vs. Alfie Davis — Davis UD 30-26, 30-27 X2.
Daniele Scatizzi vs. Gavin Hughes — Scatizzi sub (guillotine) 1:41 R1.
Aidan Lee vs. Jeremy Petley — Lee KO 1:22 R2.
Frans Mlambo vs. Cory Tait — Mlambo UD 30-27, 29-28, 29-27.
Luke Trainer vs. Alex O’Toole — Trainer TKO 1:22 R1.
Richie Smullen vs. Harry Hardwick — Smullen UD 29-28 X3.
Chiara Penco vs. Aleksandra Toncheva Plamenova — Penco TKO 4:27 R2.
Danni Neilan vs. Claire Lopez — Neilan sub (RNC) 3:45 R2.
BELLATOR MILAN PLAY-BY-PLAY:
Fabian Edwards vs. Costello van Steenis
White/black trunks and blue gloves for 12-2 van Steenis. He does a forward roll into the cage as his music plays. Black trunks and red gloves for the undefeated 9-0 Edwards, singing along to Metro Boomin & 21 Savage’s “10 Freaky Girls.” Edwards has a 79.5” reach and van Steenis a 76” reach. van Steenis fights out of Rotterdam, Netherlands as “The Spaniard.” Edwards fights out of Birmingham, England as “The Assassin.” The ref is Todd Anderson.
Round 1: No glove touch during final instructions or after the opening bell. Both men paw at the range for the opening 30 seconds. van Steenis is using a lot of hand movement trying to draw something out of Edwards. Edwards does a stutter step toward his foe. van Steenis backs him up toward the fence and throws a head kick that’s checked. Edwards is starting to open up with leg kicks. Edwards knocks van Steenis with a left hook but he responds with two strong leg kicks back. van Steenis with a kick to the knee. Edwards feints knees. van Steenis shoots for a single leg and briefly has Edwards off balance but can’t quite finish it. Edwards pushes him away at 4:03. Another leg kick from van Steenis. Slapping outside leg kick. Edwards misses with the left hook and throws a couple kicks. van Steenis responds with kicks to the legs and body right back. 10-9 van Steenis.
Round 2: Side kick and leg kick from van Steenis. Leg kick back from Edwards. Kick to the knee from van Steenis. Another one. van Steenis with a hard right and Edwards starts mouthing off at him. Left jab from Edwards. Two rights from van Steenis and a takedown at 1:53. Edwards tries to trap an arm so van Steenis picks him up and powerbombs him back to the canvas. van Steenis tries to sit down on the leg and Edwards can’t escape. Edwards pushes him back into full guard trying to throw elbows off the bottom. Short shots from van Steenis. They scramble to the feet at 3:58. van Steenis is looking for a guillotine and Edwards drops to the ground to relieve the pressure. He survives but van Steenis is on top in full mount with short time. Elbows on top. 10-9 van Steenis.
Round 3: Edwards comes out aggressive to open the final round. van Steenis circles off as Edwards tries to cut the angle. Edwards pops him with a left hand. van Steenis keeps chipping away with leg kicks and then looks for a single leg takedown. Edwards hops backward to the fence. Edwards sprawls and ends up on the back at 2:55, jumping and getting one hook in. Anderson warns Edwards about a thumb to the eye. He rolls for a choke and van Steenis escapes to get back to his feet. Edwards shoots for a takedown of his own. He’s got the inside trip to secure it at 3:34. Edwards with short left elbows. van Steenis fights for the arm control and gives up his back looking to get to his feet. Edwards gets back on top in guard. 20 seconds. van Steenis tries but is unable to get up late. 10-9 Edwards. Commentary is split on round one so it COULD be 2-1 going either direction.
Final result: The judges score it 29-28 Edwards, 28-27 van Steenis, 29-28 van Steenis by split decision.
Mike Shipman vs. Pietro Penini
The Italian fighter Penini enters first with the blue gloves and black/red trunks to Eminem’s “Cinderella Man.” The English fighter Shipman has on the red gloves and blue/white trunks to War’s “Why Can’t We Be Friends?” Penini is 9-1-1, 1 NC, Shipman 13-3. Penini has a 73.5” reach while Shipman’s is 74”. Penini fights out of Verona, Italy. Shipman fights out of London, England. Our referee is Todd Anderson.
Round 1: Shipman sprints to the center with no glove touch. Penini immediately pushes him backward into the fence. Shipman pushes his way out of the clinch at 0:43. Penini with a jab and a right. Shipman switches up his stance then lands a hard combo. Shipman with a left hook. Now a right hook connects. Shipman teases a knee and Penini backpedals. Spinning capoeira kick from Shipman doesn’t connect. Left to the chin does. Shipman keeps Penini backing up and gets an authoritative takedown at 3:55. That’s where it stays until Penini kicks him off at the very last second. 10-9 Shipman.
Round 2: Both men circle each other for the first 50 seconds until Shipman finally unloads with a hook. Penini has a cut by his left eye. Two minutes gone with a lot of dancing and little offense from Penini. Shipman lands another flush hook. The blood is streaming down Penini’s chest. Shipman is completely dominating the exchanges. Penini can’t find any openings. Shipman teases an uppercut and someone whistled as he did. 10-9 Shipman.
Round 3: A glove tap opens our final round. Once again we have the fight being contested entirely on the feet. It’s like a boxing fight inside of a MMA cage. Finally we get a leg kick to change things up just before Penini lands a right on Shipman’s chin. Shipman shoots for a takedown and he’s got it at 2:03. He’s staying busy from the full guard on top, tying up Penini’s head and smashing him with short elbows and right hands. Penini keeps trying to shift his weight left and right to get free. He momentarily kicks Shipman away but he jumps right back on top throwing hard shots. Shoulders, elbows, hands, whatever it takes. It’s a clean sweep with another 10-9 for “Seabass” Shipman.
Final result: Mike Shipman wins a 30-27 X3 unanimous decision
Will Fleury vs. Kent Kauppinen
Black trunks and blue gloves for the English fighter Kauppinen. Blue trunks and red gloves for the Irish fighter Fleury. Kauppinen is 12-5, Fleury is 7-3. Kauppinen has a 72” reach while Fleury is 77.5”. Kauppinen fights out of Chippenham, Wiltshire, England. Fleury fights out of Dublin, Ireland. The referee in charge is Dan Miragliotta.
Round 1: Tap of gloves gets us underway. Fleury holds the center as Kauppinen shifts his stance left and right on the outside. Fleury catches a kick and gets a takedown, quickly looking to take the back. They scramble up at 1:04. Fleury takes him down again at 1:28 and gets side control. Miragliotta gives both fighters a warning for clashing heads. Fleury takes back mount with three minutes left. Kauppinen gets free and is in guard until we stand again at 2:34. Body kick from Kauppinen. Fleury throws a knee, paws with the right jab, and drops levels to get another takedown at 3:27. Fleury tries to keep him grounded but Kauppinen postures on one hand and throws knees with his back to the cage as Fleury looks to get him down again. Kauppinen goes for a single leg of his own but Fleury is up quickly. They go back to the center at 10 seconds. Body kick form Kauppinen. 10-9 Fleury.
Round 2: Kauppinen uses the leg kick early as Fleury advances forward. Fleury with a kick and a left jab. Kauppinen teases a knee and Fleury responds by shooting for a takedown straight to full mount. Fleury actually stands up from a dominant position and takes him down again, looking to drag Kauppinen away from the fence. Kauppinen pushes off the fence with his feet to get up and Fleury drags him right back down. Kauppinen gets back up again at 2:25. They clinch and trade knees and hands. Back to the center. Fleury knocks Kauppinen off balance and gets on top in half guard. Time trickles slowly away as Fleury smothers him on top. Kauppinen tries and fails to explode to his feet. 10-9 Fleury.
Round 3: The first minute is contested on the feet with Fleury repeatedly going for right hands until Kauppinen over commits on his own strikes and Fleury takes him down at 1:10. Fleury looks to take the back and he’s got it at 1:48 albeit without hooks in. Kauppinen is on his knees looking to get back up. He’s in a 3 point stance and then he gets his back to the fence, and Fleury drags him right back to his butt at 2:30. He’s up again at 2:55. He’s down again at 3:00. Fleury takes full mount on top with 90 seconds to go. Kauppinen pushes him to half guard but shows no signs of getting up with short time left. 10-9 Fleury.
Final result: Will Fleury wins a unanimous decision of 30-27 X3