Press Release – Tampa, FL (March 28, 2013) – The final results are in for Bellator MMA live from the USF Sundome in Tampa, Florida. The night showcased the Lightweight Tournament Final with David Rickels finishing Saad Awad via TKO in the second round. The event also featured the Light Heavyweight Tournament Final as Emanuel Newton defeated Mikhail Zayats in a unanimous decision. Both winners earned a $100,000 tournament prize and a guaranteed title shot.
Light Heavyweight Tournament Final: Emanuel Newton defeats Mikhail Zayats via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
Emanuel Newton:
Thank you Bjorn, Spike and all of the Bellator staff for being behind me. He is a tough opponent and I went out there and put on my best performance. I know I can get better and I have to get better and I am looking forward to my next fight.
Mikhail Zayats:
I want to thank everyone who came out today. I want to thank Bjorn and all of my fans in Russia and all over the world. I was a little upset because I had an injury two days ago and I tried to postpone my fight. Newton is a great fighter and I congratulate him on a good fight.
Lightweight Tournament Final: David Rickels defeats Saad Awad via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 5:00
David Rickels
My hat is off to Awad, he is a great fighter. I am very happy and really excited. I think I’ve showcased a lot of my skills and I believe I have a lot of the facets of the game. I am really looking forward to seeing who I will fight in the championship and I want that belt around my waist.
Saad Awad
Thank you to everyone for supporting me. It didn’t go my way tonight. I broke my hand in the first round and sorry I had to wrestle for two rounds. I really didn’t want to do that. He caught me in the second round and there is nothing I can do about it, congrats.
Welterweight Qualifier Fight: Luis Melo defeats Trey Houston via submission (arm-triangle choke) – R3, 1:09
Luis Melo
I would like to thank god for the opportunity and Bellator and Bjorn for believing in my potential and bringing me here. I have been fighting for over 10 years and I am happy to have the opportunity to fight here and represent in my big my debut. I will always come to fight and I will always come to entertain you guys.
Trey Houston
Thank you for the opportunity. It didn’t go my way tonight. He was a very good opponent and has been doing this longer than I knew what the sport was. I hope I can come back because I am still learning a lot and I am improving quickly.
Bantamweight Qualifier Fight: Rodrigo Lima defeats Ronnie Mann via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Rodrigo Lima
First of all thank you for the opportunity to fight with Bellator. I took the fight in 22 days and I was really focused on that and I put my heart in it. Congrats to Ronnie and the chance to fight against him.
Ronnie Mann
Thank you to Bellator and Bjorn for having me. All I can say is that I have more to offer if I get the opportunity again.
Welterweight Feature Fight: Julien Williams defeats Kenny Moss via submission (guillotine-choke) – Round 1, 3:19
Heavyweight Feature Fight: Augusto Sakai defeats Rob Horton via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:01
Women’s Feature Fight: Jessica Aguilar defeats Patricia Vidonic via decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Featherweight Feature Fight: Joe Taimanglo defeats Ronnie Rogers via submission (north-south choke) – Round 2, 0:33
Lightweight Feature Fight: Edson Berto defeats Bruno Carvalho via submission (heel hook) – Round 1, 1:27
Catchweight Feature Fight (157 lbs): Tony Fryklund vs. Patrick Cenoble ended in a draw (29-27, 27-29, 28-28)
Women’s Feature Fight: Felice Herrig defeats Heather Clark via decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA, follow Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney @BjornRebney and check out Bellator on Facebook at www.facebook.com/BellatorMMA
About Bellator MMA
Bellator MMA is the world’s largest tournament based Mixed Martial Arts organization. Televised to nearly 500 Million homes worldwide in over 107 countries, Bellator’s majority owner is entertainment giant Viacom. In the United States, Bellator can be seen on Spike TV, the MMA television leader. With over 150 world-class athletes under contract, Bellator is home to many of the sport’s top mixed martial artists. Bellator’s founder & CEO, Bjorn Rebney, is an experienced fighting sports and entertainment executive with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes. Bellator’s core philosophy is that title shots should be earned, not given. This belief gave rise to Bellator’s real sport, tournament-based format, which gives Bellator’s tournaments a true playoff feel that keeps the sport true and distances itself from the subjective side of fighting sports found in organizations that utilize a matchmaking/casting formula. Bellator MMA is comprised of an executive team that includes top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations. Bellator is based in Newport Beach, California.
About Spike TV:
Spike TV is available in 98.7 million homes and is a division of Viacom Media Networks. A unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), Viacom Media Networks is one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. Spike TV’s Internet address is www.spike.com and for up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs, visit Spike TV’s press site at http://www.spike.com/press. Follow us on Twitter @spiketvpr for the latest in breaking news updates, behind-the-scenes information and photos.
About mun2
mun2 is the leading Hispanic cable network for young millennial adults 18-34. From reality to music, on-air to digital, mun2 creates original content that resonates across a multi-screen platform. Young, vibrant and unabashedly Latino, mun2 has a distribution to over 38 million households. The network is part of Telemundo Media, a division of NBCUniversal.