Bellator‘s final stretch of weekly shows continues plugging on, this time with Bellator 125.
The main event featured Doug Marshall and Melvin Manhoef in an intriguing middleweight tilt. Both fighters are renowned for their savage knockout skills and when the two came together, the fight ended as one would expect; shortly after it began and in devastating fashion.
Manhoef stalked Marshall right from the get-go, peppering him with punches and landing his signature devastating leg kicks. A kick to the cup interrupted the action, but shortly after things restarted, Manhoef suckered Marshall with a feint and landed a devastating right hand to the back of his foe’s head. Marshall flopped to the mat face-first from the impact, and the fight was immediately waved off (you can see the finish yourself here).
After the official decision, it was announced that Manhoef had earned a shot at Bellator‘s middleweight title opposite the winner of next week’s championship bout between Alexander Shlemenko and Brandon Halsey. A fight between Manhoef and Shlemenko would be a tantalizing matchup between contrasting strikers, while a match with Halsey could result in an overnight star for the promotion.
Outside the headliner, it was a huge night for Bellator prospects.
In the co-main event, Rafael Carvalho impressed with his win over Bellator favorite Brian Rogers. While Rogers, like Marshall and Manhoef, is notorious for his lethal striking, it was Carvalho who walked away with the knockout victory, rocking the veteran standing before finishing him with punches from behind.
Rounding out the main card, Japanese BJJ hotshot Goiti Yamauchi earned a great first-round submission win over Martin Stapleton while Julio Cesar Neves advanced to 30-0 by knocking out WEC veteran Poppies Martinez.
The full results are as follows (h/t CagePotato.com):
Main Card
Melvin Manhoef def. Doug Marshall via KO (punch), 1:45 of round 1.
Rafael Carvalho def. Brian Rogers via TKO (punches), 3:06 of round 1.
Javy Ayala def. Raphael Butler via submission (rear naked choke), 1:03 of round 1.
Goiti Yamauchi def. Martin Stapleton via submission (rear naked choke), 4:37 of round 2.
Preliminary Card
Matt Ramirez def. Oscar Ramirez via submission (armbar), 0:42 of round 1. Chris Honeycutt def. Aaron Wilkinson via TKO (punches), 4:45 of round 2.
Julio Cesar Neves def. Poppies Martinez via TKO (strikes), 2:16 of round 1.
Jonny Bonilla-Bowman def. Art Becerra via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28).
Jesse Juarez def. Ron Keslar via unanimous decision(29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
George Zuniga def. Granson Clark via TKO (punches), 0:34 of round 1.
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