Four Fighters Fail Drug Tests at Bellator 127, Including Rob Emerson and Keith Berry


(The man with the most ironic nickname in MMA has gotten himself into trouble yet again. / Photo via Bellator.com)

Drug test results are in from October 3rd’s Bellator 127 event in Temecula, California, and brother, they are embarrassing. Sherdog reports that four fighters on the card failed their post-fight drug screenings for banned substances, according to information released by the California State Athletic Commission. Those fighters are…

– UFC veteran Rob Emerson, who popped positive for Modafinil, a sleep disorder drug that is used recreationally as a pep-pill. Emerson lost a decision to Rafael Silva at Bellator 127, and his loss will stand.

– Strikeforce/KOTC vet Keith Berry, who tested positive for elevated testosterone levels and marijuana. His split decision win against Joe Pacheco will be changed to a no contest.

– Light-heavyweight Nick Moghaddam, who also tested positive for elevated testosterone levels and marijuana. Moghaddam’s unanimous decision loss to Ray Sloan will stand.


(The man with the most ironic nickname in MMA has gotten himself into trouble yet again. / Photo via Bellator.com)

Drug test results are in from October 3rd’s Bellator 127 event in Temecula, California, and brother, they are embarrassing. Sherdog reports that four fighters on the card failed their post-fight drug screenings for banned substances, according to information released by the California State Athletic Commission. Those fighters are…

– UFC veteran Rob Emerson, who popped positive for Modafinil, a sleep disorder drug that is used recreationally as a pep-pill. Emerson lost a decision to Rafael Silva at Bellator 127, and his loss will stand.

– Strikeforce/KOTC vet Keith Berry, who tested positive for elevated testosterone levels and marijuana. His split decision win against Joe Pacheco will be changed to a no contest.

– Light-heavyweight Nick Moghaddam, who also tested positive for elevated testosterone levels and marijuana. Moghaddam’s unanimous decision loss to Ray Sloan will stand.

– Welterweight Fernando Gonzalez, who tested positive for marijuana. Gonzalez scored a first-round TKO against Karo Parisyan at Bellator 127; at this point, the CSAC has not confirmed whether or not Gonzalez’s win will be overturned.

I don’t understand it; Bellator is usually such a professional operation (LOL J/K). So, is it just a fluke that the CSAC caught four fish on the same event? Well, not exactly. As Sherdog explains, “All 22 fighters competing at Bellator 127 provided urine samples that were sent to a UCLA Olympic analytical lab that is World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) accredited.”

Yes, all of the fighters were tested — a marked contrast from the way that Bellator used to run drug testing, which was basically not at all. In other words, the more shows that Bellator runs in which its fighters are actually held accountable for what’s in their bodies, the more we’ll see multiple fighters pissing hot on the same card. 2014 is indeed the druggiest year in MMA history, and we’ve still got two more months to get through.

Bellator 127 Results and GIFs: Straus Buries Wilcox, Gonzalez Decimates Parisyan

Bellator 127 was arguably the weakest card on paper of the season so far. Still, it had some decent fights on it and some good action. For a free fight card, it was certainly worth the watch.

Of note on the prelims, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou defeated an overmatched jobber in Malik Merad. Here’s a GIF of the finish (this GIF and others in the post via Zombie Prophet/Fansided):

Bellator 127 was arguably the weakest card on paper of the season so far. Still, it had some decent fights on it and some good action. For a free fight card, it was certainly worth the watch.

Of note on the prelims, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou defeated an overmatched jobber in Malik Merad. Here’s a GIF of the finish (this GIF and others in the post via Zombie Prophet/Fansided):

In the main card opener, Christian M’Pumbu faced Kendall Grove. This was M’Pumbu’s first fight at middleweight and it went poorly. The first round was five minutes of wall-and-stall for the most part. In the second, Grove managed to get M’Pumbu’s back during a quick scramble and sunk in a rear naked choke.

The next match featured Rafael Silva against Rob Emerson. Silva laid and prayed his way to a decision win. There was nothing notable or impressive about this fight save for Emerson’s uncanny resemblance to Doug Marshall.

Karo Parisyan met Fernando Gonzalez in the co-main event. This fight wasn’t competitive. Gonzalez hurt a sluggish Parisyan early with a hook and then landed some brutal follow-up ground and pound over the course of the next minute to put Parisyan away.

Then came the main event. Justin Wilcox fought Daniel Straus. This one didn’t last long. Straus clipped Wilcox early with a left hand, face-planting him. After a few more punches, the fight was called.

Here are the complete results:

Main Card

Daniel Straus def. Justin Wilcox via KO (punches), round 1, 0:50.
Fernando Gonzalez def. Karo Parisyan via TKO (punches), round 1, 1:43.
Rafael Silva def. Rob Emerson via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)
Kendall Grove def. Christian M’Pumbu via submission (rear naked choke), round 2, 4:14.

Preliminary Card

Ray Sloan def. Nick Moghaddam via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 x2)
Saad Awad def. Sergio Rios via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27 x 2)
Thierry Sokoudjou def. Malik Merad via TKO, round 2, 4:04.
Keith Berry def. Joe Pacheco via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Ricky Rainey def. Johnny Cisneros via KO, first round, 3:18.
Justin Baesman def. Johnny Mercurio via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28).