Bellator 288: Vadim Nemkov vs. Corey Anderson results and highlights
Things didn’t play out well for Bellator light heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov when he faced Corey Anderson in the Bellator Light Heavyweight World Grand Prix finals at Bellator 277. An unintentional headbutt caused a cut, which resulted in the fight being declared a no-contest. On Friday night, the pair rematched in Chicago, and Nemkov won by unanimous decision in the main event of Bellator 288, thanks to a refined approach, dominating pretty much the whole fight.
It was a good nice in the office for Russian fighters as Usman Nurmagomedov, Khabib’s cousin and protégé became the first fighter from Dagestan to lay hands on the Bellator championship.
Nemkov invested early with leg kicks and stuffed all 15 takedown attempts by Anderson, winning the Bellator light heavyweight Grand Prix by unanimous decision that read 48-47, 49-46, and 49-46.
He will next face Yoel Romero in Bellator’s recently confirmed return to CBS at Bellator 290 on Feb. 4. It was announced by Bellator commentator John McCarthy in the cage after the light heavyweight main event.
Anderson’s approach for the fight was clear from the first bell, taking his opponent down at any cost. Nemkov was prepared for his single-leg setups and leg traps every time he got close. Anderson was left to slug it out, and Nemkov took an early lead thanks to better distance management. A stiff jab and a step-in one-two repeatedly scored, and Anderson was knocked out at the end of the first.
The fight got off to a fast start. Both fighters used a lot of volume as they fought back and forth in striking range. As the round progressed, Nemkov took the lead. He was having a lot of success with his right hand, connecting with it several times. Anderson attempted several takedowns, but none were successful. In the final seconds, Nemkov landed the biggest moment of the first frame when he connected with a spinning wheel kick that dropped Anderson, who immediately went for the takedown after falling back and won the round.
In the co main event, Usman Nurmagomedov, an undefeated prospect, showed his caliber coming from one of the most reputed training camps in the world. Nurmagomedov mowed down and circled from distance before exploding into takedowns that left Pitbull unable to generate much offence. The final scores for the new Bellator lightweight champion were 50-45 and 50-44, 50–44, extending his unbeaten record to 16-0 in his fifth appearance in the promotion.
Nurmagomedov nearly finished Pitbull early in the second round, ending it with a flurry of elbows that had the referee carefully watching over the action. Pitbull blocked the following shot in the third round, but it wasn’t until the fifth round that he came to life. Patricky Pitbull, urged on by his brother, featherweight champion Patricio Pitbull, came forward and threw the most strikes of the fight.
However, the final flurry wasn’t enough for the Brazilian to win the fight who was significantly behind on the scorecards and got dominated pretty much the whole fight.
Khabib Nurmagomedov, who unfortunately couldn’t be in the corner, joined celebrations through a video call during his cousin’s post fight octagon interview. ‘The Eagle’ was clearly thrilled and took to Instagram to congratulate his teammate.
“You deserve it Brother 👊 🏆
Another victory, another history.”
At 24, Nurmagomedov showed great maturity and refined skillsets proving once again that the future looks bright for the young Dagestani lightweight.
(Results via: MMA Junkie)
Vadim Nemkov def. Corey Anderson via unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46, 49-46)
Usman Nurmagomedov def. Patricky Freire via unanimous decision (50-45, 50-44, 50-44)
Timur Khizriev def. Daniel Weichel via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Daniel James def. Tyrell Fortune via TKO (elbows) – Round 2, 0:27
Levan Chokheli def. Roman Faraldo via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27)
Imamshafi Aliev def. Sean Fallon via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) – Round 1, 3:20
Killys Mota def. Jairo Pacheco via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Archie Colgan def. Jesse Hannam via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 0:50
Sullivan Cauley def. Jay Radick via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 1:01
Jordan Newman def. Jayden Taulker via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:20
Laird Anderson def. Rob Fenicle via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 2:28
Isaiah Hokit def. Matias Nader via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 3:48
Wladmir Gouvea def. Kory Moegenburg via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 1:46
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