Denise Kielholtz Smashes Kate Jackson in Bellator 247 Headliner

Given the challenges that Bellator MMA had to overcome on fight week, it couldn’t have asked for a better start to the CBS Sports era.

Bellator 247 was unexpectedly headlined by a women’s flyweight clash between Denise Kielholtz (6-2) and Kate Jackson (11-5-1). Like in the spaghetti western films of old, the duel ended in less than one minute. After a few tense exchanges, Kielholtz landed a violent left hook that sent her opponent crashing face-first to the canvas. With ground-and-pound that could be viewed as unnecessary, Kielholtz followed up with several shots including one after the stoppage to draw the ire of referee Dan Miragliotta. The official end of the fight came in just 43 seconds.

“Every time I step in the cage, my plan works. It was amazing [to headline Bellator 247]. Women fighters are on the main card in this big event. I’m so blessed to stand here with all the things that are going on right now in the world,” Kielholtz said in her post-fight interview. The kickboxer then changed her tune to one specific goal: a shot at Ilima-Lei Macfarlane’s title. “I’m the kickboxing world champion in Bellator,” she exclaimed, “and I just want a red belt next to my blue belt.”

A masterful submission.

Norbert Novenyi Jr. puts away Laid Zerhouni in the first round of their @BellatorMMA 247 bout with impressive ground work. pic.twitter.com/gcz7VCI0xq

— CBS Sports Network (@CBSSportsNet) October 1, 2020

The co-main event featured a middleweight tilt between Norbert Novenyi (6-0) and Laid Zerhouni (7-6). The French fighter surprised many by landing a quick left that dropped Novenyi in the early going. The Hungarian fighter immediately recovered from the shot by landing a takedown. Once on the mat, Novenyi proved once again how comfortable he feels in the grappling exchanges. The still-undefeated athlete first applied an anaconda choke that almost forced Zerhouni to tap. Even though the French contender managed to find his way out of the sticky situation, he could do nothing to prevent Novenyi from locking up a triangle choke. Zerhouni surrendered at the 4:36 mark in the opening stanza.

In some featherweight action, Brian Moore (13-7) staged a huge comeback when he cracked Simone D'Anna (7-3) with a massive right hand at the 3:55 mark of Round 2. “The Pikeman” arguably lost the first round to a relentless D'Anna, with the latter eager to redeem himself after being on the losing side of the fastest KO in the Bellator history. In the second round, the Italian fighter even knocked down his opponent, but Moore recovered from the shot to land a huge uppercut that shook D'Anna. The Irish fighter finished his rocked opponent a few seconds later.

In the first battle on the main card, Chris Duncan (7-0) pieced Iamik Furtado (6-4) up to score a TKO victory at the 3:58 mark of the second frame.

There’s a first time for everything!

@JohnMcCarthyMMA says he’s never seen the "superguard" ( aka scorpion crunch) pulled off in #MMA & Monika Tochlikova made it happen at #Bellator247.

We are live now on YouTube!
https://t.co/rTzaAC8ttR#Bellator247 pic.twitter.com/m1cSSNwbSC

— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) October 1, 2020

In some action from the preliminary card, Lewis Long (18-6) scored his 11th submission victory when he tapped Giovanni Melillo (13-6) with a kneebar at the 2:24 mark in the opening round. The first bout on the card featured a pair of neophyte atomweights, where Monika Chochlikova (1-0) finished fellow ex-kickboxer Jade Jorand (0-1) at 3:50 of Round 2 with an unorthodox body triangle off her back called a “scorpion crush” – marking the first-ever body triangle submission in Bellator history.