Logan Storley Dispatches Brennan Ward in Front of Hometown Crowd at Bellator 298
SEEEEEK AND DESTROOOOOYYY! đ±đ„đ„
Logan Storley aplica uma chuva de ossos em Branna Ward e fica com a vitĂłria na luta principal! đ„đ
SĂł na minha tela vocĂȘ curte todas as emoçÔes do Bellator 298 ao vivo e com exclusividade! Assine jĂĄ! (link na bio)#BellatorNoCombate #Bellator pic.twitter.com/q7zragJzIq â Combate (@combate) August 12, 2023Advertisement
Logan Storley unleashed a hurricane of punishment on Brennan Ward in the Bellator 298 main event at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Fall, South Dakota.
Storley, a South Dakota native, electrified the crowd after taking
Ward to the ground and dominating him with repeated punches and
elbow strikes before referee Jason Herzog was forced to call it
4:05 into the second round.
Fresh off his defeat in the rematch with champion Yaroslav Amosav, Storley wasted little time on Friday. Ward came in riding high off a 3-fight knockout streak but wasnât given a chance to unload.
Moldavsky Cruises in Lackluster Rematch
In an attempt to settle the score after their first meeting ended in a no contest, heavyweights Valentin Moldavsky and Steve Mowry settled their business.
Moldavsky would leave the cage with bragging rights after outwrestling Mowry over 15 minutes en route to a clear, but underwhelming unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27,30-27).
Mowry spent most of the fight on his back while the crowd voiced their displeasure. Neither man separated themselves from the rest of the division. Mowry (10-1-1) took his first loss and Moldavsky picked up his first victory since 2021.
Related » Bellator 298 Round-by-Round Scoring
Jeffery Outhustles Rosta
Middleweight contender Aaron Jeffery admitted that he âsh*t the bedâ in his decision loss to John Salter last March. Looking to bounce back, Jeffery put on an unbelievable pace to upset undefeated prospect Dalton Rosta (30-27, 29-28, 29-28).
Jefferyâs pace and top control gave him an edge in all three rounds despite not putting Rosta (8-1) in any serious trouble. Unfortunately for Rosta, there wasnât much he could do with Jeffery forcing him to defensively grapple.
Polarizing Gallagher Slips By Gonzalez
It was a long two years away from the cage for James Gallagher.
James Gonzalez nearly ruined Gallagherâs return in a back-and-forth scrap that ultimately went in Gallagherâs favor (29-28, 28-29, 28-29). Gonzalez immediately cracked Gallagher (12-2) with a spinning elbow to start the fight and landed punches from the ground all night.
Gallagherâs best work came by way of his grappling. He kept Gonzalez pinned for most of the first two rounds but was dominated in Round 3. The result was up in the air after the final bell but Gallagherâs grappling over the first two rounds would ultimately be prioritized over Gonzalezâs punches.
Outlaw Runs Wrestling Clinic on Mamedov
Itâs been over two years since Sidney Outlaw found a win in the cage but victory, nor Islam Mamedov, could escape him on Friday.
Outlaw clung to Mamedov and ragdolled him on the ground for three rounds en route to a unanimous decision win (30-27, 30-27, 30-27).
It was an impressive performance for Outlaw, who hasnât been in the cage since July 2022. Outlaw was supposed to compete in the lightweight world Grand Prix but received a six-month suspension after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs.
#Bellator298 Official Result: #8-Lucas Brennan (9-0) defeated Weber Almeida (7-2) via KO at 3:32 of round three pic.twitter.com/12djVl8XH4
â Bellator Public Relations (@BellatorPR) August 12, 2023
Five-Star Prospect Brennan Connects with Hail Mary Knee
Undefeated prospect Lucas Brennan was potentially 90 seconds away from being brought down to Earth and suffering his first defeat as a pro. Brennan, however, would dig deep and pull out the biggest win of his career after knocking out Weber Almeida in the third round of their featherweight clash (3:32).
Brennan could be one of the brightest future stars in Bellator but Almeida picked apart glaring holes in the 23-year-oldâs striking. Brennan tried desperately to take the fight to the mat but Almeida was determined to land leather.
After recovering from a first-round knockdown, Brennan began to find his rhythm in Round 2 but Almeidaâs karate background clearly gave him trouble. It would take a third round to decide if âSkywalkerâ would leave the cage undefeated.
Still determined to find a finish on the ground, Brennan locked up with Almeida late in the final stanza before slipping in a deceptive rear knee that separated Almeida from his senses. Referee Jason Herzog stepped in to stop further damage as Brennan etched the ninth win of his young career.
Barzola Denies Bates
Another undefeated prospect received all he could handle Friday night. Unfortunately for bantamweight contender Jaylon Bates there was no miraculous finish in the cards for the 26-year-old.
Bates was handed his first loss as a professional (7-1) in a frustrating, exhausting loss to seasoned vet Enrique Barzola. Barzolaâs gas tank was too much to handle on the ground and Bates seemed lost throughout the fight. Spurred by trainer Antonio McKee to pick up the pace, Bates nearly reversed his luck and pulled out a nasty armbar attempt but Barzola was ready and reversed position.
Bates, zapped of energy, laid helplessly against the cage as Barzola rained down punches until the final bell. With the win Barzola could see himself back in the conversation in the bantamweight title picture.
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â Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) August 11, 2023
Wrestling prodigy @that_dude_JO gets the job done in his MMA debut.
đș #Bellator298 @MonsterEnergy Prelims LIVE on YouTube â¶ïž https://t.co/NxwCKFQpdS pic.twitter.com/SqwlC1Oy5J
Heralded Wrestler Oliver Wins Debut
If you blinked you mightâve missed Jordan Oliverâs Bellator debut. The former two-time NCAA champion wrestler obliterated Andrew Triolo in a just over a minute and wasted little time announcing himself tp the featherweight division.
The 33-year-old May have had a late start in mixed martial arts, but Oliverâs easy arm triangle finish of Triolo shows that thereâs no better time than the present.
In other action, Marcirley Alves da Silva took out Jerrell Hodge with a sweeping right hook at 3:53 in the first round of their bantamweight battle. Sullivan Cauley continued the trend of first round finishes with an arm triangle at 4:24 on Hamza Salim in light heavyweight action. Ekaterina Shakalova upstaged and upset Dayana Silva in her Bellator debut by split decision. Alfie Davis snapped Aalon Cruzâs 3-fight win streak in their lightweight clash by unanimous decision. Bantamweights Leandro Higo and Nikita Mikhailov traded submission attempts in Round 1 before Higo sunk in his guillotine the following round. Fedor Emelianenkoâs pupil Vladimir Tokov grinded out a tough unanimous decision victory over lightweight Jairo Pacheco. Kasum Kasumov improved to 15-1 in the bantamweight division after and back-and-forth split decision win over Josh Hill. Justine Kish outpointed Diana Avsaragova (missed weight) to improve her stock in the womenâs flyweight division.
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