Bellator 175 is in the books as Emmanuel Sanchez dominated Bellator’s former bantamweight champion Marcos Galvao in the co-main event. The night also saw MMA veteran Sergei Kharitonov achieve a walk-off knockout as he put Chase Gormley to sleep in the first round. The card opened with back to back first round finishes, as Steve Kozola and Noad Lahat both picked up stoppages in their respective matchups.
Main Card:
Emmanuel Sanchez def. Marcos Galvao by Unanimous Decision (30-27 x3): Featherweight
Both men met in middle got right into throwing strikes. Galvao shot in, but Sanchez was able to remain vertical. Sanchez mixed up strikes with kicks, high and low, and punching combinations a bit better than Galvao to close out the first frame.
The second round mirrored the first in terms of limited grappling, as both men were content to throw leather. Sanchez pulled away by being the more busy of the 2 fighters. Sanchez was able to land some significant strikes, with Galvao unable to really hurt his opponent.
Sanchez spent the third round working behind the jab, continuing to use his footwork to stay out of danger from Galvao’s strikes. Galvao tried multiple times to secure a takedown, but Sanchez was able to shuck off each of them. Sanchez has now beat a former Bellator champion, and requested to fight for the title in his post fight in-cage interview.
**It should be noted that Emmanuel Sanchez missed weight (149.5)
Sergei Kharitonov def. Chase Gormley by KO at 3:55 of Round 1: Heavyweight
Chase Gormley worked his kicks and outside game, pumping his jab and landing at a descent clip. Sergei Kharitonov stood firm in the center with his hands held high, awaiting his opportunity to drop the hammer. Just as it seemed as though Gormley was finding his groove, Kharitonov connected with 264+ pound straight right hand that hurt his foe, and a monstrous uppercut finished the job. Fighting since the year 2000, Kharitonov showed us that he still has it, and is now 1-1 for the Bellator promotion.
Noad Lahat def. Lloyd Carter by Technical Submission (RNC) at 3:50 of Round 2: Featherweight
Lloyd Carter was able stuff the initial takedown attempt from Noad Lahat, and even dropped his opponent with a jab. Lahat would recover, however, and made it to his feet just in time to score a takedown. Carter would not make it back to his feet for the remainder of the round.
Lahat found top position once again in the second frame, but Carter was able to reverse the position, at least for a moment. Lahat would execute a reversal of his own, and ultimately transitioned to back control, where he found the rear-naked choke finish. Lahat picked up his 6th submission victory, and moves to 2-0 under the Bellator banner.
Steve Kozola def. Jake Roberts by TKO at :28 of Round 1: Lightweight
Steve Kozola put Bellator’s lightweight division on notice with a 28-second starching of Jake Roberts.A lightning quick check hook sent Roberts crashing to the canvas, but the MMA Lab product was able to recover rapidly and make it back to his feet. Unfortunately for Roberts, Kozola pounced on his opponent with vicious hooks and uppercuts, leaving his foe slumped against the cage.
Prelims:
Joaquin Buckley def. Justin Patterson by Unanimous Decision :Welterweight
Tim Cho def. J.D. Hardwick by TKO in Round 3: Catchweight of 150 pounds
Damian Norris def. Tom Shoaff by Unanimous Decision: Lightweight
James Bochnovic def Matt Paul by Submission (RNC) in Round 1: Light Heavyweight
Mike DeLaVega def. Brian Akins by Split Decision: Lightweight
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