Bellator MMA's 'Fight Master' episode No. 8 recap

As the eighth episode of “Fight Master” gets underway, it’s time for the quarterfinals. The eight remaining fighters need to be seeded so the matchups can be made. Frank Shamrock has three fighters. Randy Couture and Greg Jackson have two fighters each, and Joe Warren has just one competitor remaining.

The coaches are forced to battle for their fighters to earn their spots. Once done, it’s Joe Riggs who keeps the top spot. However, it’s Xtreme Couture’s Cole Williams, as the No. 2 seed, who gets first fight selection. He takes the No. 3 seeded Nick Barnes, a Shamrock MMA fighter, as his opponent.

QUARTERFINAL FIGHT: Cole Williams (6-1) vs. Nick Barnes (6-0)

Round 1 – Southpaw Barnes walks forward but is immediately tagged by a Williams right to the chin. He drops but refuses to give up and crawls back to his feet. Williams stays on the attack and drops him again, pounding away. The referee decides to let the fight carry on, and Williams keeps striking. Eventually, he raises his arm to ask for the stop, which does finally come.

Cole Williams def. Nick Barnes via TKO (punches) – Round 1

With Shamrock losing one fighter, we move on to another quarterfinal matchup with his team facing Couture. It’s Shamrock’s No. 5 seed Chris Lozano picking Couture’s No. 8 seed Mike Bronzoulis. The scrap gains some heat before the two hit the cage as they have a little in-house scuffle.

Once fight time rolls around, Bellator MMA light heavyweight Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal is on hand to watch the matchup.

QUARTERFINAL FIGHT: Chris Lozano (10-3) vs. Mike Bronzoulis (15-5-1)

Round 1 – Lozano works inside early. Bronzoulis defends well, but Lozano is quickly to the back. Bronzoulis calm early, but he’s in a bad spot. Lozano patient from the back, but Bronzoulis clears some space and turns in. As Lozano looks to move, Bronzoulis scrambles up to the feet. When they finally break, Bronzoulis flurries, but he struggles to land clean. Lozano ends the round by looking to grapple, but a gritty Bronzoulis makes things interesting by throwing strikes at every opportunity. It’s a tough round to score, and Couture admits exactly that in the corner.

Round 2 – It’s Bronzoulis who is able to move quickly to the back in an early exchange. Lozano separates, and the pair trades at range. Bronzoulis is busy, but Lozano looks dangerous with heavy blows. Lozano shoots in, but Bronzoulis defends well and counters as he sprawls. With time winding down, both coaches are trying to will their fighter to victory. Lozano starts to pick up the volume. Still, he can’t land the one shot he wants. Lozano presses for a late takedown, but it’s a close fight when the round ends. Both contestants and teams believe a third round is likely on the way, and it turns out they’re right.

Round 3 – After a touch of gloves, Bronzoulis moves immediately forward. He can’t do any damage, and Lozano separates and looks to bang. It’s scrappy striking between them, but Bronzoulis is the one who seems to be moving forward. Lozano trying to retreat and score, but he eventually gets dropped with a Bronzoulis right. He crawls right back up, but Bronzoulis is in control. Lozano looking to land a bomb to close, but Bronzoulis pushes inside. He’s tired, but he’s walking forward. They both flurry to close in a spirited exchange, but it seems the winner is evident.

Mike Bronzoulis def. Chris Lozano via unanimous decision

Bronzoulis is emotional after the win, but there’s little time to celebrate. Two more fights are on the horizon.

The debut season of Bellator MMA’s “Fight Master” now airs Thursday nights on Spike TV at 11 p.m. ET.