Pat Curran put Shahbulat Shamhalaev to sleep at Bellator 95. | Photo: Keith Mills/Sherdog.com
Curran rendered Shamhalaev unconscious with a first-round guillotine choke, as he retained the Bellator MMA featherweight championship with a technical submission in the Bellator 95 main event on Thursday at the Revel Resort and Casino in Atlantic City, N.J. Shamhalaev (12-2-1, 3-1 Bellator MMA) went limp 2:38 into round one.
“I didn’t get hit once in the face,” Curran said. “I wanted to get in, get out, get back to the gym and rest up; on to the next one. Everyone coming up in the tournament has a lot of skills and huge talent.”
After a brief feeling-out process, Curran (19-4, 9-1 Bellator MMA) moved in for a sneaky takedown and caught an arm-in guillotine as Shamhalaev attempted to counter. The 29-year-old Russian fought valiantly to escape the choke but blacked out within the champion’s clutches. The defeat snaps Shamhalaev’s streak of six consecutive wins.
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Frodo outpointed Richman in a close one.
The win, Khasbulaev’s ninth straight, brought him a $100,000 paycheck and a shot at the Bellator featherweight championship.
Richman (15-3, 4-2 Bellator MMA) had his moments, opening cuts near both of the Russian’s eyes in the second round. However, he had no answer for Khasbulaev’s relentless pressure and multi-pronged standup offensive. The 26-year-old sealed his latest triumph with a pair of takedowns and timely ground-and-pound in round three.
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Marshall sent Cooper packing.
The two finalists staggered one another during their initial exchange. Cooper (19-8, 6-3 Bellator MMA) mixed in a pair of takedowns but failed to keep “The Rhino” grounded and neutralized. After Marshall rose to his feet for a second time, he created some separation with a short elbow and then leveled Cooper with a right hook. Marshall dropped the finishing blow on the defenseless Cooper, hovered over his fallen foe with arms outstretched and left no doubt regarding the stoppage.
“If I catch you with the right hand, you’re going to sleep,” Marshall said. “Man, I hope he’s OK. I was trying to knock his beard off, but it didn’t come off. Maybe next time.”
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Hawn left Parisyan dazed and confused.
After the two men battled to a stalemate in the first round, Hawn (15-2, 7-2 Bellator MMA) came out firing in the second. The 36-year-old Tristar Gym representative wobbled Parisyan with an overhand right, followed it with a series of uppercuts and finished it with hammerfists.
“I wasn’t trying to look for [my right hand] the whole time,” Hawn said. “I knew that he knew I was waiting for that, so I had to wait until the second round to mix things up. [He is] a good judo guy. I felt him in the clinch, and I remember him from back in the old days. He’s good, so I had to be careful.”
Good drew “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 7 alum into close quarters throughout the 15-minute battle, attacking him with short punches, knees and even a second-round takedown. Rivera (15-7, 0-1 Bellator MMA) tried in vain to answer but found himself outgunned against a bigger, stronger man.
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Rivera put Kelleher in 'wrestler mode' early on.