Bellator 100 live results and fight recaps

It took six months longer than expected, but Douglas Lima (25-5 MMA, 7-1 BMMA) is again a Bellator MMA tournament champion.

Like he did in Season 5, Lima claimed tournament victory with a knockout win in the finals over Ben Saunders (16-6-2 MMA, 7-3 BMMA). This time, it was the Season 8 crown, and Lima earned a future shot at the Bellator MMA welterweight crown.

The bout served as the main event of Friday’s Bellator 100 event, which took place at Phoenix’s Grand Canyon University Arena.

The pace was quick to open, with both fighters rifling off punches and kicks. Saunders tried briefly to take the fight to the floor, but he was unable to do so, and Lima made him pay with sharp strikes on the feet, including a few that scored a cut over his right eye.

Saunders gave chase in the second, but Lima managed the distance well and dropped his opponent with a thunderous right hand. The left eye instantly closed while Saunders was on the floor, and the cut over the right eye worsened, as well. Saunders somehow recovered, and Lima brought the action back to the feet.

It didn’t matter.

Whether it was due to their friendship or not, Lima appeared to briefly slow before scoring an incredible knockout win with a shot to the body and a high kick on the button. The fight, which was delayed six months after Saunders suffered an injury in training, ended with 27 seconds left in the second round.

War Machine puts Anderson to sleep, Hawn outlasts Terrado

In his first Bellator MMA tournament appearance, War Machine (14-4 MMA, 2-0 BMMA) scored a technical submission win over Vaughn Anderson (16-2-1 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) to move into the semifinals.

War Machine took the fight to the floor early, and he controlled the action for several minutes until Anderson scored a textbook sweep. War Machine scrambled up in response but was quickly taken back to the floor. A few triangle attempts failed from the bottom, but War Machine scrambled up and finished the round on the feet.

War Machine took the fight again to the floor in the second, and he advanced to a crucifix before racking up ground-and-pound blows. Anderson bucked and rolled to get out of the position, but War Machine moved around to the back, locked in a rear-naked choke and went for the squeeze. With Anderson peeling away the arm, War Machine switched his grip and choked his opponent unconscious.

Entering Bellator’s Season 9 welterweight tournament on short notice didn’t cause Rick Hawn (16-2 MMA, 8-2 BMMA) any trouble, as he outworked a massive Herman Terrado (11-3 MMA, 0-1 BMMA).

While Hawn never had Terrado in trouble in the three-round affair, his ability to avoid his opponent’s power blows and answer back with quick combinations racked up points from start to finish. Terrado was forced to search for homerun shots that wouldn’t come, and Hawn simply fought a technically sound contest en route to a clearcut win, 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28.

Keslar upsets Junior, Weedman taps Baesman

In an intriguing back-and-forth affair, Ron Keslar (10-3 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) earned a decision win over Sergio Junior (29-12-3 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) to earn his spot in the Season 9 welterweight tournament semifinals.

After a grinding opening frame, Keslar floored Junior with a massive right hand to open the second. Junior somehow survived the blow, though he was on defense fr the remainder of the round.

In the third, Junior dropped back for a guillotine choke and squeezed like mad as he settled into full guard. Eventually, he was forced to let it go when Keslar refused to quit. Junior then scrambled into an armbar position, but Keslar again escaped and this time earned his way to his opponent’s back. He finished the round there, clinching his win, albeit by split decision. Keslar now meets War Machine in the semifinal round.

In the night’s first main-card contest, Brent Weedman (22-8-1 MMA, 8-3 BMMA) earned his way into the welterweight tournament semifinals with a slick grappling game that saw him tap a tough Justin Baesman (14-4 MMA, 0-1 BMMA).

Weedman took the fight to the floor quickly and hit a slick transition into an armbar attempt. Baesman refused to give in easily, turning and rolling and escaping a few early attempts, but Weedman kept adjusting the position, eventually rolling over to hi belly and scoring the tap. Weedman now meets Hawn in the semifinals of Bellator’s Season 9 welterweight tournament.

Marx earns incredible comeback, Burley shocks Jenkins

In a bantamweight tournament semifinal, Travis Marx (21-4) scored an impressive come-from-behind victory over Brandon Bender (11-1). It was Bender who nearly ended the fight in the opening round with a nasty anaconda choke that had the referee checking frequently to see if Marx was still conscious. But Marx somehow escaped the hold and survived the round. In the second, Bender look exhausted, and Marx unloaded with vicious left hands and a brutal knee to the body that earned him a second-round TKO win.

Unheralded lightweight LaRue Burley (3-0) earned a shocking upset of the previously undefeated Bubba Jenkins (4-1). The highly touted Jenkins used his wrestling prowess to control the opening round but faded as the fight wore on. Burley picked up the pace and simply outworked his way to win, eventually pounding away at an exhausted Jenkins until the referee was forced to intervene.

McGeary, Adam McDonough impress in early action

In his first fight at 205-pounds, three-time UFC veteran and former middleweight Clifford Starks (9-2) earned a unanimous-decision win over Joe Yager (5-3). While Starks didn’t necessarily wow in his new weightclass, he controlled the action throughout the fight and utilized a strong wrestling game to claim the victory.

Light heavyweight prospect Liam McGeary (5-0) kept his record perfect with an impressive stoppage of Beau Tribolet (7-3). McGreary dropped Tribolet with one massive right hand, and as he toppled to the floor, the Englishman elected to walk away and end the fight before the referee could step in to make the official call. Time of the stop was just 26 seconds.

In a heavyweight matchup 42-year-old slugger Siala-Mou Siliga (4-2) outlasted an exhausted Dan Charles (7-1) to score a third-round stoppage.

In the night’s first fight, Adam McDonough (9-0) assaulted Johnny Buck (12-9) from the opening bell. A timeout for an illegal blow briefly slowed the action, but McDonough resume the attack on the restart and earned a first-round TKO win.

Complete Bellator 100 results include:

MAIN CARD RESULTS

• Douglas Lima def. Ben Saunders via knockout (strikes) – Round 2, 4:33 – Season 8 welterweight tournament final
• War Machine def. Vaughn Anderson via technical submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 4:01 – welterweight tournament opening round
• Rick Hawn def. Herman Terrado via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) – welterweight tournament opening round
• Ron Keslar def. Sergio Junior via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) – welterweight tournament opening round
• Brent Weedman def. Justin Baesman via submission (armbar) – Round 1, 3:20 – welterweight tournament opening round

PRELIMINARY CARD RESULTS

• Efrain Escudero def. Zack Surdyka via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Travis Marx def. Brandon Bender via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:28 – bantamweight tourney semifinal
• LaRue Burley def. Bubba Jenkins via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 3:40
• Clifford Starks def. Joe Yager via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
• Liam McGeary def. Beau Tribolet via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 0:26
• Siala-Mou Siliga def. Dan Charles via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 1:26
• Adam McDonough def. Johnny Buck via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 4:51

For more on Bellator 100, check out the MMA Events section of the site.

(Pictured: Douglas LIma)