Watch Mike Kimbel's pro debut at Bellator 194 with a sick – and scary – slam KO

UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Mike Kimbel admitted 30 minutes after his fight that, yeah, the way he won was a little scary.

Kimbel (1-0 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) landed a vicious right hand early in his Bellator 194 bantamweight prelim fight against Geoffrey Then (0-2 MMA, 0-1 BMMA). When Then hit the canvas, Kimbel was all over him in a hurry.

Then’s way to recovery was to grab Kimbel’s arm and threaten with an armbar. Given Kimbel was coming in with a 4-4 amateur record that saw him submitted in three of his four losses, it probably was a smart move.

But Kimbel had a counter, and it was devastating. He picked Then up and slammed him to the canvas – dropping him on his neck and head. It was the kind of slam that elicits a response somewhat akin to “Holy $&*@, I think he just broke that dude’s neck.”

A couple punches later, and Kimbel had his first pro win just 63 seconds into his pro debut – and on a pretty big stage for Bellator. Check out the finish in the video above.

Afterward, Kimbel told MMAjunkie backstage that it was indeed a scary slam, but that he was more than happy to play in the jiu-jitsu world – since he considers that his strong suit now – despite those amateur submission losses.

“Honestly, I train three times a day,” Kimbel said. “I’m putting in the work to be the best at this. I’m 20 years old, I look good, I don’t get punched, I’m fast … I want to be the best in the world.”

He certainly is off to the right kind of start for a goal that lofty.

For complete coverage of Bellator 194, check out the MMA Events section of the site.