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Bellator 218 emanated from the WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, Oklahoma which was headlined by a Featherweight bout between Emmanuel Sanchez and Georgi Karakhanyan.
This was the second meeting between the two fighters as their first outing saw Sanchez pick up a majority decision victory over the Armenian-American Karakhanyan at Bellator 170.
The co-main event of the evening was a heavyweight showdown between Valentin Moldavsky and Linton Vassell, who returned to the 205 lbs division after 10 ten years.
It was stacked card from top to bottom with six undercard fights accompanying the four major fights that were featured on the main card. There were finishes, hard-fought decisions and some a good-old comeback victory on an entertaining night of fights.
So without any further delay, let's jump right into the results:
Bellator 218 Prelims Results
* Johnny Eblen def. Chauncey Foxworth via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
* Deborah Kouzmin def. Ky Bennett via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
* Victoria Leonardo def. Malin Hermansson via Submission (Armbar) (4:49, Round 1)
* Vladimir Tokov def. Ryan Walker via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
* John Macapa def. Kevin Croom via Unanimous Decision (30-26, 30-26, 29-27)
* Jordan Newman def. Joseph Holmes via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
There were three more fights that were listed but weren't aired on DAZN card, which would be available after the main card. Those fights are:
* Nation Gibrick vs. Nicholas Page
* Aaron Vickers vs. Isaiah Gutierrez
* Craig Fairly vs. Luis Erives
#4 Norbert Novenyi (3-0) vs. William Lavine (1-1) (Middleweight)
A Middleweight contest between two MMA rookies kicked off the main card as Hungarian prospect Norbert Novenyi Jr. took on William 'The Thrill' Lavine.
It was a dominating performance by Novenyi, who began the fight on the offensive with a quick takedown. There were many moments in the first round where Lavine was threatened to be finished, but the American somehow managed to survive the Hungarian's onslaught.
Novenyi was constantly looking for a submission finish as he attempted a standing Guillotine, a heel hook, a Von Flue Choke while also getting Lavine's back a couple of times during the first round.
Novenyi's corner urged him to finish off the fight and that is exactly what he did in the following round as he came out dancing around his opponent. He connected with a spinning elbow and got the takedown after a minute into the second round. Novenyi assumed full mount position and quickly transitioned to side control for the Head and Arm Triangle Choke. He successfully locked in the choke and forced a tap out of Lavine.
Result: Norbert Novenyi def. William Levin via Submission (Head and Arm Triangle Choke) (4:05, Round 2)
The impressive display proves Novenyi is no pushover and can be one of the brightest prospects of the 185 lbs division of Bellator.
#2 Anatoly Tokov (27-2) vs. Gerald Harris (25-7) (Middleweight)
Gerald Harris came into the fight looking for his first Bellator win and he was whiskers away from getting the job done, however, the Russian Anatoly Tokov showed legitimate toughness to pull off a quintessential MMA comeback.
Harris absolutely rocked Tokov in the first round with a monstrous left shot and followed it up with pressurizing with a string of rights. On any other day, Tokov would have dropped dead and Harris would have had his arms raised. Not today though.
A wobbly Tokov hung in there and clinched for his dear life. He survived to see another round. Harris began the second round in similar vein as he came in rushing with a big left.
Tokov had woken up by now and checked Harris with a body kick and then grappled him to the mat. The Russian worked out a Ten Finger Guillotine Choke and gave Harris no option but to submit.
Result: Anatoly Tokov def. Gerald Harris via Submission (Guillotine Choke) (0:37, Second Round)
Gerald 'The Hurricane' Harris has now lost three of his four Bellator fights with one of them ending in a draw. As for Tokov, his undefeated Bellator record remains spotless as he notched up his fourth victory on the trot and he did so in true Russian style.
#3 Valentine Moldavsky (7-1) vs. Linton Vassell (18-7) (Heavyweight)
Linton Vassell's jump back to Heavyweight after nearly ten years was a much-anticipated event in itself. A lot was expected from the former Light Heavyweight title contender, but he needed to be game as he was up against the talented Valentine Moldavsky. These Russians are dangerous!
'The Swarm' won the first round as took Moldavsky down twice throughout the round and even controlled positions while on the mat. He ended the round in half-guard and looked decent as a 205+ fighter.
Moldavsky, though, clawed his way back into the fight as he got in a takedown in the second round and found himself in some solid positions in top guard in the second round. Moldavsky imposed himself on Vassell at the end of the second round and even attempted an Arm Triangle Choke. Vassell, though, defended well and forced the fight into the decider. It was one-a-piece up on the scorecard up until this point.
Both men were exhausted as the third round began, in which, Moldavsky wasted no time and took Vassell down within 22 seconds. The fight continued on the ground until the end of the round as Moldavsky pinned Vassell down and took the round.
Result: Valentine Moldavsky def. Linton Vassell via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Vassell's return to Heavyweight didn't pan out the way he expected as Moldavsky endured a rocky first round to notch up his third straight win in Bellator.
#4 Emmanuel Sanchez (17-4) vs. Georgi Karakhanyan (28-8-1) (Featherweight)
The second fight between Emmanuel 'El Matador' Sanchez vs. Georgi 'Insane' Karakhanyan main evented Bellator 218. Sanchez was coming off a loss against Bellator Featherweight Champion Patricio Freire while Georgi's last outing against Timur Nagibin for Absolute Championship Akhmat ended in a no-contest.
The fight began with both the Featherweights engaging in a stand-up battle. Left hooks and kicks were some of the highlights of the exchange as Karakhanyan got in a takedown at the end. He remained on top of Sanchez for a majority of the round and kept chipping away with strikes.
Karakhanyan got in a successful takedown early into the second round but Sanchez was smarter this time and positioned himself with his back against the cage. Due to inactivity, the referee called for a stand-up and Sanchez wasted no time in taking Karakhanyan down to the mat. Sanchez attempted to set up a rear-naked choke but Karakhanyan defended admirably well, which was expected of the Armenian who has rarely found himself in a position of bother on the ground. It was an even fight as both men had one round each in the books.
A similar pattern repeated itself as Karakhanyan went for an aggressive takedown at the beginning of the third round but Sanchez defended with conviction. Sanchez upped the tempo as the round progressed. He reversed a single leg takedown from Karakhanyan and connected with some solid shots from top position.
Karakhanyan ate some big shots but somehow survived until the final bell as Sanchez looked to unsuccessfully close the fight with a kimura.
Result: Emmanuel Sanchez def. Georgi Karakhanyan via Unanimous Decision (29-28-29-28-29-28)
Sanchez 2 - Karakhanyan 0, and that's all there is to this rivalry. Sanchez showed more focus as he weathered the storm and smartly imposed his will to get back into the winner's column.
