A legendary venue set the stage for the biggest night of fights in Bellator’s history as a fight promotion. A list of epic names anchored the billing as the man widely regarded as the greatest heavyweight of all time in Fedor Emelianenko joined fellow pioneers Wanderlei Silva and Chael Sonnen as the premier attractions on the card.
 
Outside of those stars, heavyweight brawler Matt Mitrione, lightweight king Michael Chandler and striking machines Douglas Lima and Lorenz Larkin brought relevant substance to the pay-per-view portion while a pair of former UFC vets in Ryan Bader and Phil Davis added some additional championship heat.
 
Throw in a pair of highly touted prospects in Aaron Pico and James Gallagher to the mix, and the stage was set for Bellator to have a definitive showing at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night.
 
And while Bellator President Scott Coker and company made all the right steps to set up something special for the promotion’s New York debut, but all the star power in the world wouldn’t without execution.

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Truly memorable events--the kind that become watershed moments for an operation in the fight game--depend on a lot of moving parts which all have to come together in unison. When the UFC debuted at the same venue last November, a great night of action served as the set up to Irish superstar Conor McGregor becoming the promotion’s first two-weight champion when he drubbed Eddie Alvarez at UFC 205.
 
And while Bellator NYC lacked a mega-watt phenomenon the likes of McGregor, there were plenty of crucial tilts to draw the eyes of the fight game as a whole. Considering the ground Bellator has made on the industry leader over the past year, a home run in Manhattan on Saturday night could serve to change the entire conversation in regard to what’s hot and what’s not in mixed martial arts.
 
Given Bellator’s cable distribution model making the jump into pay-per-view waters was a definite risk, but when the proverbial smoke cleared at Madison Square Garden, Bellator’s hand was raised strong. On the biggest night of the promotion’s history, under a roof where some of the definitive moments in combat sports history were made, the second most successful outfit in the game stamped a brand new chapter.
 
The new and improved Bellator has arrived and let’s take a look at all the good, bad and strange that went down on Saturday night to make that happen.
 

The Good

Chael Sonnen's entire career in MMA has been about taking risks.

The Gangster from West Linn has put himself has a long track record of stepping up to take fights where he'd be a long shot at best, but his willingness to face all-time greats like Anderson Silvas and Jon Jones has endeared Sonnen to fight fans around the world. Nevertheless, although Sonnen has taken some big losses in high profile tilts, his most recent setback was a game changer of sorts.

The Oregon native returned from a long layoff to face MMA legend Tito Ortiz at Bellator 170 back in January and after getting submitted via rear-naked choke it put Sonnen face-to-face with a harsh reality. For the better part of the past decade he'd been a guaranteed draw and a relevant fighter no matter which weight class he competed in, but after losing to Ortiz that very relevance was in question.

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Sonnen needed a victory and a fight fans would care about, and when Bellator brought him a bout against Wanderlei Silva everything he needed was there for the taking. That said, getting the job done against the Brazilian legend would be no easy task, and if he failed at doing so, the career he's forged with slick talk and promotional sound bites would go up in smoke.

Fortunately for Sonnen, that career will continue due to a dominant performance on Saturday night in Madison Square Garden.

While his showing was far from flawless and Sonnen was rocked with a few big shots from Silva, the former UFC title challenger put his wrestling chops to work and ground out a unanimous decision victory. The "Bad Guy" earned a much-needed win, then spit in the face of New Yorkers and called out a heavyweight legend who is probably concussed somewhere in the back of the Garden.

There's only one Chael Sonnen folks and he's here to stay.


Photo Credit: © Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Matt Mitrione has enjoyed a solid career in mixed martial arts, but the former NFL player turned fighter has been on a different mission since signing to Bellator last year.

The affable "Meathead" became a beloved fan-favorite after his stint on The Ultimate Fighter, but his penchant for engaging in slobber knockers and suffering setbacks in big fights made a climb to the top of the heap a difficult destination to reach. Nevertheless, Mitrione parted ways with the UFC, signed on with Bellator and has quickly become one of the promotion's biggest stars in the process.

On Saturday night in New York City, Mitrione put that star power on the line as he stepped in for the biggest fight of his career against Fedor Emelianenko.

While the Russian legend isn't the same invincible smashing machine he once was, the former Pride champion is still very much a dangerous competitor once the cage door closes. Both Mitrione and Emelianenko posses one punch knockout power, and that nearly translated for both when they landed simultaneous punches in the early goings of the first round.

Mitrione put a right hand on Emelianenko's chin and Fedor returned the favor in trade and in a shocking turn both men crumpled to the canvas. Mitrione was a touch more aware than his opponent and quickly scrambled to put a few more shots on the Russian legend. Fortunately for Mitrione the heat he throws is nasty and all it took was one clean shot to leave Emelianenko stretched out stiff.

With the win, Mitrione has now notched three consecutive victories under the Bellator banner, and has made himself the front runner for a shot at the heavyweight title, which remains vacant at the current time.


Photo Credit: Ed Mullholland USA TODAY

There were few who gave Zach Freeman a chance going into his bout with Aaron Pico at Bellator NYC.

With all the hype surrounding the super prospect, Freeman showing up to be defeated seemed to be the storyline the majority of fight fans subscribed to. Freeman wasn't on that list. The Missouri native showed up to the press conferences, made jokes about working a day job and getting in training time, but promised he would shock the world on Saturday night.

That's exactly what Freeman did.

Pico attempted to rush him as soon as the fight got underway, but a head kick and uppercut in the clinch took the wrestling sensation's legs from underneath him. Freeman immediately pounced on a guillotine, but after Pico started to fight off his hands, the veteran switched up the choke and locked in a fight-ending d'arce. The biggest upset of the night was secured and Freeman will go back to his day job on Monday a certified hero and badass.


Jun 24, 2017; New York, NY, USA; Douglas Lima (red gloves) reacts to fight against Lorenz Larkin (blue gloves) during Bellator NYC at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports 

Douglas Lima has flown under the radar as one of the most dangerous strikers in the game for years. He's also become one of the best welterweight fighters in the world during that process as well.

The American Top Team fighter earned championship gold after years of leveling his opposition, then showed resilience by battling back from a lengthy injury to reclaim the belt he lost by knocking out the man who took it from him initially. The only thing truly missing from Lima's resume was a big win against a competitor who not only held respect from the community at large, but one who presented an equal amount of danger inside the cage.

That's where Lorenz Larkin entered the picture.

After a rough run as a middleweight, "Da Monsoon" dropped down to compete in welterweight waters. The results were career-altering as Larkin notched victories in all but one of his five showings at 170 pounds, which included a victory over Jorge Masvidal at UFC Fight Night 88 in May of 2016. Larkin generated enough heat to up his value on the free agent market and was heralded for taking his talents to Bellator.

With Larkin joining the roster, Lima suddenly had an opponent that represented everything he needed, and when Bellator booked the fight for Madison Square Garden "The Phenom" had the stage he'd been looking to showcase his skills upon.

There was a solid buzz about the fight leading into Saturday night in New York City as many figured the tilt between Lima and Larkin to be the an all-out, face-punching and kicking frenzy. And while the bout had lulls of ruckus here and there, both fighters certainly delivered on the violence.

Larkin pressed. Lima countered. Knees were buckled and bodies touched the canvas a time or two.

Midway through the third round Lima's speed, timing and ability to close the distance at will put him in the driver's seat and the Brazilian never looked back. Lima put on an impressive performance, defended his title and earned a different level of credibility all because he was able to truly seize the moment in front of him.

 Jun 24, 2017; New York, NY, USA; James Gallagher (red gloves) reacts to fight against Chinzo Machida during (blue gloves) Bellator NYC at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports
 
On a night filled with super prospects looking to make a transition to bigger things, James Gallagher certainly made the most of his moment at Madison Square Garden.

The John Kavanagh-trained featherweight has drawn a solid amount of attention since arriving to Bellator last year, but his performances mixed with a unique knack for self-promotion not unlike another "Notorious" Irishman have the 20-year-old grappling ace picking up steam on his rocket launch toward the stratosphere. The only thing missing for Gallagher thus far was an impressive victory over a recognizable name, and that's precisely what he picked up on Saturday night at Bellator 180.

The SBG product squared off with Chinzo Machida on the Spike TV portion of the broadcast. The Machida family representative's karate-heavy attack and the physical riddle that presents was figured to be a solid test for the talented young Gallagher's. Wrong.

As soon as the referee stepped aside Gallagher sprinted across the cage to box Machida in. Lyoto's brother attempted to maneuver out with feints and front kick, but a slick, lightning quick level change put Gallagher in control and Machida on his back. A few moments later Gallagher moved to full mount and the clock on Machida's survival began to tick away.

After landing a few solid shots Gallagher sunk in a fight-ending rear-naked choke and a tap from Machida put a solid stamp on the rising featherweight star's showing at Madison Square Garden.

With an undefeated record and four-straight victories under the Bellator banner it's clear Gallagher is rapidly becoming one of the promotion's brightest young stars. Gallagher doesn't show up to get through fights, he comes to put on a show and finish the man standing across from him inside the cage. And with the fires of rivalry blooming with fellow prospects A.J. McKee and Aaron Pico, Gallagher has put himself in position to lock down some high profile tilts in the very near future.

Well done young man. Well done indeed.


Jun 24, 2017; New York, NY, USA; James Gallagher (red gloves) reacts to fight against Chinzo Machida during (blue gloves) Bellator NYC at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports 

The lion’s share of the spotlight belonged to the fighters on the pay-per-view portion of the card, but there was a solid amount of noise made by the lesser known athletes on the night. Anthony Giacchina emerged victorious in a solid little scrap with Jerome Mickle, and Brad Desir followed that submission finish up with a tasty knockout of his own against Nate Grebb in the very next fight.
 
Again...there wasn’t a ton of expectation to be had on the undercard, but the fighters mentioned certainly made the most of their time on the big stage Saturday night.

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The Bad

Watching Fedor Emelianenko get knocked out is a special level of bad that is difficult to write about.

The cold, stoic gaze. The mystique surrounding the Russian legend. The resume that makes him GOAT. All of those things vanish in a flash when you see Emelianenko laid out on the canvas. It's just too much for our passionate MMA hearts and needs no further explanation in this column. I choose to keep my memories of Fedor proper like after Kevin Randleman slammed him to the depths of Hades, only to see Fedor climb back from the fiery depths to secure victory.

That's the Emelianenko I choose to remember and hopefully suffering a knockout loss at Madison Square Garden will prompt the legend to call it quits.


Photo Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

After hitting rough waters or glass ceilings both Phil Davis and Ryan Bader left the UFC for a new start in Bellator.

"Mr. Wonderful" found immediate success and rolled out a winning streak that led to the Bellator light heavyweight title. "Darth" was initially set to fight Muhammed Lawal, but an injury to "King Mo" set the stage for Davis and Bader to handle their business with some championship gold on the line.

With the two having previously fought under the UFC banner, their rematch at Bellator 180 had a good bit of energy in the lead up. That's where the good ended. Perhaps it's due to how their respective styles matchup inside the cage or some other hovering factor, but the action throughout the 25-minute affair just wasn't exciting.


Jun 24, 2017; New York, NY, USA; Phill Davis (red gloves) fights Ryan Bader (blue gloves) during Bellator NYC at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Granted, Bader landed some clean shots and Davis' superman punch followed by a right hook combo had a nice pop, but the were limited to say it kindly.

The boos rolled in heavy from the Madison Square Garden crowd throughout and things never got better. And therein lies a strange phenomenon in MMA. Had the two accomplished wrestlers decided to grapple the crowd in MSG could have been moved to riot, instead the two light heavyweights decided to keep things on the feet where a sluggish standup fight ensued.

The end result saw Bader take a split-decision victory and earn the first championship belt of his career. For a fighter who has battled through ups and downs yet still remained elite and hungry, that's a strong positive to take from Saturday night. It just happened to be at the end of a five round sleeper. Furthermore, if a chess match of a fight that crowns a new champion is one of the "bad" things of an entire event it goes to show just how live things were at Bellator NYC.



Speaking of bad, a champion losing his belt due to suffering an injury is the worst way things could go down. It's as anti-climactic as it gets, and the man who took the title gets no reward for winning.

This was precisely the scenario that unfolded when the fight between lightweight champion Michael Chandler and Brent Primus was waved off by the cageside doctor due to an issue with the titleholder's foot/ankle. The crowd booed Primus relentlessly, and cheered Chandler who remained resilient in the face of a horrible turn. Literally any other scenario would have been welcomed in the moment, but instead fight fans are stuck with what we got.

Primus came out throwing heat at Chandler's legs, and it was clear something was amiss when the champion stumbled forward and struggled to put weight on his front leg. Chandler battled like Hell to regain his footing, but Primus continued to pour it on strong with kick after kick to the Missouri native's legs. The referee called timeout to have Chandler's injury examined, and several moments later the fight was officially waived off.

The newly minted champion began to scream and celebrate while the injured former champion shook his head in disgust. The capacity crowd vocalized their disapproval in heavy fashion and the moment hung stale.

Just an unfortunate turn for both Primus and Chandler at Bellator NYC. No other way to put it.

The Strange

 
 The mystery surrounding Aaron Pico is just something you don’t ever see in the current era of MMA.
 
By the time fighters arrive at one of the major stages, there is typically plenty of fight footage amassed from their climb from the regional circuit to one of the premier organizations. This allows media, fans and future opponents alike to track the progress a fighter makes on their way to becoming the competitor they’ll eventually become.
 
In regard to the 20-year-old wrestling and boxing turned MMA phenom Pico, that simply isn’t the case.
 
Pico originally made his name on wrestling mats around the globe and looked to be making an eventual transition into boxing. That said, the California native’s refusal to abandon the foundation he’d forged in wrestling eventually made MMA the better fit for his future.

 
When Pico signed with Bellator back in November of 2014, the hype around him surged even though his eventual debut was way off on the horizon. The volume of the buzz surrounding him would surge and dip over the next two and a half years as Bellator proved to be more than content playing the slow build in the long game.
 
Everything would accelerate upon the arrival of fight week as Pico addressed the media at press conferences and a collection of interviews with all the big sites in MMA made their rounds. The peak moment of Pico hype came during a segment on ESPN’s SportsCenter during primetime hours, which is a luxury no other Bellator fighter before him had enjoyed.
 
Yet and still, Pico’s skills would finally be revealed to the world on Saturday night at Madison Square Garden, and it would be difficult to find another hype train who was derailed harder than what took place on Saturday night at the hands of Zach Freeman.


Jun 24, 2017; New York, NY, USA; Aaron Pico (red gloves) fights Zach Freeman (blue gloves) during Bellator NYC at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Pico came across the cage attempting to hunt the Missouri native down and ate a knee in the process. Pico's wrestling mind kicked in and he attempted to work the clinch, but an uppercut from Freeman stunned and dropped the highly touted prospect. Freeman immediately went for a guillotine, then adjusted his hands to lock in a d'arce choke that forced Pico to tap.

The Madison Square Garden sat stunned, and a fighter who received a bigger push than any other fighter in Bellator history was laid out on the canvas. There's no doubt Pico will recover and build his name back up strong, but there was a huge opportunity lost on Saturday night. The first impression holds so much sway in MMA, and the amount of energy and maneuvering put into grooming Pico for his arrival cleared a lane for something special to roll out in New York City.

Instead, it's going to be back to the drawing board for Pico and his team, and a young man who has been battling expectations since he was eight years old, will find himself staring at the biggest uphill battle of his competitive career. Pico's history in wrestling shows his resilience, and he'll need every ounce of that on the road ahead.


Jun 24, 2017; New York, NY, USA; Heather Hardy (red gloves) fights Alice Yauger (blue gloves) during Bellator NYC at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Another fighter with a seat on the hype train is former women's boxing champion turned Bellator flyweight Heather Hardy.

Over the past few years we've seen fighters like Holly Holm make the transition to slinging heat with smaller gloves, but the arrival of Hardy felt a bit different. Her accolades and accomplishments in the sweet science are certainly remarkable, but choosing to make her MMA debut on the biggest card in Bellator history felt like a super high risk move.

Nevertheless, that is the decision Hardy chose to make, and her performance on Saturday night Alice Yauger provided more questions than answers.

While Hardy dotted Yauger with combinations throughout the tilt, the crisp execution many expected to see just wasn't there throughout the first two frames. Hardy's jab found a home, but whatever the New Yorker brought behind her lead seemed slow and looping. Surprisingly enough, Yauger stayed with her in the exchanges and managed to do a fair bit of damage herself in the first 10 minutes.

Although Hardy was up on the cards going into the final frame, everything seemed to be rolling toward a successful, yet lackluster debut showing. And when an accidental headbutt opened a nasty cut above her left eye, it further signaled to a good enough showing to cross the finish line. Nevertheless, whatever happened inside Hardy's mind when the cut was opened unleashed a monster behind all that blood.


Jun 24, 2017; New York, NY, USA; Heather Hardy (red gloves) fights Alice Yauger (blue gloves) during Bellator NYC at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

Coming out after the break Hardy opened a massive can of whoop ass on Yauger. The sluggish combinations she'd thrown in the early goings were replaced by blistering left and right hands that put Yauger on her heels in a big way. After a bomb of a right sat Yauger on the canvas, Hardy allowed her opponent to get back up for more beatdown goodness.

Yauger attempted to find her bearings but Hardy continued to pour it on strong. She snapped Yauger's head back with punch after punch until referee John McCarthy stepped in to stop the fight. In a 40-second turn Hardy's debut went from slightly disappointing to promising complete with a highlight reel flurry of a finish.

And while Hardy's performance will not put her at world beater status from the jump, getting a stoppage win over a tough opponent on a massive stage will certainly go toward making her a bigger name in the larger scheme of things. That scenario will also keep the hype behind her rolling strong and that's all any prospect can ever hope for in an uncertain and chaotic realm like combat sports.

Aaron Pico would certainly change places with Hardy if the clock could be turned back, but these things happen in MMA (Gus Johnson voice).

Oh what a night it was at Madison Square Garden for Bellator NYC. 

Two heavyweight juggernauts nearly marked the most epic double KO in MMA history. A pair of highly touted prospects got the job done while one suffered an epic fall from grace. A gritty champion tried to fight on one foot and the underdog turned champion was relentlessly booed because of how the fates decided to play things.

The great and powerful Lord Chaos was summoned leading into the pay-per-view portion of the card and when the Master chooses to grace an event there's no doubting his existence. Everything at Bellator NYC showed his mark and we are all better for it. 

Bellator wanted to put on a memorable show--one that stamped its arrival as a threat to the UFC--and by all measures it was mission accomplished on Saturday night.

Ole Bo out. Until next time NYC.