From young prospects to grizzled vets, Bellator 262 offered a lot of great fights. The main card was capped off by a women’s flyweight title contest between Juliana Velasquez and Denise Kielholtz. Here are the biggest winners and losers of Bellator 262.
Winners and Losers of Bellator 262
Losers:
Linton Vassell
Linton Vassell did not step inside the cage at Bellator 262. Due to an undisclosed injury, his bout with Marcelo Golm was taken off the card. With a win, “The Swarm” could have moved one step closer to a shot at the heavyweight title. Now, Vassell will have to heal while heavyweights like Tyrell Fortune make strides towards heavyweight gold.
Ronny Markes
In the featured preliminary matchup, Ronny Markes looked to pick up his first win under the Bellator banner against Said Sowma. Markes, who formerly competed for the UFC and PFL, lost his promotional debut against Linton Vassell at Bellator 254. Unfortunately for the 27-fight vet, the night was short after Sowma landed a stiff left hand that put him to sleep. It will be interesting to see if Sowma lands in the rankings after his performance.
Somewhere in the Middle:
Charlie Campbell
Charlie Campbell scored a comeback victory in the opening fight of Bellator 262 over Nicholas Giulietti—a victory that will most likely earn “The Cannibal” a contract with MMA’s second biggest promotion. In his post-fight interview, Campbell called out YouTube’s boxing sensation, Jake Paul, to a fight inside the Bellator cage. Citing Campbell’s desire to be the next big thing in Bellator’s 155-lb. division, it’s interesting to see him call out The Problem Child.
Winners:
Gabriella Gulfin
Yes, Gabriella Gulfin lost her fight. However, the Class One MMA flyweight proved that she belongs in the 125-lb. division. “GDaddy” showed her raw talent in her bout against Diana Avsaragova, and even earned the nod of one of the three judges scoring cageside. Gulfin will certainly make her way back into the Bellator cage.
Cody Law
If there was any doubt that Cody Law is legit, the doubt is gone now. The 26-year old prospect put his undefeated record on the line when he stepped into the cage against Theodore Macuka. Law, using his patience and picking his shots, quickly dismantled Macuka. Law finished the fight in 1:54 in the very first round. With such a dominant performance, the American Top Team featherweight may look to crack the top ten soon.
Johnny Eblen
Johnny Eblen had the most complete performance of the night with his win over Travis Davis. Utilizing explosive forward movement, stiff leg kicks, heavy, smothering wrestling, and range control, Davis had no answer for Eblen’s technique. “The Korean Canelo” improved to 9-0 and undoubtedly moved one step closer to a shot at the 185-lb. title.
Juliana Velasquez
Juliana Velasquez successfully defended her flyweight title against Denise Kielholtz. Despite being out struck 2-1, Velasquez walked away with a split decision victory. In her post fight interview, Velasquez noted potential fights between Ilima-Lei MacFarlane and Liz Carmouche.
Who do you think was the best performer of the night? Who had the toughest go? Let us know below.
