Bellator 54 Recap

Bellator 54 had a little of everything but a lot of entertainment.  The finals for the Middleweight tournament are set as Alexander Shlemenko had a gutsy effort against Brian Rogers while Vitor Vianna had little issue with Bryan Baker.  Bantamweight champion Zach Makovsky looked impressive in a non title bout while Jacob Kirwan put a halt to the surging Rene Nazare.

Alexander Shlemenko defeated Brian Rogers by TKO 2:30 2nd Round
My Prediction: Shlemenko by TKO 2nd Round
My Rating: $$$$
What happened: First round saw mostly a stand up battle aside from some clinch work and a nice throw on Schlemenko but the Russian was able to regain guard and eventually get the fight back to its feet.  It you had to score the round it would have to go to Rogers who seemed to land the more significant strikes and had Schlemenko's timing done by hitting his right hand as Schlemenko was coming in.  2nd round started with Rogers timing a Shlemenko spinning back first perfectly to get the fight to the ground.  The fighters reset standing and it was Shlemenko again attempting the spinning back fist again but this time it landed and really hurt Rogers, Shlemenko swarmed on a dazed Rogers with a flurry of knees and punches up against the cage until Rogers fell and had the ref step in to stop the fight.

Future matchups to make: Shlemenko will now face Vitor Vianna in a great Middleweight tournament final.

Vitor Vianna defeated Bryan Baker by TKO :54 1st Round
My Prediction:Vianna by Decision

My Rating: $$$

What happened: Baker came out flying throwing wild shots but it was Vianna who kept his distance and out of danger.  But it was Vianna who landed the biggest strike and his countered Baker with a big right hand that floored Baker up against the cage, Vianna pounced with a kick and some back handed hammer strikes on the defenseless Baker.

Future matchups to make: Vianna will now face Alexander Shlemenko in the Middleweight tournament to decide who gets the next title shot against Hector Lombard.

Zach Makovsky defeated Ryan Roberts by Submission 4:48 1st Round

My Prediction: Makovsky by Decision
My Rating: $$1/2
What happened: The first round was all Makovsky on the ground and on the feet.  Makovsky was able to put Roberts on his back after scoring on the feet and get into side control.  From there Makovsky transitioned into north south position which allowed him to sink in the choke that forced Roberts to tap as the round was near its end.

Future matchups to make: Great performance by Makovsky who beats the larger fighter with ease, Zach will now wait on the winner of this seasons Bantamweight tournament for his next challenge.

Jacob Kirwan defeated Rene Nazare by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 20-27, 29-28)
My Prediction: Nazare by Submission 1st Round

My Rating: $$

What happened: It was 2 for 2 for the Kirwan brothers as Jacob's brother Joey was also victorious during the prelim portion of the event.  Kirwan was able to get Nazare on his back through most of the fight and was even able to secure side control on the black belt at some times.  Nazare started out alright winning the 1st round in one judges eyes and finished the 3rd round in a dominate position on top of Kirwan but was unable to capitalize.

Future matchups to make: Kirwan has definitely thrown his hat into the next Lightweight tournament with the big win.

Tweet