The Bellator MMA cage was in Moscow, Russia on Saturday for Bellator 269 headlined by Russian heavyweight legend Fedor Emelianenko and Tim Johnson.
While Emelianenko is not ranked in the Bellator heavyweight division, Johnson is ranked No. 2. Emelianenko last fought in December 2019, but a win over Johnson would catapult “The Last Emperor” in the rankings.
It was the first time Bellator has hosted an event in Russia, and the spectators inside VTB Arena witnessed Emelianenko score a first-round knockout.
The two stood in front of each other and looked for an opening to land a shot. Emelianenko’s hand speed was apparent early. He landed and got out of the pocket.
Emelianenko unleashed a combination that connected. A left hand landed on the chin of Johnson followed by a right hook that sent him crashing to the canvas. Emelianenko didn’t follow up with any more punches because there was no need to. Johnson was out on the mat.
The night was a successful one for Russian fighters. Emelianenko and his entire team won their bouts.
“I’m happy for the Russian fighters. Everyone did well,” Emelianenko said following the win. “Thank God that everyone managed to win tonight. We already have two champions, and we’re going to prepare another one.”
In the co-main event, former Bellator heavyweight champion Vitaly Minakov suffered a broken finger in the final round of his bout against Said Sowma resulting in a TKO loss. Minakov dominated the opening round, but Sowma made adjustments and came back in the second frame. The injury came at the 3:08 mark into the third round.
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Bellator 269 Official Results:
Main Card
- Fedor Emelianenko def. Tim Johnson by knockout (punches) at 1:46, R1
- Said Sowma def. Vitaly Minakov by TKO (hand injury) at 3:08, R3
- Usman Nurmagomedov def. Patrik Pietilä by submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:06, R1
- Anatoly Tokov def. Sharaf Davlatmurodov by by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Preliminary Card
- Kirill Sidelnikov def. Rab Truesdale by TKO (punches and elbows) at 2:01, R1
- Katarzyna Sadura def. Darina Mazdyuk by TKO (punches) at 3:17, R2
- Irina Alekseeva def. Stephanie lelo Page by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Nikita Mikhailov def. Brian Moore by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Alexey Shurkevich def. Grachik Bozinyan by TKO (punches) at 2:25, R1
- Aiden Lee def. Alexander Osetrov by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:41, R1
Bellator 269 Results: Fedor Emelianenko knocks out Tim Johnson
