Johhny Eblen might’ve been lucky he stopped Fabian Edwards when he did.
The Bellator middleweight champion was winning on all scorecards before stopping Edwards (12-3 MMA, 8-3 BMMA) early in the third round of their Bellator 299 main event at 3Arena in Dublin, but he was also carrying a nasty gash on his right eyebrow that could’ve jeopardized his fight.
Edwards cut Eblen (14-0 MMA, 10-0 BMMA) with an elbow while separating from a clinch exchange in the second round.
Below is a picture of the aftermath courtesy of Eblen’s teammate, UFC lightweight Dustin Poirier:
Champ said its just a scratch @JohnnyEblen pic.twitter.com/iOl5WwoWZb
— The Diamond (@DustinPoirier) September 23, 2023
This was Eblen’s second title defense of the middleweight belt. His first defense came in February against Russia’s Anatoly Tokov in a unanimous decision win. “Pressure” became champion in June 2022 when he took the belt from respected veteran Gegard Mousasi.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for Bellator 299.
Photo: Johnny Eblen’s eyebrow cut from Bellator 299 title defense is one of the nastiest of all time