UNCASVILLE, Conn. – Phil Davis put all facets of his game on display when he defeated Karl Albrektsson on Friday night.
The bout between Davis (21-5 MMA, 8-2 BMMA) and Albrektsson (9-3 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) served as the co-main event of Bellator 231.
What started out in the opening minute as a tit-for-tat affair ended as a dominant TKO victory for Davis. Former Bellator light heavyweight champion Davis handled Albrektsson for the majority of two rounds before he bullied and finished the Swede late in Round 3.
The first round was the closest of the three, but still was largely dominated by Davis. In the second round, “Mr. Wonderful” dropped Albrektsson with a punch.
Davis really took over in the third, big-brothering his opponent. After landing a series of vicious picks, Davis muscled Albrektsson to the ground against the cage. A series of punches and elbows followed. The strikes didn’t stop raining down until referee Kevin MacDonald had seen enough and called off the fight at the 3:06 mark of Round 3.
In his post-fight interview, Davis made a plea to the Bellator brass to make a light heavyweight grand prix happen in the near future. The victory is Davis’ fourth in his past five fights.
Bellator 231 was a first for Albrektsson. The Swedish light heavyweight made his promotional debut after winning his RIZIN debut in April. The loss to Davis snapped a three-fight win streak.
The light heavyweight bout was the Bellator 231 co-main event at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. The main card aired on Paramount and streamed on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.
Up-to-the-minute Bellator 231 results include:
- Phil Davis def. Karl Albrektsson via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 3:06
- Ed Ruth def. Jason Jackson via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Ilara Joanne def. Bec Rawlings via submission (kneebar) – Round 2, 3:35
- Jake Hager vs. Anthony Garrett declared no contest (accidental low blow by Hager) – Round 1, 1:56
- Phumi Nkuta def. Adrian Haly via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
- Connor Dixon def. Orkhan Ismatzade via submission (kimura) – Round 1, 0:42
- Killys Mota def. Mandel Nallo via TKO (injury) – Round 3, 1:16
- Jessy Miele def. Talita Nogueira via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27)
- Steve Mowry def. Gokhan Saricam via submission (kimura) – Round 2, 0:56
- Dalton Rosta def. Claude Wilcox via TKO (ground-and-pound) – Round 2, 4:23
- Tim Caron def. Lucas Pimenta Borges via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Jon Manley def. Thiago Oliveira via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Elise Reed def. Rebecca Bryggman via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:48
