THACKERVILLE, Okla. – Tyrell Fortune raised eyebrows during Bellator 239 fight week by proclaiming himself the best heavyweight in the world.
Timothy Johnson had something to say about that when they got into the cage together Friday night.
Veteran Johnson (13-6 MMA, 1-2 BMMA), who was previously winless in Bellator, used a hellacious right hand to knock Fortune (8-1 MMA, 8-1 BMMA) cold in the opening round of their main card bout. The knockout came at the 2:35 mark of the round.
There wasn’t much going on up until the fight’s climactic moment. The duo stalked one another and tried to figure out their ranges.
Johnson plainly found his first, as he flicked a left and then landed his bomb flush on the jaw. Fortune was out by the time he hit the mat and the fight was waved off.
The Las Vegas-based competitor had been in a bad way in recent outings, dropping five off his past eight and losing his first two bouts after leaving the UFC for Bellator. It’s almost needless to say he was thrilled with the result.
“It feels weird – it’s been a while since I’ve been in the win column,” Johnson said after his sixth career KO/TKO victory. “That was definitely what I needed. I needed to come out and make a statement.”
Fortune, whose entire career has been with Bellator, was knocked from the ranks of the unbeaten.
The bout was part of the Bellator 239 main card at WinStar World Casino. The main card aired on Paramount and streamed on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.
Up-to-the-minute Bellator 239 results include:
- Timothy Johnson def. Tyrell Fortune via knockout (punch) — Round 1, 2:35
- Valentin Moldavsky def. Javy Ayala via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-24, 30-24)
- Grant Neal def. Claude Wilcox via TKO (punches) — Round 2, 3:37
- Josh Hill def. Vinicius Zani via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Solo Hatley Jr. def. Gaston Bolanos via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
- Denise Kielholtz def. Kristina Williams via submission (rear-naked choke) — Round 1, 2:15
- Teejay Britton def. Gabriel Varga via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Keith Lee def. Shawn Bunch via unanimous decision (30-26, 29-28, 39-27)
- Christian Edwards def. Marco Hutch via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-25)
