Former Bellator heavyweight titleholder Vitaly Minakov is looking to become a two-time world champion, and he took a solid step in that direction over the weekend.
On an evening in which every fight on the card went to a finish, Minakov’s first-round stoppage of Timothy Johnson at Bellator 225 stood out.
Minakov knocked out Johnson at the 1:45 mark in Bridgeport, Conn., and in doing so, shook off the first loss in his professional career. It also helped him make his case for the winner of the upcoming fight between Bellator heavyweight champ Ryan Bader and challenger Cheick Kongo.
With the impressive victory, Minakov crack the top 10 at heavyweight in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMA Junkie rankings. Minakov moves up to No. 9 in the newest poll.
Other than that, with everyone of note except for Bellator off last weekend, there isn’t much movement to the rankings. But if you want to catch up on where all your favorite, or even least-favorite fighters, rank these days, click on the rankings up above.
