5 Defining Moments: Bellator in 2022

Another year has zipped on by with Bellator MMA firmly entrenched as the No. 2 game in town for mixed martial arts, as the 2022 campaign saw the Scott Coker-led organization promote 213 fights across 17 events. Championships changed hands, new talent rose to the occasion and the embers of any number of rivalries were stoked between Jan. 29 and Dec. 9. It was a memorable 12 months for the company.

As Bellator preps plans and lays the groundwork for future endeavors, a look at five of the many moments that came to define it over the last 365 days:

1. Spin Class

Andrey Koreshkov gutted Alliance MMA export Chance Rencountre with a spinning back kick to the body and follow-up punches in the first round of their Bellator 274 co-main event on Feb. 19 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. Rencountre checked out 38 seconds into Round 1, tasting defeat for the first time in more than two years. Koreshkov tested the waters with leg kicks, then unleashed. He buried his heel into Rencountre’s midsection with exquisite power, speed and technique. The Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran winced in visible pain and collapsed to the canvas, where Koreshkov mopped up what was left with a volley of standing-to-ground punches. It was the third sub-minute stoppage victory of Koreskhov’s 29-fight career. Afterward, it was revealed that the kick had left Rencountre with broken ribs and a punctured lung. He has not fought since.

2. Response Time

Patricio Freire avenged a prior submission defeat and reclaimed the Bellator MMA featherweight throne for a third time when he laid claim to a unanimous decision over A.J. McKee in the Bellator 277 headliner on April 15 at the SAP Center in San Jose, California. Scores were 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47. McKee struggled to find an offensive rhythm. The resourceful Freire kept him off-balance with repeated kicks to the inside and outside of his lead leg, pieced together occasional punching combinations and threatened him with a guillotine choke in the third round. McKee did his best work in Round 5, where he executed multiple takedowns, stayed busy with his hands and zeroed in on the Brazilian’s midsection with kicks. Those efforts ultimately fell short in the eyes of the judiciary, as Freire moved to a perfect 6-0 in rematches.

3. First of its Kind

Oliver Enkamp etched his name in Bellator MMA lore forever when he executed the first buggy choke submission in the company’s history at the expense of Mark Lemminger as part of the Bellator 281 undercard on May 13 at the SSE Arena in London. Lemminger conceded defeat 25 seconds into Round 3. Enkamp surprised the Chosen Few Gym representative in the first round, where he troubled him in the clinch and made even more headway on the ground, moving into top position on multiple occasions. Lemminger was undeterred. He dropped the Swede with a right hook in the middle stanza, then seemed to seize the reins by pushing the action to the mat on his terms and flexing his superiority there with top control and an active submission attack. However, it all came crashing down on the American in the third. Enkamp conceded a takedown on an ill-conceived spinning attack but trapped his counterpart in the buggy choke. Lemminger tapped after a brief struggle, leaving many to wonder what exactly they had witnessed.

4. Changing of the Guard

American Top Team’s Johnny Eblen rose to power and captured the undisputed Bellator MMA middleweight crown when he cruised to a unanimous decision over Gegard Mousasi in the Bellator 282 main event on June 24 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. All three cageside judges scored it 50-45. Eblen decked the champion with a sharp right hook mere seconds into the match, put his foot on the accelerator and never looked back. He took down Mousasi repeatedly over the course of their 25-minute encounter, refusing to allow “The Dreamcatcher” to get in gear in the standup department. Eblen—who wrestled collegiately at the University of Missouri—grew stronger and more confident in the latter rounds, shutting off all possible avenues for a rally. So ended Mousasi’s second reign atop the division at 604 days.

5. An Act of Supremacy

Vadim Nemkov strengthened his iron grip on the 205-pound championship and took a unanimous decision from Corey Anderson, as their Bellator MMA light heavyweight grand prix final headlined Bellator 288 on Nov. 18 at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. Scores were 48-47, 49-46 and 49-46, though the margins felt much wider. Nemkov leaned on a crisp jab, sharp counters and stingy takedown defense across the 25-minute affair. He sat down Anderson with a glancing wheel kick at the end of the first round, opened a cut near his right eye with persistent jabs in the third and later targeted his base with crushing leg kicks. “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 19 winner dug deep into his bag of tricks but went nowhere, as his bids for takedowns grew increasingly desperate and his attempts to lure Nemkov into the clinch proved fruitless. By the time the fifth round concluded, it had become clear the Bellator light heavyweight division was effectively on lockdown.