Rafael Lovato Jr. Claimed The Bellator Title Over Gegard Mousasi In London
Unbeaten fighter Rafael Lovato Jr. can now add champion to his resume. Lovato scored a majority decision victory vs. Gegard Mousasi at Bellator London as part of the Bellator London/Bellator 223 event, winning the middleweight title in the process.
Lovato is a perfect 10-0 in his mixed martial arts career, but this was the biggest win to date. He controlled the action, earning two of the three scorecards. The third had the bout a draw, 47-47.
In the headline bout for the Bellator 223 portion of the night, Paul Daley scored a decision victory over Erick Silva in a meeting of former UFC fighters in the welterweight division.
Melvin Manhoef, Aaron Chalmers and James Gallagher were among the other winners, as bouts aired on Paramount Network and streamed on DAZN.
Results can be found below:
Rafael Lovato Jr. def. Melvin Manhoef via majority decision (47-47, 48-47, 48-47) to become new Bellator middleweight champion
Melvin Manhoef def. Kent Kauppinen via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Aaron Chalmers def. Fred Freeman via submission (triangle choke) at 4:05 of Round 2
Paul Daley def. Erick Silva via unanimous decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27)
James Gallagher def. Jeremiah Labiano via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Fabian Edwards def. Jonathan Bosuku via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Costello van Steenis def. Mike Shipman via KO (strikes) at 1:34 of Round 2
Charlie Ward def. Justin Moore via TKO (strikes) at 3:23 of Round 2