Bellator 24 Fight Card & Results

Bellator Fighting Championships puts on their first event of season #3 with Bellator 24 which takes place on August 12, 2010 and will be broadcast on Fox Sports Net. The Bellator FC 24 fight card is listed below, and be sure to check back for the official Bellator 24 fight results once the fights have become official.

Neil Grove vs. Eddie Sanchez

Former UFC slugger Neil “Goliath” Grove (9-2-1) earned a dominating 1st round TKO victory over another former UFC heavyweight Eddie Sanchez (12-4) in Bellator’s Season 3 Heavyweight tournament.

From the opening bell, Grove was the dominating force catching Sanchez with a straight left hand that had him dazed and confused through the duration of the bout. “Goliath” allowed Sanchez to get back up three more times, but on the fourth try, Sanchez grabbed his head and stumbled to his feet causing the referee to step in a wave off the fight.

The TKO (referee stoppage) came at 1:32 of the 1st round, allowing Grove to move into the tournaments’ semifinal round. The win marks his third straight, however first under the Bellator banner; the loss is Sanchez’s first in three tries for Bellator, and he had a four-fight winning streak stopped.

Carla Esparza vs. Megumi Fujii

Last minute replacement Carla Esparza (3-1) didn’t go down easy, but she did eventually go down, succumbing to undefeated Megumi “Mega Mu” Fujii (21-0) in the Bellator season three women’s 115-pound tournament at Bellator 24.

The Japanese judo and catch wrestling specialist chose to stand-and-trade with Esparza for much of the 1st round, although she did try and take the action to the ground before being stuffed by the inexperienced Esparza. Esparza came out in the 2nd round catching Fujii with some hard strikes forcing her to take the fight to the ground where she was more comfortable. Within seconds, Fujii had transitioned into a dominate position and forced an armbar stoppage and tap-out submission at the (2:57) mark.

Fujii advances into the next round with her seventeenth submission victory of her career, coming in only her second Bellator bout. Esparza gained some respect, however suffered her first career loss in her Bellator debut.

Hector Lombard vs. Whisper Goodman

Bellator Middleweight Champion Hector Lombard showed why he is considered among the sport’s best 185-pounders with his impressive 38-second KO of former NFL’er Whisper Goodman on the Bellator 24 main card.

Lombard and Goodman engaged and exchanged some back-and-forth striking for the first twenty seconds of the bout. However, when Lombard pushed Goodman into the fence and caught him flush with a hard right hook, he had him backpedaling. Also dazed, Goodman had his hands down, which allowed Lombard to catch him again with a second right hand, this time putting him unconscious on his back.

The victory marks Lombard’s nineteenth straight win and fifth under the Bellator name. He will face season two winner Alexander Shlemenko in a title bout this season. Goodman, in his Bellator debut, had won six of his last seven before suffering his third KO loss of his career.

Jess Aguilar vs. Lynn Alvarez

American Top Team’s Jess Aguilar (9-3) came in wanting a ground battle with notable striker Lynn Alvarez (5-2). She got her wish and forced an early stoppage with an armbar at (4:01) of the 1st round.

Aguilar forced the fight to the ground within the first minute and quickly moved into side control. She stayed there for some time before moving into mount where she tried an arm triangle attempt. The attempt failed and she lost her position before next having to defend against an Alvarez triangle choke. She shook off the triangle attempt and went back to the arm triangle attempt for a second time, and this time converted forcing a tap out with a little more than a minute remaining in the round.

The victory allows Aguilar to move into the next round and likely will face undefeated Megumi Fujii. Aguilar wins her sixth bout via submission in her Bellator debut. Alvarez has a four-fight win streak snapped in her Bellator debut.

By Nick Russell
ProFighting-fans.com Senior MMA Staff Writer

Bellator 24 Fight Card & Results:

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Main Bellator 24 Fight Results:

• Jessica Aguilar defeats Lynn Alvarez via Submission (Arm-Triangle Choke) - Round 1 @ 4:01

• Hector Lombard defeats Herbert Goodman by KO (Punches) - Round 1 @ 0:38

• Megumi Fujii defeats Carla Esparza via Submission (Armbar) - Round 2 @ 0:57

• Neil Grove defeats Eddie Sanchez by TKO (Referee Stoppage) - Round 1 @ 1:32

Preliminary Bellator 24 Fight Card Results:

• Frankhad Sharipov defeats Eric Luke by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

• Yves Edwards defeats Luis Palomino by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

• Tulio Quintanilla defeats Brian Eckstein by KO (Punches) – Round 3 @ 2:48