Neil Grove cemented their spot opposite one another in the first ever Bellator Heavyweight tournament. Grove finished his fight early and violently as he dispatched of submission fighter Alexey Oleinik early in round one via TKO. The stoppage may have been a tad premature, but Oleinik was not defending well and clearly hurt. Grove's heavy kicks started the beginning of the end for Oleinik as Grove jumped on him after dropping him with the body kick and finished the fight on the mat.
Grove's opponent for the Heavyweight Tournament Championship, Cole Konrad, took a completely different path to the finals as he stuck to what he knows. Konrad took down Damian Grabowski early and often to land another decision victory. Grabowski had no answer for Konrad's control once the fight hit the floor. Konrad attempted a submission from the top and landed some strikes, but not much of substance.
The fight between these two polar opposites may end up just being another wrestling clinic from the jiggly Konrad. However, Grove has the intensity to end the fight violently during the brief moments that he is not on his back in this fight. Both fighters are relatively new to the sport, even though Grove has twice as many bouts they probably have the same amount of minutes in the ring since nearly all of Cole's contests have gone the distance.
Kudos goes out to Bellator for putting on exciting cards each season with whatever talent they can scoop out from underneath the other major promotions in the game. They are really cultivating the talent of prospect fighters as well as housing some of the game's best like Eddie Alvarez and Hector Lombard.
MAIN CARD
Jameel Massouh def. Nick Mamalis via submission (guillotine choke) - Round 1, 4:27
Cole Konrad def. Damian Grabowski via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
Neil Grove def. Alexey Oleinik via TKO (strikes) - Round 1, 0:45
Brett Cooper def. Matt Major via TKO (punches) - Round 2, 1:27
PRELIMINARY CARD
Sasa Perkic def. Nick Dupees via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Kyle Weickhardt def. Luis Ramirez via knockout (kick) – Round 1, 0:30
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