Fight Master: Bellator MMA Episode Six recap – Joe Riggs Advances

The sixth episode of Fight Master: Bellator MMA had the luxury of a stacked fight card from Bellator as a lead in. Two more fighters will look to advance to the next round of the tournament, joining the four thus far who have already advanced.

The first four fights have already put Rino Sport in a nasty 0-2 hole, but Jackson MMA and their 0-1 record are not doing much better. On the flip side though, Extreme Couture is perfect at 2-0 and Shamrock MMA sits at 2-1.

So far Cole Williams and Mike Bronzoulis from Extreme Couture and Chris Lozano and Joe Williams from Shamrock MMA have already advanced. Tonight Tim Welch and Joe Riggs [Jackson's MMA], Nick Barnes [Shamrock MMA] and Eric Scallan [Rino Sport] will look to advance to the next round. Before that though, here’s how the Fight Master rankings currently sit.

The Fight Master: Bellator MMA Fighter Rankings:

1. Joe Riggs [Jackson's MMA]
2. Christiano Souza [Extreme Couture]
3. Chris Lozano [Shamrock MMA]
4. AJ Matthews [Extreme Couture]
5. Cole Williams [Extreme Couture]
6. Tim Welch [Jackson's MMA]
7. Eric Bradley [Jackson's MMA]
8. 8.       Jason Norwood [Rino Sport]
9. Nick Barnes [Shamrock MMA]
10. 10.   Mike Dubois [Shamrock MMA]
11. Evan Cutts [Rino Sport]
12. 12.   Ismael Gonzalez [Rino Sport]
13. Mike Bronzoulis [Extreme Couture]
14. 14.   Bryan Travers [Jackson's MMA]
15. Eric Scallan [Rino Sport]
16. Joe Williams [Shamrock MMA]

Fight #1 – #5 Tim Welch [Jacksons MMA] vs.  #8 Nick Barnes [Shamrock MMA]

One mistake can do you in and today that mistake got Tim Welch. A fight that was neck and neck turned in the blink of an eye when Welch missed a looping punch and was bull rushed to the ground and right into back control. From there Barnes was able to get his hooks in and begin fishing for the choke. Welch fought it off for as long as he could but eventually he had to tap.  In the second Fight Master opening round upset, Nick Barnes wins via 1^st round rear-Naked Choke Submission.

All four of the Shamrock MMA fighters have now fought and two have advanced.

Joe Riggs is Fight Master: Bellator MMA top ranked fighter as well as the most experienced guy, but he had a lot of to cut before this fight against Eric Scallan and that might play a major factor in the fight.

Fight #2 – #1 Joe Riggs [Jacksons MMA] vs. #15 Eric Scallan [Rino Sport].

Riggs took the center of the cage right away as Scallan looked content with staying on the outside and circling around the cage. The two finale lock horns and Scallan puts Riggs against the cage. The veteran works to get his back off the cage and eventually reverses. Scallan gets his back off the cage but Riggs is able to score a brief takedown. Scallan goes for a takedown but ends up settling for putting Riggs against the cage again. As the two break Riggs lands a knee that drops Scallan and his spends the rest of the round scrambling and eating punches.

Scallan opens the round with a takedown attempt that he nearly completes. Riggs showed good balance to not allow the takedown and somehow is able to get Scallan down with little effort. He moves to side control and is smothering Scallan with position and ground and pound. Riggs attempts the side choke on two separate occasions unsuccessfully but he dominates the round and fight. Joe Riggs wins via Unanimous Decision.

The win by Joe Riggs gives Jackson’s MMA their first win (1-2 overall) and drops Rino Sport to 0-3. The final two Fight Master: Bellator MMA first round bouts take place next week’s with #2 Christiano Souza [Extreme Couture] taking on Evan Cutts [Rino Sport] and #4 AJ Matthews [Extreme Couture] faces #7 Eric Bradley [Jackson's MMA].

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Joshua Wood

Tags: AJ Matthews, Bellator MMA, Christiano Souza, Cole Williams, Eric Bradley, Eric Scallan, Evan Cutts, Extreme Couture, Jackson’s MMA, Joe Riggs, Joe Williams, Mike Bronzoulis, MMA, Nick Barnes, Rino Sport, Shamrock MMA, tim welch

Category: Bellator, Featured, Fight Master, MMA, Results