Bellator welterweight champion Douglas Lima successfully defended his title tonight with a unanimous decision victory over Lorenz Larkin at bellator NYC.
Round One:
Lima misses with his first leg kick of the fight. The second connects though. Larkin fires off the jab and Lima responds with a leg kick.
Solid leg kick from Larkin knocked the champion slightly off-balance. Solid body kick from Lima.
Cautious start from both men, not too much happening here. Occasional oblique kick from Larkin and then a sudden one-two.
Nice body kick from Lima. A minute to go in the round. Jab for Larkin. Couple of misses strikes from Lima. Larkin with a right hand. Now a body kick. Lead uppercut from Lima and then into the clinch against the cage to end the round.
Round Two:
Lima pumps the jab and then a body kick. Now a leg kick. Three-piece combo from Larkin that bounces off Lima’s guard.
Plenty of feeling out with the jab from Larkin now. Larkin with a right hand and he continues to flow with another left-right, then a kick behind it. That’s better from him.
Another two-punch combo from Larkin driving Lima back. Lima bleeding from the nose now.
Larkin unleashing a series of punches that seemed to hurt the champion. However, soon after Lima catches Larkin with a counter left hook and drops him!
Lima follows him to the mat and unleashes ground and pound, but Larkin is hanging in there and eventually gets back to his feet.
Less than two minutes of the round remaining. Larkin seems to have his feet under him though and starts working the jab again and then a front kick to the body.
Three punches from Lima blocked. Now a jab. Larkin steps in with an uppercut and just misses a counter from Lima.
Both men coiled up ready to strike in the closing seconds of the round, but neither pulls the trigger.
Round Three:
Body kick from Lima. Now a jab. Then a leg kick. Continuing to change things up he works a push kick to the body.
Larkin with a lot of movement, but not too much offense so far in this round.
Both men coming up short with punches. Low kick from Lima. Right hand lands for the champion.
Jab from Larkin. Now a jab from Lima. Body kick for Larkin. Right hand backs up Larkin.
Lima lands a kick to the body. Larkin steps in and eats a right hand from Lima.
Leg kick for Lima. Larkin misses with a hook and eats a counter. Body kick for Larkin. Lima presses forward with a final flurry of punches to end the round.
Round Four:
Body kick for Lima. Now a jab. And again. Leg kick as Larkin looks somewhat hesitant. He needs to be busier.
Right hand does get through for Larkin. Head kick attempt for the challenger that’s blocked.
left hook from the champion. Now a jab. Lima tries for a body kick, but stumbles and falls for a moment.
Larkin with a body kick. Quick left hand from the challenger. Hard right hand from Lima.
Front kick from Larkin and then changes to a side kick to the leg. Body punch for Lima. Larkin trying to back up Lima with punches. Hard body kick from Lima.
Lima pushes Larkin and that knocks him off-balance to the mat. Lima on top here, but Larkin manages to get back to his feet. Lima pressing him agains the cage to end the round.
Round Five:
Larkin feeling out with the jab and Lima lands a leg kick. Larkin with a leg kick.
Larkin flicking the jab. Jumping spinning back kick to the body from Larkin. Larkin with a couple of punches then a head kick attempt.
Lima with the jab. Punch for Lima. Solid body kick from Larkin, then one soon after from the champion.
Larkin with a few jabs and then a kick upstairs that’s blocked. More jabs from the challenger.
Larkin more active here and lands a body kick, but Lima responds with a kick to the leg.
Body kick for Lima. Jab series from Larkin. Body kick for Lima in the final 10 seconds. They both wing punches at the final bell, but we’re need the scorecards to settle this one.
Decision:
A relatively close fight for the most part then, but Lima was a little busier than Larkin and also floored his opponent in the second round, which helped him earn a unanimous decision victory (50-45, 48-47 x2) in order to retain his welterweight title.
