Detailed Report of Bobby Lashley’s Bellator MMA Bout

Bobby Lashley (12-2) defeated Karl Etherigton (9-1) via submission due to strikes at 1:31 of the 1st Round at the Bellator MMA event in Mulvane, Kansas. The bout aired live on Spike TV.

Fight Report: The two bulking heavyweights met in the center of the cage, threw a couple of punches and clinched up where Lashley use his hips to turn Etherigton and pin him against the cage. Etherigton hit Lashley low with a right knee and the referee broke it up to check on Lashley, who opted not to use his allotted five minutes to recover. For some reason the referee restarted the fight in the center of the cage instead of putting Lashley back into the great position he was in.

Etherigton threw some punches that didn’t land but made Lashley uncomfortable and used that to back him up against the cage. Etherigton controlled the clinch but his leg gave out when he tried to throw Lashley. Lashley gained top position and landed an explosion of 19 punches until Etherigton tapped out. At first, it wasn’t clear why Etherigton fell to the ground until the replayed aired.

Post Fight: Man of few words as Lashley gave props to the fans in his home state of Kansas and said fighting other Heavyweights isn’t an issue because he trains with some of the best Heavyweights in the world. All indications point to Lashley getting the next shot at the title.

Thoughts: On paper, this was Lashley’s most dangerous opponent in a while. Etherigton was undefeated going into the bout and Lashley was riding a four fight win streak. Lashley has the tools to be an elite fighter, however, at 38 years old, he still shows zero confidence in his striking game and seems to panic a when he can’t shut his opponent down with his wrestling.

Vitaly Minakov, Bellator’s Heavyweight Champion is a well-rounded fighter and Lashley will need to be proficient in more than just wrestling in order to take the title away from the Russian judoka.