Bellator 242: Sergio Pettis Cruises Past Ricky Bandejas: A Title Shot Awaits

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By Anthony “Zute” George

Sergio Pettis showcased his fantastic standup fighting by securing a unanimous decision victory over Ricky Bandejas in an important bantamweight fight. All three judges scored the fight for Pettis 30-27. Ringside Report had the same score. What was on the line was a future title shot in the bantamweight division, as well as dazzling starved mixed martial arts fans in the first Bellator main event in many months. Round one saw Pettis with the edge in the standup game. Still, with a minute left in the round, Ricky forced Sergio into the fence and secured a takedown.

It was not enough to win the round, but it might have changed the momentum of the fight. The air was sucked out of that momentum, however, when Ricky continued to keep the fight in Sergio’s comfort zone to start round two. When Ricky did try a takedown later in the round, Sergio managed to reverse the takedown and get the fight back on the feet, when Pettis continued to pile up the points with his superior striking skills. Round three was a carbon copy of the majority of the fight, with Sergio Pettis being the boss in the standup game. Bandejas just allowed Sergio to do what he wanted to do for about thirteen of the fifteen minutes of action. Sergio Pettis improves to 20-5, while Ricky Bandejas falls to 13-4. More importantly, Pettis is guaranteed a title shot soon.

Undercard Results

Jason Jackson Vs Jordan Mein:

In this welterweight co-feature, Jason Jackson won a unanimous decision, sweeping all three scorecards 30-27 Ringside Report also had a shutout for Jackson. Round one was a striking contest that Jackson got the better of by landed solid left hooks and right hands. But it appeared as if Mein was just getting warmed up. That prophecy turned out to be a false narrative, however, as Jackson improved his striking success in round two. Adding in effective calf kicks. Jackson managed to stuff Mein’s one serious takedown attempt of the round and scored a takedown of his own at the end of the round. Jackson continued his striking success in round three and even dropped Mein with a right hand. The final minute of the round saw Jackson in top position to secure the round and the victory. Jason Jackson is now 12-4, while Jordan Mein falls to 31-13.

Tywan Claxton Vs Jay Jay Wilson:

In this featherweight fight, the judges were split one judge scored it 30-27 for Claxton, Wilson also had a score 30-27 in his favor, the deciding score had it 29-28 for Wilson. Ringside Report scored the fight 29-28 for Wilson. Wilson applied the pressure early, but Claxton weathered the storm and soon had Wilson’s back against the fence. Wilson was able to stuff Claxton’s takedown attempts but could not get off the fence. With less than two minutes to go in the round, Wilson was able to reverse position and put Claxton against the fence and score a takedown. On the ground, Wilson tried both a rear-naked and guillotine choke, but Claxton defended both submission attempts and scored with some ground and pound to end the round. But Wilson did enough to win the round. Claxton landed the better punches and was able to muscle Wilson against the fence in round two. Round two should have been a clear one for Claxton, but they managed to find the one person in the entire Solar System that would have scored it for Wilson, and that person happened to be a paid official. With the fight up for grabs in round three, neither fighter was able to establish dominance in round three. With that said, Wilson’s late takedown and better work on the ground secured him round three. Jay Jay Wilson improves to 6-0, while Claxton falls to 6-2. This was Wilson’s first victory by a decision.
Aaron Pico Vs Solo Hatley, JR.: In this featherweight bout, Aaron Pico won his first professional MMA fight via submission with a rear-naked choke at 2:10 of the first round. Pico dominated from the start, he took Solo down in the first minute of the fight, he was then in control in the half-guard and did solid work with his ground and pound. Pico was then able to transition to the rear-naked choke that ended the fight. Aaron Pico is now 6-3, whole Solo Hatley, JR. falls to 8-3.

Prelims

Mark Lemminger Vs Jake Smith: In this welterweight bout, Mark Lemminger shined in his Bellator debut by winning via TKO at 4:46 of round two. The first round saw both mixed martial artists wing wild punches, Lemminger decided to end that fury by taking Smith down. He controlled Smith on the ground for the rest of the round. By the end of the round, Lemminger had Smith in full mount and landed hard strikes from that position. Round two saw both men trying to take advantage of their stand-up game. Neither man could land massive strikes, however. With about 2:20 to go in the round, Lemminger secured another big takedown and went to work immediately. Lemminger’s ground and pound put Smith in too much of a vulnerable position, ending the fight. Mark Lemminger is now 11-1, while Jake Smith falls to 7-4.

Cass Bell Vs Raufeon Stots:

In this bantamweight fight, Raufeon Stots defeated Cass Bell via submission at 1:24 of round three. Cass Bell started off with high energy, doing his best imitation of Bruce Lee. His efforts saw him scoring a takedown but finding himself in a defensive position against a guillotine chokehold. Stots never fully committed to the choke, as he could not get both hooks in. Stots continued to own the ground game, but not overwhelming Bell. Stots secured the opening round, escaping and a rear-naked choke attempt and mounting Bell in the process. Stots was just one step ahead of Bell in every aspect of round two as well. Although he did not dish out overwhelming punishment. That dynamic changed in round three as Stots took Bell down and pounded Bell with strikes, he then went for and secured a rear-naked chokehold hold to get the submission. Raufeon Stots is now 13-1, while Cass Bell falls to 5-1.

Ras Hylton Vs Rudy Schaffroth:

In this heavyweight fight, Ras Hylton took the fight on short notice and benefited by winning a unanimous decision, all three officials scored the fight 29-28 for Hylton. Ringside Report scored the fight 29-28 for Schafforth Schaffroth dropped Hylton with a short right hook and managed to hold top position for the remainder of the round. Still, Rudy did very little work in that top position. In round two, Schaffroth seemed to be out of gas and threw very few punches, but Hylton did not throw any punches of meaning and depended on an inside leg kick for his occasional scoring. Which won him the round. Schaffroth got a crucial takedown in round three, but once again, he did not get much done in top position. Hylton’s striking from the bottom position is what most likely secured the round, as well as the victory, for Hylton. Ras Hylton improves to 6-4, and Rudy Schafforth falls to 6-2.

Anthony “Zute” George is the Author of Tough Man: The Greg Haugen Story, a new boxing book that covers the skilled champion from Auburn, Washington, as well as the scope of the times during his days of pugilism.

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