INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Who said [autotag]Sergio Pettis [/autotag]can’t finish a fight?
The Milwaukee native was criticized during his UFC tenure for his lack of finishing ability. But Saturday night, in the first fight of his Bellator tenure, Pettis (19-5 MMA, 1-0 Bellator) wasted little time getting the job done.
A hellacious right hand sent opponent Alfred Khashakyan to the mat, and a flurry on the mat led to a finish by way of a deep guillotine choke. The time of the stoppage at Bellator 238 was 3:00.
Khashakyan (11-5 MMA, 0-1 BMMA), of the Glendale Fight Club, is an aggressive fighter who had all 11 of his career wins via KO or TKO.
But that energy came back to bite him against Pettis. Khashakyan landed a nice right which momentarily stunned Pettis. But as Khashakyan went to follow up, he ran right into a violent right which landed flush on the jaw and sent him to the mat.
Pettis followed with a bunch of punches, mostly rights, and then transitioned to the guillotine choke. Referee Mike Beltran, one of the game’s best, had a rare off moment, as Khashakyan appeared to be out well before the fight was stopped.
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With his seventh career stoppage win, Pettis has won two in a row. Khashakyan had his third career stoppage loss.
The bantamweight bout was part of the Bellator 238 main card at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif. The main card streamed on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.
Up-to-the-minute Bellator 238 results include:
- Sergio Pettis def. Alfred Khashakyan via submission (guillotine choke) — Round 1, 3:00
- Raymond Daniels def. Jason King via TKO — Round 1, 3:07
- Emilee King def. Ava Knight via submission (rear-naked choke) — Round 1, 2:18
- Brandon Bender def. Joshua Jones via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 29-27)
- Aaron Pico def. Daniel Carey via KO (punch) — Round 2, 0:15
- AJ Agazarm def. Adel Altamimi via submission (triangle choke) — Round 3, 1:22
- Mario Navarro vs. Jay Jay Wilson def. Navarro via submission (armbar) — Round 1, 2:48
- Curtis Millender def. Moses Murrietta via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
- Chris Avila def. Anthony Taylor via majority decision (28-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Miguel Jacob def. David Pacheco via unanimous decision (30-27. 30-26, 30-27)
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