Bellator 268 results: Vadim Nemkov taps Julius Anglickas, punches ticket to grand prix final

Vadim Nemkov successfully defended his Bellator title on Saturday, advancing to the finals of the light heavyweight grand prix.

PHOENIX – [autotag]Vadim Nemkov[/autotag] is still the light heavyweight champion.

At Bellator 268, Nemkov (14-2 MMA, 7-0 BMMA) defeated tournament alternate Julius Anglickas (10-2 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) via submission (kimura) at 4:25 of Round 1.

The event took place Saturday at Footprint Center. The main card aired on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.

Heavy blows were exchanged in the form of stiff jabs early on, but it was Anglickas who landed the first massive punch. As the two threw, Anglickas blasted Nemkov with a punch that dropped the Russian champion. Nemkov quickly bounced up and secured a takedown. Anglickas worked his way to the feet where the two exchanged for the remainder of the round. Nemkov clocked Anglickas with a rattling shot just before the round ended.

In Round 2, both men again came out heavy. After some striking exchanges, Nemkov tossed Anglickas to the canvas and worked from side control. Anglickas pushed Nemkov into guard. From there, Nemkov landed nasty ground-and-pound – and things got messy. Elbows started it off and the punches followed. Anglickas tried to avoid the damage but was unable. The end of the round saved him, however, as bot fighters rose to their feet covered in blood.

The cutman did a good job in between rounds to stop the bleeding on Anglickas’ head. Nemkov returned to action to the ground almost immediately in Round 3. After some blocked punches, Nemkov passed to side control. Anglickas once again pushed Nemkov into side control. Nemkov worked for an armbar. Multiple tries were fended off by Anglickas – including one at the end-of-horn buzzer.

Round 4 was more of the same. Nemkov scored another takedown and Anglickas’ forehead was met with intermittent punches. Nemkov trapped Anglickas’ arm in the crucifix, but Anglickas rolled out. A straight armbar attempt from Nemkov failed. Nemkov then went for a kimura. The crank was quick and decisive. Anglickas tapped and that was all that was written.

With the win, Nemkov successfully defends his title for the second time and advances to the $1 million grand prix final where he will face Corey Anderson, who defeated Ryan Bader by 51-second TKO earlier on the card.

Check out the full Bellator 268 results below:

[mm-video type=playlist id=01eqvpne7c1q486dvv player_id=01f5k5h8pz3brj4xqb image=https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/wp-content/plugins/mm-video/images/playlist-icon.png]

[vertical-gallery id=1350169]