Bellator 276: Alex Polizzi eats hellacious knee, somehow survives and rallies for finish

Bellator MMA might have an early candidate for its “Fight of the Year.”

Fans of momentum shifts and drama probably will enjoy catching [autotag]Alex Polizzi[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Jose Augusto[/autotag] on replay if they missed it live.

In improbable fashion, Polizzi (9-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA) rallied from the brink of defeat at Bellator 276 to defeat his larger Brazilian foe Augusto (7-3 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) by rear-naked choke at the 0:44 mark of Round 3.

Bellator 276 took place at Family Arena in St. Charles, Mo. and aired on Showtime after prelims on MMA Junkie.

The madness really began in Round 2 after a closely-contested Round 1. As Polizzi ducked in for a takedown, Augusto drilled him square in the face with a powerful flying knee. Polizzi dropped to his knees before he staggered upward and ate a barrage of strikes from the rangy Augusto. Nearly out on his feet, Polizzi bounced off the cage and fell to the canvas. Augusto pounced, but Polizzi did just enough for referee Kerry Hatley to allow the contest to continue.

Augusto went for an armbar, covered in the blood that squirted from Polizzi’s face. But Polizzi refused to tap. He not only worked his way out of the bad position, but moved into a favorable one, too. Polizzi mounted Augusto and rained down ground-and-pound until the end of the round.

In Round 3, Polizzi capitalized on an early grappling mistake by Augusto. On the back, Polizzi quickly locked in a rear-naked choke where he secured the tap.

Check out the key highlights of the fight below, or check out the full replay here.

After the fight, Polizzi sported swelling under his right eye and told commentator “Big” John McCarthy he had no recollection of the knee the broadcast showed on replay.

The up-to-the-minute Bellator 276 results include:

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