Bellator 239 post-event facts: Yaroslav Amosov extends remarkable streak

Check out all the facts and figures from Bellator 239, which took place Friday in Thackerville, Okla.

Bellator hosted its second event of the year on Friday with Bellator 239, which took place at WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, Okla., with a main card that aired on Paramount following prelims on MMA Junkie.

In the main event, [autotag]Yaroslav Amosov[/autotag] (23-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) continued the longest MMA winning streak among Bellator fighters when he edged [autotag]Ed Ruth[/autotag] (8-2 MMA, 8-2 BMMA) by unanimous decision in the matchup of welterweight contenders.

For more on the numbers behind the card, check below for 25 post-event facts to come out of Bellator 239.

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General

Betting favorites went 3-1 on the main card.

Betting favorites improved to 2-0 in Bellator main events this year.

Total fight time for the four-bout main card was 47:35.

Main card

Amosov’s 23-fight winning streak in MMA competition is the longest among active Bellator fighters.

Amosov has earned three of his four Bellator victories by decision.

Ruth fell to 2-2 in his past four fights after starting his career 6-0.

Ruth fell to 3-2 since he dropped to the Bellator welterweight division in June 2018.

Ruth suffered the first decision loss of his career.

Myles Jury. (Photo courtesy of Bellator)

[autotag]Myles Jury[/autotag] (18-5 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) snapped his three-fight losing skid for his first victory since December 2017.

Jury improved to 1-1 since he returned to the lightweight division in September.

[autotag]Brandon Girtz[/autotag] (16-9 MMA, 8-7 BMMA) fell to 2-5 in his past seven Bellator appearances dating back to November 2016.

Girtz has suffered four of his seven Bellator losses by decision.

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[autotag]Timothy Johnson[/autotag] (13-6 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) has earned 10 of his 13 career victories by stoppage.

[autotag]Tyrell Fortune[/autotag] (8-1 MMA, 8-1 BMA) had his eight-fight winning streak snapped for the first defeat of his career.

[autotag]Valentin Moldavsky[/autotag]’s (9-1 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) four-fight Bellator winning streak at heavyweight is the second longest active streak in the division behind Tyrell Fortune (eight).

Moldavsky has earned three of his four Bellator victories by decision.

[autotag]Javy Ayala[/autotag] (11-8 MMA, 6-5 BMMA) fell to 3-5 in his past eight fights dating back to June 2015.

Preliminary card

[autotag]J.W. Kiser[/autotag] (5-3 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) suffered the first decision loss of his career.

[autotag]Gaston Bolanos[/autotag] (5-3 MMA, 5-3 BMMA) suffered the first decision loss of his career.

[autotag]Denise Kielholtz[/autotag]’s (5-2 MMA, 5-2 BMMA) five victories in Bellator women’s flyweight competition are tied with Juliana Velasquez for second most in divisional history behind Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (10).

Kielholtz’s three-fight Bellator winning streak at women’s flyweight is the third longest active streak in the division behind Macfarlane (10) and Velasquez (five).

Kielholtz’s four stoppage victories in Bellator women’s flyweight competition are second most in divisional history behind Macfarlane (seven).

Kielholtz’s three submission victories in Bellator women’s flyweight competition are tied with Emily Ducote for second most in divisional history behind Macfarlane (six).

[autotag]Kristina Williams[/autotag] (3-3 MMA, 3-3 BMMA) suffered the first submission loss of her career.

[autotag]Shawn Bunch[/autotag] (9-5 MMA, 6-4 BMMA) fell to 2-2 since he returned to Bellator for a second stint in November 2018.

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Bellator 239 adds Gabriel Varga, Grant Neal, J.W. Kiser to growing lineup in Oklahoma

Bellator 239 has added Gabriel Varga vs. Teejay Britton, Grant Neal vs. Claude Wilcox, and J.W. Kiser vs. Davion Franklin to its lineup.

Three preliminary card bouts have been added to Belllator’s return to Oklahoma.

A featherweight matchup between [autotag]Gabriel Varga[/autotag] and [autotag]Teejay Britton[/autotag], a light heavyweight fight between [autotag]Grant Neal[/autotag] and [autotag]Claude Wilcox[/autotag], and a heavyweight bout between [autotag]J.W. Kiser[/autotag] and [autotag]Davion Franklin[/autotag] have all been added to the Bellator 239 lineup.

The event takes place Feb. 21 at WinStar World Casino and Resort in Thackerville, Okla. The main card airs on Paramount and streams on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie.

A decorated kickboxing champion, Varga (1-0 MMA, 1-0 BMMA) looks to make it two-for-two against LFA veteran and Bellator debutant Britton (5-2 MMA, 0-0 BMMA).

As for Neal (2-0 MMA, 1-0 BMMA), the highly-touted NCAA athlete’s football career was derailed due to later-dropped sexual assault accusations. He aims to continue his MMA success against Arkansas’ Wilcox (1-1 MMA, 0-1 BMMA).

A fan-favorite, Kiser (5-2 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) was unsuccessful in his promotional debut against Jake Hager at Bellator 214 in January 2019. However, the 41-year-old heavyweight has another opportunity to pick up a victory under the promotion’s banner against a wrestling-based fighter, Franklin (0-0 MMA, 0-0 BMMA).

With the additions, the Bellator 239 lineup includes:

  • Yaroslav Amosov vs. Ed Ruth
  • Brandon Girtz vs. Myles Jury
  • Tyrell Fortune vs. Timothy Johnson
  • Cris Lencioni vs. Salim Mukhidinov
  • Denise Kielholtz vs. Kristina Williams
  • Javy Ayala vs. Valentin Moldavsky
  • Lucas Brennan vs. Jamese Taylor
  • Adil Benjilany vs. Kevin Croom
  • Chris Gonzalez vs. Aaron McKenzie
  • Christian Edwards vs. Marco Hutch
  • Carlo Pedersoli Jr. vs. Mark Lemminger
  • Teejay Britton vs. Gabriel Varga
  • Grant Neal vs. Claude Wilcox
  • Davion Franklin vs. J.W. Kiser

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