All three judges scored it 29-28 for the 31-year-old from Tillsonburg, Ont.
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SAN DIEGO — Canadian middleweight Aaron Jeffery moved a step nearer to a Bellator title shot after incomes a unanimous determination Saturday evening over former three-time welterweight champion Douglas (The Phenom) Lima.
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All three judges scored it 29-28 for the 31-year-old from Tillsonburg, Ont., who used his energy and grappling abilities to spend a lot of the combined martial arts combat in a clinch, denying the Atlanta-based Brazilian an opportunity to let his harmful palms go.
Jeffery (15-5-0) supplied a one-finger salute and a wry smile when some followers at Pechanga Enviornment booed the choice after a combat contested principally at shut quarters.
The Canadian related on 144 strikes, 74 of which got here on the bottom, and landed 4 takedowns. Lima registered 90 strikes.
Within the all-Russian essential occasion, Bellator light-weight champion Usman Nurmagomedov (19-0-0 with one n contest) gained a unanimous determination over Alexander Shabliy (24-4-0).
The San Diego present was a part of the brand new Bellator Champions Collection, every that includes a title combat. This system kicked off in March in Belfast, the primary card for Bellator because it was bought by the rival Skilled Fighters League final November.
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Jeffery has his sights set on middleweight champion Johnny (Stress) Eblen however should wait his flip. The unbeaten American is because of face England’s Fabian (The Murderer) Edwards, who defeated Jeffery in March.
Lima (33-12-0) pushed the motion early and took Lima down 30 seconds into the combat. However it got here at a price, with the Canadian leaking blood from a reduce. Jeffery crunched Lima into the fence, then dumped him once more within the last minute of a dominant spherical.
When the spherical ended, Jeffery’s nook labored on a reduce above the precise eye.
Jeffery saved coming ahead to open the second spherical and ate a stiff left jab from Lima that briefly buckled his legs. However he survived and pressed Lima to the fence once more. The highly effective Jeffery, his arms round Lima’s waist, fought within the clinch as he seemed for an additional takedown.
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Whereas Lima prevented happening once more, he was unable to get his hanging offence going. Nonetheless, Lima’s damaging early shot was the punch of the spherical.
Within the third, Jeffery stalked Lima and shortly seemed for a takedown on the fence. As Lima tried to punch his manner out, Jeffery accomplished the transfer with a visit. Jeffery completed the combat delivering blows from above.
Jeffery’s determination loss to Edwards in March was a middleweight title eliminator. The Canadian had hoped to tackle Eblen at that Belfast card however the title-holder was booked on the PFL Champions vs. Bellator Champions card in Saudi Arabia the place he gained a cut up determination over fellow American Impa Kasanganay.
Lima was additionally trying to get again in title competition, this time as a middleweight.
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The 36-year-old Brazilian final fought in Could 2023 when he ended a four-fight dropping streak with a unanimous determination over Costello (The Spaniard) van Steenis at Bellator 290.
Lima, who debuted in Bellator in 2011, fell to 15-8-0 within the promotion. Jeffery, who had misplaced two of his three earlier fights, evened his Bellator file at 3-3-0.
A former Most Preventing Championship title-holder in Canada, Lima holds additionally wins over Canadian Rory (Purple King) MacDonald, Andrey Koreshkov andMichael (Venom) Web page.
Jeffrey has earned consideration for his seems to be in addition to his preventing skill. He’s a person with a mullet.
Forward of the Edwards bout, Bellator ran a clip of Jeffrey’s August 2022 end of American Austin (The Gentleman) Vanderford with the headline “Worry the Mullet.”
Jeffery has a medical sciences diploma from Brock College in addition to diet certification and runs a diet consulting enterprise when not preventing.
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