Bellator XIII: Bao Quach vs. Georgi Karakhanyan

The opening tournament bout of Bellator’s second season ended in dramatic fashion as explosive featherweight Georgi Karakhanyan delivered the season’s first highlight-reel finish.

Opponent Bao Quach began the fight in fine fashion, dropping Karakhanyan with a right hand early and earning two takedowns in later action. But Karakhanyan remained a game competitor and answered each attack with some of his own.

As the first round entered its final minute, Karakhanyan delivered a brutal knee to his foe’s chin, and Quach collapsed on the floor. Karakhanyan sealed his spot in the featherweight tournament semifinals with a few extra punches on the floor.

Karakhanyan (13-1-1 MMA, 0-1 BFC) now has a nine-fight win streak, and 11 of his 13 career wins have come by stoppage. Meanwhile, Quach (17-10-1 MMA, 0-1 BFC) loses for just the second time in his past 13 trips to the cage.

No touch of gloves to start the round. A leg kick from Karakhanyan is countered by a big right hand from Quach that drops Georgi. Quach on top briefly before Karakhanyan works his way to his feet. A wild exchange from both fighters and the crowd is on their feet. They clinch up against the fence before Quach drags Georgi to the floor against the cage. Karakhanyan back to his feet and the pair exchange big punches. Quach scores another takedown in the heat of the moment. Karakhanyan scrambles and winds up with Quach trying to take his back. Massive right knee from Georgi to the chin of Quach in the clinch drops Bao to the canvas in a heap. A few unanswered punches later the fight is rightfully waved off. The crowd’s on their feet everywhere you look. Brutal knockout and an extremely impressive performance for Georgi Karakhanyan.

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Bellator 13’s Knockout of the Night

Bellator 13’s Knockout of the Night: Georgi Karakhanyan vs. Bao Quach

After a successful first season bolstered by a big Internet following, Bellator Fighting Championships is again using the power of the Web to kick off its second season.

The promotion on Thursday hosted Bellator 13 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla.

If you missed the night’s FOX Sports Net broadcast, Bellator has released a video clip of the event’s Knockout of the Night, which came in a fight between Georgi Karakhanyan and Bao Quach.

The bout was part of one of Bellator’s four different eight-man tournaments in season two. Karakhanyan and Quach kicked off the featherweight tournament and looked to advance to the semifinal round.

Bellator strung together some impressive fight finishes in its first season, and many quickly became YouTube hits. In fact, Toby Imada’s lightweight tournament semifinal victory over Jorge Masvidal, which came via inverted triangle choke in a stunning upset, earned the fighter the 2009 World MMA Awards “Submission of the Year” trophy.

In an early candidate for KO of the Year honors, we present Karakhanyan vs. Quach, courtesy of Bellator.

To watch the entire Bellator 13 event, check for replay times on your local FOX Sports Net affiliate. Or catch highlights on NBC, Telemundo or Hulu.com beginning tomorrow.

For additional coverage of Bellator 13, including the night’s official results, check out the MMA Events section of MMAjunkie.com.

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