The 89th installment of Bellator MMA saw a fight between friends in the evening’s anchoring bout. Nova Uniao products Eduardo Dantas and Marcos Galvo locked horns for the Bellator Bantamweight Championship in the center of the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte, North Carolina.The opening stanza was awfully reminiscent of one of the many sparring sessions both men engaged in within the confines of Nova Uniao, with respect clearly being a deterrent on both ends. It was obvious from the onset, however, that “Dudu” was the quicker fighter. The heat was turned up toward the closing bell as a right hand from the champion would wobble “Loro”.

With Dantas feeling it in the second round, the onus was on the teacher to rally back and put pressure on the student, unfortunately for him, the speed of the younger fighter would prove to be the determining factor. Dantas would pick his friend apart en route to a massive head kick that put Galvao on the mat. Without hesitation, “Dudu” pounced on his “brother” and with a barrage of hammer fists, left him a corpse staring up at the lights at 3:01.

The win would set the champion on an emotional roller coaster in which he would go from pure ecstasy to a crying mess over his bittersweet victory. Despite the maelstrom of emotion,  Dantas could find some solace in the fact that the gold stayed around his waist.