Bellator 134 Results: Winners, Scorecards from the British Invasion Fight Card

Liam McGeary dethroned Emanuel "Hardcore Kid" Newton on Friday night at Bellator 134. He used an active grappling and submission game to pry the Bellator light heavyweight championship away from Newton. Here are the official scorecards via Jason Floyd of The MMA Report.

Bellator officially congratulates their new champ at 205 pounds.

On a card billed as the British Invasion, the fighters from the United Kingdom dominated the action, winning all but one of the fights. McGeary's effort punctuated the evening nicely for the Brits.

At 6'6", McGeary came in with a huge height and length advantage. Some might have expected him to use that edge in the stand-up game, but McGeary was more comfortable on the ground.

From the outset, McGeary actively pursued a submission victory. He seemingly had Newton on a few occasions in the first round, but somehow Newton narrowly escaped each attempt. Several people within the MMA community marveled at McGeary's active and long legs, as well as Newton's escapability.

Mike Wellman of Bleacher Report and Jeff Wagenheim of Sports Illustrated chimed in:

"

Great round for McGeary, Ridiculous heart shown by Newton to escape all 50 of those tight sub attempts #Bellator134

— Mike Wellman (@mikewellman88) February 28, 2015"

McGeary was again in control in the second round as he almost gained the submission there as well. Newton deserves credit for keeping his composure against such a skilled and physically unique opponent. While he was able to avoid being tapped out, Newton wasn't mounting any offense.

The third round was less dominant for McGeary, but he still ended it in a mounted triangle, raining down punches on a defenseless Newton. Had it not been so late in the round, he might have gotten a TKO victory.

In the last two rounds, Newton was able to secure takedowns and stay out of danger on the ground for most of the time in both frames. However, McGeary had already built an insurmountable lead.

This is definitely a fight that fans would pay to see again. With no real compelling opponents at 205 pounds, it would behoove Bellator head man Scott Coker to explore a quick rematch.

There were four other main card bouts and a slew of preliminary scraps before Friday's feature began. Here's a look at the results per Spike.com and Spike TV. Just below the table is a breakdown of the other main card bouts.

Matchup	Result
Preliminary
Dean Hancock vs. Michael Mangan	Hangan by submission (rear-naked choke) first round
Blair Tugman vs. Marvin Maldonado	Tugman by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27 x 2)
Neiman Gracie vs. Bobby Flynn	Gracie by submission (cross-face crank) first round
Tamdan McCrory vs. Jason Butcher	McCrory by submission (armbar) first round
Raphael Butler vs. Josh Diekmann	Butler by submission (guillotine) first round
Matt Bessette vs. Josh Laberge	Bessette by TKO (cut) second round
Main Card
Brennan Ward vs. Curtis Millender	Ward by submission (rear-naked choke) first
Linton Vassell vs. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou	Vassell by TKO in second round
Paul Daley vs. Andre Santos	Daley by unanimous decision (29-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Cheick Kongo vs. Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal	Lawal by split decision (29-28, 30-27, 28-29)
Emanuel Newton vs. Liam McGeary	McGeary by unanimous decision (48-46, 48-47x2)

Vassell Dominates Sokoudjou

Linton Vassell chalked up a win for the United Kingdom at Bellator 134: The British Invasion. He dominated Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou and earned a second-round TKO victory. Vassell was dominant from the beginning of the bout.  

He used his advanced grappling skills to wear Sokoudjou down and flatten out his opponent to gain the stoppage win. Sokoudjou couldn't offer any resistance as Vassell pounded his helpless foe until the referee called a stoppage to the bout.

There was a time when Sokoudjou was a promising and dangerous striker. That time has clearly passed. The loss snapped his modest two-fight win streak in Bellator and ended any chance he would have at challenging for the light heavyweight title any time soon.

That was the first in the international contest.

Ward Takes out Millender

It only took Brennan Ward a minute and 37 seconds to dispose of Curtis Millender in the first main card bout. Ward was decisive and aggressive in taking the fight to the ground. 

Ward used a powerful right hand to drop Millender. You can see the shot here via the tweet from Zombie Prophet:

"

Brennan Ward vs Curtis Millender #Bellator134 #BritishInvasion This knockdown made me lol https://t.co/43BEBEYkgJ

— ZombieProphet (@ZProphet_MMA) February 28, 2015"

Almost immediately, Ward gained the advantageous position on his opponent's back. He secured the rear-naked choke to get the win.

Daley Batters Santos En Route to Decision Win

Andre Santos deserves credit for his toughness, but Paul Daley's assault was relentless. Daley landed a hard right hand that hurt Santos in the first round. At one point it looked as if the Brit might secure the early stoppage, but Santos proved to be durable.

In the second round, Santos had a few moments of his own. He landed a good left hand midway through the frame, and gained the dominant position on Daley's back when the bell sounded. Daley never appeared to be in trouble, but Santos had stemmed the tide.

In the final round, Daley again took control with his aggression. A well-placed knee dropped Santos and opened up a huge gash on the Brazilian's head. It looked as if Santos might tap out from strikes, or even be stopped by the referee.

Surprisingly, Santos made it to his feet and secured a takedown and mount position. He didn't have the gas to do any real damage from the position, but his toughness was exemplary. Daley earned the decision, but Santos made him work for it. The win ran the UK's edge to 2-0 on the night.

This fight was supposed to be for the Bellator welterweight title, but champion Douglas Lima had to pull out with an injury.

When the fight was over, Lima didn't exactly sound supportive after his rival emerged victorious. 

The trash talk will only add to the flame once these two actually meet in the cage.

Lawal Wins a Snoozefest

Jeff Chiu/Associated Press

Muhammed "King Mo" Lawal won one of the most boring fights you'll see in any organization. Facing a much larger man, Lawal used his wrestling superiority to put Cheick Kongo on his back for the majority of the fight.

It was the only bout won by an American on the main card.

Kongo had no answer for Lawal's takedowns. The jabs and straights that Kongo threw in an attempt to keep distance didn't work. By the midway point of the second round, Kongo was gassed and Lawal had his way.

The stats presented by Jason Floyd of the MMA Report tells the clear story of this bout.

Surprisingly, one judge saw the fight for Kongo. Unless he forgot which bald guy was Kongo, it's hard to understand that scorecard. Nonetheless, the right guy got the decision and this horrible fight came to an end.

Follow Brian Mazique on Twitter. I dig boxing and MMA.