Vadim Nemkov scored an early victory in the heavyweight division

Former Bellator bantamweight titleholder, Vadim Nemkov, made a successful heavyweight debut with an early victory over former PFL champion, Bruno Cappelozza, at the Bellator and PFL co-main event in Riyadh.

From the first seconds of the fight, the Brazilian tried to seize the initiative and take the center of the cage, pressing the Russian, however, Nemkov quickly enough found his distance, and began to smash his opponent in the standup, time after time hitting jab, straight right, and dangerously connecting the trademark right hi-kick.

After the break, Cappelozza clinched Nemkov in one of the exchanges and rushed forward in an attempt to build on his success, but the Russian fighter quickly oriented himself and moved his opponent before improving his position and applying an arm-triangle choke, forcing referee Kerry Hatley to stop the fight at the 2:13 mark of the second round.

In a post-fight interview, Vadim Nemkov, after receiving his commemorative belt, stated that he would like to fight for the full heavyweight title.

“This is a new stage in my career for me,” the Russian stated. “Hopefully, with this fight my heavyweight career will start and continue until the end. I would like to get a title fight and become a champion.”

All PFL vs. Bellator: Champions tournament results.

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