After nearly two decades of competing in mixed martial arts, Cheick Kongo finally got to compete at home on Saturday. At Bellator Europe 10 (or just Bellator Paris if you prefer), the promotion helped usher in legal MMA in France. One of the last holdouts to legalization of the sport, it was a feather in the cap for the Viacom-owned promotion — and a day Kongo wasn’t fully sure would come, at least while he was still active.
Earlier in the week, “The Darkness” admitted that there was a time he’d expected to have retired prior to France opening its doors to the sport. Luckily, he found more gas in the tank, going on an impressive run these last few years. On Saturday, atop the Bellator Europe 10 card, Kongo featured in a rematch with Tim Johnson. When the pair first met roughly two years ago, it took the French heavyweight barely a minute to finish Johnson. The American had campaigned for a rematch ever since. On Saturday, he finally got it.
The action from the Accor Arena in Paris, France kicked off at 11:30AM ET, with both the Bellator 248 card then the Bellator Europe 10 preliminary card playing out first. The Bellator Europe 10 main card kicks off at 5PM ET. Results are below. The live stream can be found above, where available.
Bellator Europe 10 Main Card Results
Tim Johnson def. Cheick Kongo by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Saul Rogers def. Arbi Mezhidov by submission (rear-naked choke), Round 1, 4:38
