Bellator 269 results: Said Sowma pulls off upset against Vitaly Minakov after former champ suffers broken finger

Said Sowma picked up the biggest win of his career with an upset over former heavyweight champion Vitaly Minakov after he suffered a broken finger in the third round in the Bellator 269 co-main event

It was a strange ending to an otherwise strong performance from Sowma, who employed a series of nasty calf kicks to slow down Minakov throughout the fight. While he could have been working his way towards a decision win, Sowma actually scored a TKO victory after Minakov walked away from an exchange favoring his finger and not fighting back.

Minakov continued to pull on his finger, attempting to put it back in place but when he wasn’t able to engage in the fight, the referee had no choice but to stop the contest due to injury.

The end came at 3:08 in the third round with Sowma getting the win.

Prior to the strange stoppage, it was Minakov on the hunt from the start of the fight as he was just walking down Sowma and trying to cut off the cage with his considerable size and power. While he was having success on the feet, Minakov also mixed in a takedown in order to keep Sowma guessing as he tried to find his footing while competing in enemy territory.

Every time Minakov charged forward he would unleash a blistering combinations of punches with his right hand tagging Sowma repeatedly.

Despite being down after the first round, Sowma showed no fear coming after Minakov in the second as he blasted the Russian with a couple of nasty calf-kicks. Minakov was tripped up momentarily as bruising started to form almost immediately on his lead leg, which in turn limited his movement as he attempted to remain the aggressor.

Sowma continued to target that leg and then going back up top with punches the head, which had Minakov frustrated as he just couldn’t seem to land his best strikes. As he rushed ahead with a flurry, Minakov’s hand got blocked by Sowma and it appeared that’s where the finger was broken.

The ringside physician came into the cage to reset the finger and Minakov wanted the fight to continue but it was already too late as Sowma was declared the winner.

Considering the way the fight ended, it seems possible that Bellator might attempt to rebook this matchup but for now Sowma will enjoy the victory as he moves to 8-2 in his career with a second-consecutive win on Saturday in Russia.