‘What a performance’: Fighters react to Johnny Eblen’s stunning win over Gegard Mousasi at Bellator 282

The Gegard Mousasi era is over in the Bellator middleweight division.

In a shocking turn of events, Johnny Elben had the performance of a lifetime to dominate Mousasi and capture the Bellator middleweight title on Friday night in the main event of Bellator 282, which took place at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. Elben controlled every facet of the fight, outstriking Mousasi on the feet and totally overwhelming him on the mat to ultimately win a one-sided unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 50-45).

It marked just the second loss of Mousasi’s five-year run in Bellator, and halted a four-fight winning streak that had fans debating whether Mousasi deserved to be considered among the best middleweights in the word.

Not surprisingly, the MMA world had plenty to see about the unexpected result. Check out reaction to Elben’s title-winning performance over Mousasi below, courtesy of Jorge Masvidal, Yoel Romero, and much more.