Matches to Make After Bellator 206

Gegard Mousasi could do no wrong.

Mousasi retained his Bellator MMA middleweight championship and did so in overwhelming fashion, as he put away welterweight titleholder Rory MacDonald with a burst of punches and elbows from full mount in the second round of their Bellator 206 main event on Saturday at the SAP Center in San Jose, California. MacDonald, 29, bowed out of the champion-versus-champion superfight 3:23 into Round 2.

It became apparent from the start that MacDonald had bitten off far more than he could chew. Mousasi peppered him with blistering jabs -- he snapped the Canadian challenger’s head back on more than one occasion in the first round -- while incorporating stinging leg kicks, well-disguised left hooks and crisp right hands. Perhaps sensing the situation was dire, MacDonald rolled for a possible takedown in the second round but wound up in bottom position. There, he was met with ferocious elbow-laden ground-and-pound that left him with a bloody and badly damaged nose. Mousasi shifted to half guard and ultimately achieved full mount before tearing into the Tristar Gym star with repeated punches and elbows to prompt a merciful stoppage.

In the aftermath of Bellator 206, here are four matches that ought to be made:

Gegard Mousasi vs. Rafael Lovato Jr.: Mousasi has pieced together an eight-fight winning streak since his upset loss to Uriah Hall in 2015, repositioning himself as one of the world’s premier middleweights. Against MacDonald, he was in rare form. Everything he threw seemed to land, and when he moved into full mount in the second round, the writing was on the wall. In short, Mousasi has never looked better -- a frightening development for the rest of Bellator’s middleweight division. The undefeated Lovato, 35, moved to 9-0 at Bellator 205, where he submitted John Salter with a rear-naked choke on Sept. 21. He has finished eight of his nine opponents.

Aaron Pico vs. Juan Archuleta: Quick, powerful punches carried Pico over his most difficult hurdle to date, as he wiped out Leandro Higo in the first round of their featured featherweight pairing. A thudding overhand right drove Higo to the canvas and marked the beginning of the end for the former Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion. Pico, 22, swarmed with an unyielding barrage of punches until the job was done and his fourth straight first-round finish was in the books. Archuleta extended his current winning streak to 15 fights in June, when he knocked out Robbie Peralta with a volley of third-round punches at Bellator 201. The former King of the Cage champion now sports a 19-1 record.

Arlene Blencowe vs. Julia Budd: Blencowe overcame a slow start to dispose of Amber Leibrock with a third-round slam and follow-up punches on the undercard. The 35-year-old Australian spent the first half of the fight eating lunging punches and kicks from the long-logged Leibrock. However, in the third round, Blencowe countered a takedown into top position and answered an armbar attempt by hoisting her counterpart and driving her into the canvas. The impact left Leibrock dazed and defenseless, resulting in the stoppage 1:23 into Round 3. Budd retained her women’s featherweight crown at Bellator 202, where she put away the previously unbeaten Talita Nogueira with punches in the third round of their July 13 encounter. The 35-year-old Canadian has not lost a fight in nearly seven years, a run that includes a pair of decision wins -- one a majority, the other a split -- over Blencowe.

Gaston Bolanos vs. Tywan Claxton: Bolanos continued his ascent at 145 pounds, as he cut down Ysidro Gutierrez with punches in the second round of their featherweight showcase. Gutierrez succumbed to blows 97 seconds into Round 2. Bolanos, 26, floored the Tachi Palace Fights veteran with a left hook behind the ear and followed up with a series of unanswered punches for the finish. He has rattled off three consecutive victories, all by knockout or technical knockout, since being submitted by a Brandon Laroco triangle choke in September 2017. One of the rising stars on the featherweight roster, Claxton remained undefeated at 3-0 with a unanimous decision over Cris Lencioni at Bellator 204 in August.