Bellator 296 ‘Mousasi vs. Edwards’ Play-by-Play, Results & Round Scoring

Sherdog’s live
Bellator 296 coverage will begin Saturday at 11:55 a.m. ET.

Round 1

Vive la France! For the third year since 2020, Bellator has posted
up in Paris for a show to titillate those inside of the Accor
Arena. French fans will be treated to 14 bouts of various intrigue,
and the show will end with a pair of five-rounders but no belt on
the line in either. The proceedings commence in the light
heavyweight division between a pair of titanic finishers, as
Augusto (7-4, 1 NC; 1-2 BMMA) battles Biyong (9-2, 2-1 BMMA) in a
fight that might not last long. Referee Jacob Montalvo is ready and
awaiting the violence that is set to begin in front of his eyes,
but before that happens, the event begins with the two fighters
sharing a sporting glove touch. Biyong leads off with a jab and a
body kick, with his significant reach on display immediately.
“Gugu” replies with a chopping low kick, and Biyong says two can
play that game and gives him two back. Augusto recoils his limb on
the second strike, and he chambers and fires one that is out of
range. Biyong changes stances to evade a quick punch, and he comes
inside only to be greeted with two hooks. As Augusto looks to fire
off a few punches, Biyong advances and clinches him up, pressing
him to the wall and kneeing him in the gut. Augusto attempts to
turn the tables and trip the taller man out, but Biyong keeps his
balance and hops back until they split up. Augusto steps through
with a solid one-two, and Biyong takes it on the chin and
retaliates with a kick that misses and ends up with him falling to
the mat. The Brazilian marches him down, finding his target with
another clean right hand, and he drives Biyong back to the fencing.
As the light heavyweights trade knees, Biyong raises one up that
clacks off the cup to cause a pause in the action. Montalvo
recognizes this and allows Augusto to recover, and he asks Augusto
if he would like the position back. Augusto accepts this and the
fight resumes in the clinch, with him on the offense. Biyong shoves
him back when restarting, and he circles on the outside and looses
a left hand. Augusto beats him to the punch with a right hook, and
he surprises the Italian fighter by way of Cameroon with a
combination. Biyong gets stood up with a powerful right hand, and
his legs are not fully beneath him as Augusto marches him down.
“Gugu” slugs him in the chops again and winds up tied up, where he
tags Biyong with a sharp elbow before breaking free again. Augusto
plods forward, seeing Biyong is still compromised, and he smashes
him in the face with two fists before they wind up clinched. Biyong
turns him around, seeming to get his bearings back, and they
deliver short knees to the body one after the other. Biyong rides
the round out in this position, making certain he is fully back
with it.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Augusto
J.L. Kirven scores the round: 10-9 Augusto
Lev Pisarsky scores the round: 10-9 Augusto

Round 2

The fighters clap hands to start off the second stanza, and Biyong
leads off with a low kick. Augusto strings two punches and a leg
kick of his own, and he dodges the counter in time. Biyong stumbles
back and suddenly darts forward, swinging, but Augusto is wise to
it and defends himself. The Brazilian is pushed back to the wall as
the large men tie one another up, and they search for underhooks or
an advantageous position. Biyong shucks off the clinch when grabbed
in a body lock, and he surges forward with inaccurate punches.
Augusto strides forward with a big right hand, and this activates
Biyong, who lashes out with several fists that catch the Brazilian
on the chin. Biyong’s momentum backs “Gugu” back to the fence, and
he knees his man in the breadbasket a few times to score some
points. Biyong stalls out the match in this posture, even when
Augusto attempts to set up a Thai plum, and Augusto looks to escape
with a trip attempt. Biyong falls to a knee and climbs right back
up without issue, and he squeezes his body weight into Augusto like
he is trying to squeeze Augusto through the chain links like
Play-Do. Biyong stays busy enough with body shots, until Augusto
explodes out of the position with a big right hand. Biyong gives
chase and scores a right, and Augusto strikes with three punches to
knock “Hemle” into the wall. Biyong spins him around when backed
up, and Augusto breaks free with 20 seconds to spare. Augusto
glances a vertical elbow off the top of the head, and Biyong holds
on in the clinch until the bell rings.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Augusto
J.L. Kirven scores the round: 10-9 Augusto
Lev Pisarsky scores the round: 10-9 Augusto

Round 3

The two hug it out to start off the last round, and Biyong takes
the middle of the cage and lunges with two whiffing punches.
Augusto clubs Biyong in the face with a right, and he tags a
leaning Biyong with an elbow right on the chin. As Biyong continues
to power forward, Augusto times a knee up the middle. Biyong ducks
down, trips Augusto out and sets him on his seat. The Brazilian
pops right back up to his feet, with Biyong holding on from behind,
and Augusto grabs the fence when Biyong tugs him down to the floor.
Biyong still manages to get Augusto down briefly thanks to an
observant Montalvo, and once more, Augusto springs upright and
turns himself around. Biyong hangs on in the clinch, taking a knee
to the sternum and pressing his forehead into the chest of “Gugu.”
Biyong half-heartedly considers a single-leg takedown, but Augusto
shuts this down and knees his foe in the sternum. Montalvo asks the
competitors to work as Biyong stalls, and Biyong grabs Augusto’s
right leg for a single that is nowhere close to completion. Augusto
elbows Biyong in the side of the head to keep him honest during a
takedown effort, and he rips an elbow up high when Biyong stands
upright. The Brazilian plants multiple short knees to the
midsection as they remain locked up, and he turns Biyong around
momentarily to frame up and smash him with a single elbow. “Hemle”
once more spins his man about, and they continue to dance around
until Augusto lines up a crisp knee to the body. Biyong takes it
like a champ and attempts to fire a few back, but they have far
less mustard on them. Biyong clings to his foe like a bad penny,
grabbing his fingers in the links of the cage to hold him there,
and the crowd grows restless. Augusto gains a short modicum of
space to pop Biyong in the chops with another elbow, and Biyong
dives in for a takedown that is blocked right before the final bell
sounds.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Augusto (30-27 Augusto)
J.L. Kirven scores the round: 10-9 Augusto (30-27 Augusto)
Lev Pisarsky scores the round: 10-9 Augusto (30-27 Augusto)

The Official Result

Jose Augusto Azevedo Barros def. Simon Biyong via Unanimous
Decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)

Round 1

It’s an all-French collision for the second fight of the card, one
that will take place outside of a standard weight category because
one competitor missed weight. While the 6-foot-4 Camara (5-2, 1-1
BMMA) made his proper marks, the six-inch shorter Debienne (8-4,
0-0 BMMA) stepped on the scale nearly two pounds over the
welterweight cap. This de facto catchweight contest will be
officiated by referee Kevin MacDonald, and Debienne offers an
apologetic touch of gloves to lead off. Camara reaches with his
right hand outstretched, length far in his favor, and he tosses out
a body kick from two states away that nearly reaches his opponent.
Camara fakes a body kick again, pumping his hips to draw a
reaction, and he counters an oncoming Debienne with a left. Camara
pops out jabs, looking to follow them with straight left hands, and
Debienne is watching this and avoids most of them. Debienne lets
rip a low kick, and Camara counters him cleanly with a blistering
right hand. Debienne wobbles, and Camara switches stances and walks
him down. Camara fires off a leg kick and a left hook, and Debienne
gets his sea legs back and throws back offense. When Debienne
launches a low kick, Camara prepares his left hand across the
forward bow. Debienne catches Camara flush with a right hand of his
own, and it is one-and-done so that he can evade a head kick
zooming at his dome. Camara greets Debienne with a knee up the
middle, and he just misses taking a right hand on the temple.
Debienne is throwing heat, but few are landing, while Camara is
aiming his big left hook back at him. Camara jabs and paws out with
punches, beating Debienne to the punch repeatedly thanks to several
extra inches in his limbs. Camara snipes his man with a left hook
on the inside, and he hops away from a looping punch soaring at
him. The two trade power punches, missing with most of them, but
swinging hard enough to draw respect from the other. Camara steps
through a punch to snap out a left hook, and he swaps stances to
jab Debienne with his left twice and follow it with a right down
the pipe. Debienne loads up on bombs, and Camara sees them coming
from a mile away. Camara snaps out a head kick, and he catches
Debienne with a left and a front kick right before the bell.

Sherdog Scores

Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Camara
J.L. Kirven scores the round: 10-9 Camara
Lev Pisarsky scores the round: 10-9 Camara

Round 2

The fighters touch ‘em up to get started again, and they whiff on
alternating hooks. Debienne dips back from the distance strikes
that buzz his hairline, and he gets off a few low kicks to the
outstretched leg of his rangy opponent. One such kick spurs Camara
into action, who runs at him throwing punches. Debienne chambers
and looses a massive right hand, rocking Camara badly and
separating him from most of his senses. Camara topples to his seat,
and he desperately looks for a takedown or some way to stand up and
get back with it. As soon as Camara stands, Debienne loads up with
another devastating right, and Camara goes down again. Macdonald
bumps into them before actually waving off the fight, and Debienne
gets off a few more punches to seal the deal before the match
concludes. Camara’s eyes roll back in his head during the final
salvo, but he snaps right back to consciousness and pleads with
MacDonald to not stop the fight. This never works, as by the time
the referee has put hands on a fighter, it is all over. This is a
big win for Debienne, who becomes the first fighter to stop the
long, lanky welterweight with strikes.