Bellator 234 was a strong card in Tel Aviv with several finishes throughout. One of the highlights happened just before the main card started, as Robson Gracie Jr secured a tight triangle choke in the first round. This took his perfect record to 3-0 with all of his wins coming by way of submission in less than 20 minutes of cage-time. It is worth noting however, that all three of his opponents have either been debuting or coming in with an 0-1 record.

???????? Robson Gracie moves to 3 & 0 tonight with a tight submission at #Bellator234! pic.twitter.com/U9jRQMkn8H — Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) November 16, 2019

Bellator have made a clear statement to go after debuting MMA fighters with a lot of wrestling or grappling experience. Robson Jr was the fifth member of the Gracie family to fight under the Bellator banner and took the family record to a strong 13-3. His performance at Bellator 234 and Neiman’s recent run up to a title shot showed that this strategy is paying off. This latest victory should signal to Scott Coker that Robson is ready for bigger challenges as he follows in his nephew’s footsteps towards a title shot.

Neiman went on a seven fight win-streak with six finishes before coming up against Rory Macdonald in the Bellator Welterweight Grand Prix. Khonry Gracie has had a 2-1 start to his career and has youth on his side while Ralek and Royce only ever took one fight in the organisation, with different results. Royce beat Ken Shamrock at the age of 49 while Ralek lost out to Hisaki Hato.

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