Bellator 121 took place on Friday night at the WinStar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma and in the main event, Philipe Lins remained undefeated as he defeated Austen Heidlage by submission to advance to the semifinals of the light heavyweight tournament. 
Lins was able to get a takedown early in the fight and locked in the body triangle as the fighters were on the feet against the fence. Lins began to look for a rear-naked choke and once he locked it in, Heidlage would tap out.
Lins (9-0) is now tied with Emanuel Newton, Mikhail Zayats, and Mike Mucitelli for the most submission wins in Bellator light heavyweight division history. Overall, this is his third career win by submission and both of his wins in Bellator have come by rear-naked choke.
Thompson wins fourth straight with first round TKO win over Prindle
The co-main event of the fight card was a heavyweight bout as James Thompson won his Bellator debut with a first round TKO win over season five tournament winner Eric Prindle.
As the opening bell sounded, Thompson rushed forward and took the fight to the mat. Once on the ground, he worked his ground game and landed 17 strikes, compared to 1 strike from Prindle. After a series of punches on the ground, referee Rob Hinds called the fight at the 1:55 mark of the round.
Thompson (20-14, 1NC) is now unbeaten in his last six fights (5-0, 1NC) and his last two victories have come by stoppage. Following his win, he sent a message to Bellator MMA Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney and mentioned a possible fight with Cheick Kongo.
Sokoudjou scores first career submission victory in Bellator debut
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou dominated Terry Davinney in his Bellator debut and scored his first career win by submission in the first round via a rear-naked choke.
Sokoudjou opened the fight by coming forward and pushing the pace. He would end up getting the fight to the ground, but Davinney would be able to get up and score his own takedown. However, that would be all of his offense as Sokoudjou would reverse the position and dominate the rest of the fight.
After landing several significant short strikes, Sokoudjou would go for a rear-naked choke and Davinney would tap out to the submission. Sokoudjou (15-12) snaps a two fight losing streak with this victory and this is his first stoppage victory since the end of 2012.
Valavicius advances to semifinals with split decision over Eduardo
The opening fight on the main card broadcast on Spike TV saw Egidijus Valavicius advanced to the semifinals of the light heavyweight tournament as he defeated Carlos Eduardo by split decision.
Eduardo was able to implement his gameplan in the opening round as he got the fight to the ground and a majority of the round would be on the ground. While on the ground, he looked for various submissions including a rear-naked choke. Valavicius would defend the submission attempts and got to his feet as the round came to a conclusion.
During the second round, Eduardo would score two takedowns but he struggled to keep the fight on the ground. Valavicius would land 17 more total strikes in the middle round but an accidental head butt would open up a cut on Valavicius right eyebrow.
The cageside doctor would come into the cage following the round to check the cut and would allow the fight to continue. Valavicius would control the final round as he was the aggressor and at one point, Eduardo begged him to come to the ground to him. He would not take the bait and the fight would end on the feet with Valavicius pushing forward.
Two of the three judges scored the fight for Valavicius (27-10) and he now advances to the semifinals where he will meet Liam McGeary, who won his opening round bout last month.
Anundson uses takedowns and ground control to advance to semifinals
The first opening round bout of the light heavyweight tournament to take place at Bellator 121 took place on the preliminary card as Kelly Anundson used his takedowns and ground control to walk away with a decision victory.
As the fight opened, Anundson wasted little time in getting the fight to the ground and the entire round would basically be on the ground. Wallace would be able to get back to his feet briefly, but Anundson would get the fight back to the ground and they would end the round in this position.
Anundson would get the fight to the ground as the second round started and as Wallace worked his way up, Anundson went for a standing guillotine. He would take the submission to the ground, but Wallace would escape. Wallace would have the top position but he could not hold the position as Anundson scrambled to get on top of him. While on his back, Wallace did attempt a submission but it was defended by Anundson.
The third round would be the best round for Wallace as he attempted a rear-naked choke but could not get the finish. He also looked for two separate arm submissions, but Anundson would defend the attempts and controlled the fight for the remainder of the round.
All three judges scored the fight for Anundson (8-2) and he now advances to the semifinals where he will meet Lins.
The complete Bellator 121 results are below.
Main Card: (Spike TV)
Philipe Lins def. Austen Heidlage via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:45
James Thompson def. Eric Prindle via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 1:55
Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou def. Terry Davinney via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 4:16
Egidijus Valavicius def. Carlos Eduardo via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Preliminary Card: (Spike.com)
Treston Thomison def. Stephen Banaszak via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1
Joe Vedepo def. Cortez Coleman via majority decision (28-28, 29-27, 29-27)
Kelly Anundson def. Rodney Wallace via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Ray Sloan def. Jamelle Jones via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, :48
Bubba McDaniel def. Matt Jones via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
Steve Garcia def. Cody Walker via KO (strikes) – Round 1, :39
William Florentino def. Guillermo Martinez Ayme via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 29-28)