Tonight’s Bellator 257 event is co-headlined by a light heavyweight quarterfinal fight featuring Corey Anderson taking on Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov.

Anderson (14-5 MMA), a former TUF winner, made his Bellator debut this past November where he scored a second round TKO victory over veteran Melvin Manhoef. That win was preceded by a knockout loss to reigning UFC light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz.

Meanwhile, Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov (18-5 MMA) will be making his promotional debut this evening at Bellator 257. The Turkmenistan native is currently riding an eight-fight winning streak, his latest being a unanimous decision win over Aleksei Butorin in December of 2019.

Tonight’s Bellator 257 co-main event proved to be a much more competitive fight than many were expecting. Yagshimuradov found success in the standup in round one, but the tide quickly changed in the second half of round two. Corey Anderson took the fight to the canvas where he began to unleash what can only be described as “hellbows”. The fight ending finish occurred in the early stages of round three.

GROUND AND POUND from Corey Anderson pic.twitter.com/aJGUDD5W68

— Will (@ChillemDafoe) April 17, 2021

What a GROUND AND POUND @CoreyA_MMA to score the TKO win! #Bellator257 pic.twitter.com/yeNGfxIAEk

— Fernand Lopez (@fernandlopez) April 17, 2021

Official Bellator 257 Result: Corey Anderson def. Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov via TKO in Round 3

Following his impressive win this evening, Anderson is now slated to face Ryan Bader in the tournament semi-final.