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Freire defeats Henderson by split decision at Bellator 183

Dave Mandel / USA TODAY Sports

Patricky "Pitbull" Freire defeated Benson Henderson via split decision at Bellator 183, capping off one of the best events from the promotion this year.

Neither fighter was able to inflict much damage, and Freire emerged victorious with a 28-29, 29-28, 29-28 victory in a fight that was as close as the scoring indicated. Freire moved to 18-8 overall with the victory over Henderson.

Henderson, a former UFC lightweight champion, dropped to 1-3 during his Bellator career and 24-8 overall.

Paul Daley finished off Lorenz Larkin with a crushing left hook at the 2:40 mark of the second round. Daley improved to 40-15-2 while Larkin dropped to 0-2.

After the win, Daley called out Michael "Venom" Page, telling the crowd to "get that little punk in here with me, he's getting knocked out as well."

Roy Nelson went the distance against Javy Ayala, emerging victorious via unanimous decision (30-26, 29-28, 29-28). Nelson moved to 23-14 with the victory, while Ayala dropped to 10-6.

Aaron Pico delivered on his hype Saturday, defeating Justin Linn in the first round with a devastating knockout punch. Pico, who turns 21 on Tuesday, recorded the first victory of his mixed martial arts career.

Goiti Yamauchi also made quick work of his opponent, defeating Adam Piccolotti via submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:19 of the first round.

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