As expected, Eddie Alvarez advanced to the Bellator Fighting Championships lightweight tournament final.  Unexpectedly, his opponent will not be Jorge Masvidal.

The heavily favored Alvarez defeated Eric Reynolds by rear-naked choke while holding a distinct advantage on the score cards.  He controlled the fight, mounting Reynolds several times before taking his back and finishing him 90 seconds into the third round.  Alvarez has now ended 15 of his 17 pro fights by knockout, technical knockout, or submission.  He's forced two consecutive opponents to tap since his New Years Eve loss to fellow world-ranked lightweight Shinya Aoki, only the second defeat of his career.

American Top Team fighter Jorge Masvidal seemed to be in control of his semi-final matchup before opponent Toby Imada locked on a triangle choke that left Masvidal unconscious at 3:22 of round three.  Imada (22-12) has now been victorious in eight straight bouts with six ending in submission and two by TKO.  The veteran Imada will take on the Philadelphia native Alvarez in the Bellator finals.

Here are the official results of the non-tournament bouts;

Heavyweights- Dave Herman def. Josh Barnes via TKO (strikes) - Round 1, 4:46
Heavyweights- Joey Beltran def. Sherman Pendergarst via TKO (strikes) - Round 1, 2:24
Heavyweights- Dan Evensen def. Raoul Romera via submission (strikes) - Round 2, 1:44.
Featherweights- Matt Jaggers def. Pete Dominguez via submission (rear-naked choke) - Round 1, 4:03
Women, catchweight, 117lbs- Jessica Pene def. Tammie Schneider via TKO (strikes) - Round 1, 1:35
Welterweights- Justin Edwards def. John Troyer via submission (guillotine) - Round 1, 3:12
Lightweights- Waylon Lowe def. Frank Carabello via unanimous decision