Bellator 222 takes place on Friday, June 14 at Madison Square Garden in New York. Although the main event has champion Norman McDonald taking on Neiman Gracie, the co-main event also looks like a fantastic matchup. Lyotoa Machida battles Chael Sonnen in the co-main event. Check out Bellator 222 odds, analysis, and picks for Machida-Sonnen and McDonald-Gracie along with two other great matchups!
Bellator 222 Odds, McDonald vs Gracie Betting Prediction & Picks
- When: Friday, June 14, 10pm
- Where: Madison Square Garden, New York, NY
- Live Stream: DAZN
Main Card (DAZN, 10:00pm ET)
- Rory MacDonald vs Neiman Gracie (Bellator Welterweight Championship)
- Darrion Caldwell vs Kyoji Horiguchi (Bellator Bantamweight Championship)
- Lyoto Machida vs Chael Sonnen (Light Heavyweight)
- Dillon Danis vs Max Humphrey (Catchweight – 175 lbs)
- Ricky Bandejas vs Patrick Mix (Bantamweight)
- Eduardo Dantas vs Juan Archuleta (Bantamweight)
Preliminary Card (MMA Junkie, 6:30pm ET)
- Brandon Polcare vs Brandon Medina (Flyweight)
- Haim Gozali vs Gustavo Wurlitzer (Welterweight)
- Heather Hardy vs Taylor Turner (Women’s Flyweight)
- Mike Kimbel vs Sebastian Ruiz (Bantamweight)
- John Beneduce vs Kenny Rivera (Featherweight)
- Kastriot Xhema vs Whitney Francois (Catchweight – 165 lbs)
- Phil Hawes vs Michael Wilcox (Middleweight)
- Robson Gracie vs Oscar Vera (Welterweight)
- Rena Kubota vs Lindsey Van Zandt (Women’s Catchweight – 112 lbs)
- Aaron Pico vs Adam Borics (Featherweight)
- Valerie Loureda vs Larkyn Casch (Women’s Flyweight)
- Marcus Surin vs Nekruz Mirkhojaev (Lightweight)
Patrick Mix vs Ricky Bandejas
- Bellator 222 Odds: Patrick Mix +110 / Ricky Bandejas -130
This should be one of the best fights on Bellator 222’s main card. 11-2-0 Ricky Bandejas has 4 wins via decision, 4 via KO/TKO, and 3 via submission. That means Bandejas has an all-around fight game.
Mix is much taller than Bandejas, though. He’s 5’ 11’ compared to Bandejas’ 5’ 7”. Patrick Mix is 10-0-0 and has submitted 6 of his opponents. He’s knocked out only one opponent. Mix can get this fight to the ground any time he wants. He gets the edge.
Bellator 222 Pick: Patrick Mix
Max Humphrey vs Dillon Danis
- Bellator 222 Odds: Max Humphrey +550 / Dillon Danis -800
1-0-0 Dillon Danis is a huge favorite over 3-2-0 Max Humphrey. Danis has great grappling skills. He got Kyle Walker into a leg bar at Bellator 198. He’s also got length and is tall at 6’ 0”. Humphrey is one of those tough guy fighters. He should get out skilled here.
Bellator 222 Pick: Dillon Danis
Chael Sonnen vs Lyoto Machida
- Bellator 222 Odds: Chael Sonnen +270 / Lyoto Machida -340
Circa 2010, Chael Sonnen and Lyoto Machida were two of the top fighters at UFC. Machida’s record is 25-8-0. Sonnen’s record is 30-16-1. Both should give it their all here.
Versus Fedor Emelianenko, Sonnen did whatever he could to get the fight to the ground. He even tried to goad Emelianenko into taking the top position. Sonnen does his best work on the mat. Machida most likely will use his leg reach to keep Chael at a safe distance. Lyoto wins on Friday night.
Bellator 222 Pick: Lyoto Machida
Neiman Gracie vs Rory McDonald
- Bellator 222 Odds: Neiman Gracie +140 / Rory MacDonald -165
Neiman is a fourth generation member of the Brazilian jiu-jitsu legendary Gracie Family. He’s 9-0 with 8 of his wins coming via submission and 1 win coming via decision. Although Neiman has a great ground game, he’s up against it versus 20-5-1 Rory McDonald.
The Bellator Welterweight Champion, McDonald has a strong all-around game. He has won 7 via submission, 7 via TKO/KO, and 6 via decision. McDonald uses his hands, legs, can work on the ground, and has a great chin. He’s the pick.
Bellator 222 Pick: Rory MacDonald
