Bellator Champions Series Odds: Betting Nurmagomedov vs. Shabliy San Diego Bout

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Alright MMA betting enthusiasts, you’re going to have a good chance to cash in with a few potentially winning wagers on what looks like a highly entertaining card, even if it isn’t a UFC event. Bellator remains the world’s No. 2 MMA promotion behind the UFC and it still provides some serious action and great opportunities to cash in with winning wagers in my expert opinion.

Okay, with all of that said, Bellator 194 will take place on Friday, February 16, 2018. The undercard features a bunch of other intriguing fights but is headlined by the heavyweight matchup between former UFC fighters Matt Mitrione and Roy Nelson as they meet for the second time with Mitrione as the MMA odds slight favorite.

Now, let’s get to some expert picks.

Bellator 194 MMA Betting Odds & Expert Analysis

When: February 16, 2018
Where: City Uncasville, Connecticut
Venue: Mohegan Sun Arena

Patricky Freire vs. Derek Campos

Weight Class: Lightweight
MMA Betting Odds: -245 / +185

The 32-year-old Brazilian Patricky Freire (18-8) has won two straight fights and four of his last five overall, including a split decision win over former UFC champ Benson Henderson at Bellator 183 in September.

29-year-old Texas native Derek Campos (19-6) has won four straight fights including a second-round TKO (doctor stoppage) over Brandon Girtz in their third meeting at Bellator 181 in July.

I like the younger, bigger and stronger Campos to use his longer reach to keep Freire at bay before finishing off his opponent with his third stoppage in his last five fights.

Pick: Derek Campos via second-round KO (Punches)

Liam McGeary vs. Vadim Nemkov

Weight Class: Light Heavyweight
MMA Betting Odds: -155 / +125

35-year-old Liam McGeary (12-2) has lost two of his last three fights and comes into Bellator 194 off a humbling third-round submission (arm-triangle) loss against Linton Vassell at Bellator 179 in May. 25-year-old Vadim Nemkov (8-2) has won three straight fights all in the first round including his KO (punches) win over Philipe Lins at Bellator 182 in August. Amazingly, all eight of Nemkov’s wins have come via first-round stoppages!

Pick: Vadim Nemkov via first-round KO (punches)

Matt Mitrione vs. Roy Nelson

Weight Class: Heavyweight
MMA Betting Odds: -170 / +150

39-year-old Matt Mitrione (12-5) has won three straight fights after losing his previous two bouts and beat Fedor Emelianenko at Bellator NYC in June via first-round KO (punches). 41-year-old Roy Nelson recorded a unanimous decision win over Javy Ayala at Bellator 183 in September to rebound from his unanimous decision loss to Alexander Volkov at UFC on FOX: Johnson vs. Reis in April.

While Nelson has gone 3-5 in his last eight MMA bouts, he did manage to beat the hell out of Matt Mitrione at The Ultimate Fighter: Team Carwin vs. team Nelson way back in December of 2012.

If you look at these two aging fighters right now, it’s pretty evident that Matt Mitrione is in better shape than Roy Nelson, who looks like he should probably hang it up right about now. However, Nelson doesn’t just bow out easily as each of his last four losses come by way of unanimous decision.

Still, Nelson has alternated wins and losses over his last six bouts and Matt Mitrione wants revenge. Mitrione is getting up there, but he’ll get this win – via unanimous decision!

Pick: Matt Mitrione via unanimous decision

Rest of the Card

Women’s Flyweight: Heather Hardy vs. Ana Julaton
Featherweight: Tywan Claxton vs. Jose Antonio Perez
Lightweight: Marcus Surin vs. Dean Hancock
Lightweight: Andre Fialho vs. Nick Giulietti
Welterweight: Peter Nascimento vs. Kastriot Xhema
Featherweight: Regivaldo Carvalho vs. Thomas English
Lightweight: Tyler Hamilton vs. Pat Casey
Welterweight: Vinicius de Jesus vs. Jesse McElligott
Bantamweight: Mike Kimbel vs. Geoffrey Then

Previous Betting News

Last weekend was a spectacular one for mixed martial arts with a loaded UFC 220 card and maybe the best-ever Bellator card, 192. Bellator isn’t taking this weekend off, either, as Bellator 193 is Friday night from the Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, Calif., and will be televised on the Paramount Network starting at 9 p.m. ET. The card is headlined by a fight between Lorenz Larkin and Fernando Gonzalez. Check back for the latest MMA odds at our online sportsbook.

Bellator 193 Betting Preview & Predictions

Lorenz Larkin (18-7) vs. Fernando Gonzalez (27-14)

This is not a title fight and is being held at a catchweight of 180 pounds; it’s possible, though, that the winner takes on Rory MacDonald next. MacDonald, as this writer predicted, beat Douglas Lima in a brutal welterweight title fight last weekend at Bellator 192.

Larkin, a longtime UFC and Strikeforce fighter, is still searching for his first Bellator win. Since joining the organization earlier this year, he suffered a title loss via decision to Lima and a knockout defeat to Paul Daley. Prior to those losses, Larkin, who fought as a light heavyweight before his recent welterweight run, was on a 4-1 run.

Gonzalez has managed to miss weight for his past two bouts, wins over Brandon Girtz and Brennan Ward). The 34-year-old former WEC and Strikeforce fighter’s only loss in his past nine fights came via split decision to Michael Page in November 2016. That loss was very controversial. Gonzalez refused to engage for the first two rounds, and Page taunted him to come into range. Page landed just enough strikes to win rounds where virtually nothing happened. When Gonzalez did engage in the third round he went for takedowns and failed to get them. The judges rendered a split decision of 29-28 Page, 30-27 Gonzalez, and 29-28 for Page.

Gonzalez has shown that he can match whatever pace his opponent brings to the table, whether that be intensity or inertia. Gonzalez stays busy inside of the clinch and demonstrates serviceable wrestling when he calls upon it. Larkin’s game comes to life when allowed the open space to operate. He will have a speed advantage in this one. Larkin also has fought better competition and arguably has a higher ceiling.

Saad Awad (21-9) vs. JJ Ambrose (28-7)

These two are lightweight contenders – well, the winner will be. Awad has competed 15 times in the Bellator cage, going 9-6 for the organization while competing in both the lightweight and welterweight divisions. He has won two straight, including a quick first-round finish of Zach Freeman on Nov. 3. Awad stopped Freeman just 67 seconds into the first round with a two-punch TKO courtesy of a pair of right hands that appeared to be merely glancing blows, but were enough to put Freeman on the canvas and get referee Keith Peterson to shut things down. Awad essentially called the fight himself by raising his hands and not dropping to the canvas to go for the finish.

Ambrose returns to Bellator for a third stint with the promotion following a pair of one-off appearances in 2012 and 2013. “Superman” is riding a five-fight winning streak. In his most recent outing, he defeated two-time UFC competitor Ben Wall by unanimous decision.

Kendall Grove (23-17) vs. AJ Matthews (8-7)

It’s a middleweight bout between the 6-foot-6 Grove and 5-foot-11 Matthews. He enters the fight on a two-bout losing streak and hasn’t earned a victory in almost two years. Grove has previously challenged for the Bellator Middleweight title, losing to then champion Brandon Halsey at Bellator 137. Grove was also the winner of the UFC Ultimate Fighter 3, defeating Ed Herman by decision.

Matthews has lost his past four and it’s been over two years since the last time he won a fight. He also competed once in Rizin, suffering a first round knockout loss to Anatoly Tokov in December of 2015. Matthews has spent the last six years in Bellator, with the most notable win coming over Strikeforce veteran Rudy Bears at Bellator 53.

Joe Hernandez (3-2) vs. Tyrell Fortune (3-0)

It’s two newbies in this heavyweight bout with Fortune likely to weigh as much as 30 pounds more than Fernandez. Fortune, a Division II and junior college national champion as a wrestler, has been victorious in his first three Bellator MMA appearances. He went the distance for the first time at Bellator 178, when he outpointed Branko Busick on April 21. Hernandez enters his Bellator on a two-bout skid. “2 Gunz” has not competed since March 2016, when he suffered a second-round KO defeat against Jared Vanderaa at Smash Global “The Main Event 3.”

Expert Predictions for Bellator 193

Go Larkin, Ambrose, Grove and Fortune.

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There’s a big UFC 220 card on Saturday from Boston that features heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic putting his belt on the line against Francis Ngannou. However, it’s not your only excellent MMA option of the night. Bellator’s 192 card from the Forum in Los Angeles is one of that organization’s best ever and is co-headlined by Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Chael Sonnen squaring off in a heavyweight fight. Here’s a look at Bellator 192’s two co-main fights and and it’s latest MMA odds provided by MyBookie. This card can be seen on Spike TV.

Bellator 192 MMA Odds & Betting Preview

Chael Sonnen (29-15-1) vs. Rampage Jackson (37-12)

Jackson is a -155 favorite with Sonnen at +115. This is the first of Bellator’s eight-man heavyweight tournament, called the Heavyweight Grand Prix, which culminates in a bout later this year for the promotion’s vacant title. That belt was vacated by Vitaly Minakov in 2016. Sonnen and Jackson get things started in the first quarterfinal on Saturday from L.A. That winner would take on the Frank Mir-Fedor Emeliananko winner. Those two meet in April.

On the other side of the bracket, on Feb. 16 in Connecticut, when Roy Nelson (23-14) meets Matt Mitrione (12-5). The opening round concludes in May, with current Bellator light heavyweight champion Ryan Bader (24-5) taking on Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal (21-6) in San Jose. The final is tentatively scheduled for December 2018.

What Does the President Say About This Fight?

“This is going to be something that’s iconic for us,” Bellator president Scott Coker said. “Tournaments, traditionally, are kind of the way martial arts contests happen. Now we get to put eight iconic brand names in our sport together over a year, and then whoever wins will be crowned the heavyweight champion.”

Only half of the field (Emelianenko, Mir, Mitrione, Nelson) an even say they’re a natural heavyweight. Of that group, Mitrione is the closest to still being in his prime. Mir hasn’t fought since March 2016. Sonnen, Jackson, Nelson and Emelianenko are all past their primes. “King Mo” is the wild card in this tournament.

Jackson, 39, most recently competed under the Bellator banner last March, dropping a unanimous decision to Lawal in a heavyweight main event at Bellator 175. The rematch loss snapped a five-fight winning streak. Rampage is a former PRIDE middleweight champion and UFC light heavyweight title holder. He holds victories over some of the biggest names in MMA history, including Chuck Liddell, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Dan Henderson, and Wanderlei Silva.

How Well is Chael Sonnen for This Fight?

The 40-year-old Sonnen, who did his best work in UFC at middleweight, made his pro debut way back in 1997. The fight is Sonnen’s third since signing a 2016 deal with Bellator. He lost to Tito Ortiz last January by first-round submission before rebounding with a unanimous decision win Wanderlei Silva in the main event of Bellator 180, only the second pay-per-view in Bellator history.

For this fight, Sonnen could be facing an opponent who may be 40 pounds heavier than him on the night. Rampage figures to use that advantage against the middleweight/light heavyweight Sonnen, who expects to be around 215 pounds in the contest.

“There is a fear factor here, and it has driven me in training, in camp,” Sonnen said recently. “Look, Rampage is a tough night when he weighs 205 pounds. When he weighs 255 pounds… you talk about his hands, yeah, Rampage has put plenty of men down.”

Jackson has suffered his past three losses by decision. He hasn’t been stopped since September 2011. Sonnen has suffered 14 of his 15 career losses by stoppage.

Rory MacDonald (19-4) vs. Douglas Lima (29-6)

It’s a welterweight title fight between the champion Lima, who is a +140 underdog, against former UFC champion and Canadian MacDonald, who is -180. Sonnen-Jackson will be the last fight of the card, but Bellator considers it a double main event, according to spokesperson C.J. Tuttle.

Lima is one of the best fighters in Bellator history, a two-time champion with multiple highlight-reel knockouts on his resume. “The Phenom”, from Brazil, has won three in a row since a loss to Andrey Koreshkov at Bellator 104. The Brazilian’s only other loss in Bellator came against Ben Askren in 2012. Lima last fought in June and beat Lorenz Larkin by unanimous decision. It wasn’t the kind of exciting, highlight-reel victory Lima wanted.

What Does Douglas Lima Say About His Opponent?

“I’m just not gonna let that get to me this time,” Lima said. “I’m looking at this guy like he’s just any other. I just go over there, perform, let everything go and just make it a great fight. Because I didn’t like the last one.”

Lima competes in his 13th Bellator welterweight bout, tied with Koreshkov for the most appearances in divisional history. Lima’s 10 victories in Bellator welterweight competition are second most in divisional history behind Koreshkov (11). Lima has earned 24 of his 29 career victories by stoppage.

MacDonald (19-4) is a popular former UFC title challenger known for exciting fights. When MacDonald signed with Bellator last year, it was considered perhaps the promotion’s most significant acquisition from the UFC yet. MacDonald has earned 14 of his 19 career victories by stoppage. He owns a victory over current UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley.

“The Red King” ended a two-fight losing streak, both in the UFC, in his Bellator debut in May with a second-round submission of Paul Daley. Originally, MacDonald thought his fight with Lima would take place somewhere in Canada. Now he said he hopes to make his first defense of the title in his homeland should he emerge victorious against Lima.

“I see it going probably one or two rounds, maybe three,” MacDonald said. “I don’t see it going four or five rounds. I’m going to close the show before then.”

Expert Predictions for Bellator 192

Take Jackson by stoppage and MacDonald by KO/TKO.

Previous Betting News

Fight fans looking for some quality fight action between UFC events routinely turn to Bellator. Some of the best MMA fighters in the world, many of whom have spent time in UFC, take to the octagon in these events, and the latest one is set to go on Friday night, December 15, at the Metro Radio Arena in Newcastle, England. Bellator 191 will feature 5 fights on the card, with a pair of fights serving as the co-main events. Let’s take a closer look at each of the 5 fights, and their respective MMA lines, while making some Bellator 191 betting predictions as to how they might go.

Bellator 191 Betting Preview & Expert Predictions

Date: December 15, 2017
Venue: Metro Radio Arena
City: Newcastle, England
TV: Spike TV

Mohammad Yahya vs. Ashley Griffiths (Preliminary)

Weight Class: Lightweight
Records: 4-1-0 / 4-4-0

Yahya comes into this fight as the definite favorite. He has put together a 4-1 record and was the winner in his last bout, which was held in Dubai. On the flipside, you have Ashley Griffiths, a fighter who has had a bit of an up and down career, going 4-5 through his first 9 fights.

This one might well be over rather quickly, as I think Yahya will get the job done in the early rounds. I’d be surprised to see Griffiths get anything out of this bout, independently of the Bellator 191 Betting Odds.

Jeremy Petley vs. Lewis Monarch (Main Card)

Weight Class: Lightweight
Records: 11-8-1 / 9-2-0

Things should start to heat up with the second fight of the night, as we have a pair of good fighters going toe to toe in this one. Petley is a Canadian who fights out of London, England, and who is coming into this fight with an 11-8-1 record. He will be going against Lewis Monarch, who is sure to be a fan favorite given that he hails from this part of the country.

Monarch has a 9-2 record, and like Petley is coming into this one after winning his last outing. Monarch should have more than enough to get the better of the Canadian.

James Thompson vs. Phil De Fries (Main Card)

Weight Class: Heavyweight
Records: 20-16-0 / 13-6-0

At 38 years of age, Thompson’s best years may be behind him, but this is a big man with a lot of power to dish out. He is 20-16 in his career and is coming into this bout on the heels of back to back losses, which does not bode well for him. Phil De Fries is another fighter who is sure to have a lot of supporters in the arena, given that he fights out of Sunderland, which is close to Newcastle.

He won his last fight to take his career record to 13-6. You have to like De Fries, who is currently ranked #3 in this weight class. to get the win against a guy who would seem to be nearing the end of his fight career.

Valerie Letourneau vs. Kate Jackson (Co-Main Event)

Weight Class: Flyweight
Records: 8-6-0 / 9-2-1

Letourneau is a Canadian strawweight fighter who is currently ranked #31 in her class. She comes into this one with an 8-6 record, while in the midst of a 3-fight losing streak. She will go up against English fighter Kate Jackson who is ranked #20 in the lightweight division, and who has won 2 in a row to take her career record to 9-2-1.

This is a fight that could very well go the distance, and I believe it will be Letourneau who comes out on top, so be sure to include her in your Bellator 191 Betting ticket.

Michael McDonald vs. Peter Ligier (Co-Main Event)

Weight Class: Bantamweight
Records: 17-4-0 / 8-1-1

It wasn’t so very long ago that Michael McDonald was among the top 10 bantamweight fighters in the UFC. McDonald went on to lose 3 of 5, including an absolute hammering KO defeat versus John Lineker last time out.

He has taken a year off to recharge the batteries and will make his comeback against a promising young fighter who is coming into this one with an 8-1-1 record. It’s a tough return for McDonald, but one that he should win.