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Betting PFL & Bellator Championship Series 2025: Top Fights Predictions with Expert Analysis

Betting PFL & Bellator Championship Series 2025: Top Fights Predictions with Expert Analysis

Written by on January 22, 2025

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Be part of the Betting PFL & Bellator here! So, when it comes to MMA, it is the UFC that most people are aware of, but there are other organizations out there, many of which serve as a path to the UFC for some fighters.

Many of these organizations adopt a similar type of format to the UFC, but when the PFL came into being, they did things a little differently.

 

Betting PFL & Bellator Championship Series Analysis

The Professional Fighters League (PFL) adopted a league and playoff format for their annual events, splitting the leagues into different weight classes, usually running 10 weeks in each season.

The PFL has grown in popularity, leading them to acquire Bellator back in late 2023.

Fight fans were interested to see how that move would change things, and what we got was a very cool event called PFL vs Bellator: Champs, with the best of the best of the best from both organizations going head-to-head in a single night of fighting.

That led to the Champions Series, which has also been incredibly successful.

The latest version of this series will go on in Dubai on January 25, with some fantastic fighters set to take part in what looks like a loaded main card.

At the top of the main card is a title fight for the Bellator Lightweight Championship, but the other fights on the card also look fantastic. We are going to take a look at the 5 fights on the main card, with predictions for each, so let’s get right to it.

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Renat Khavalov vs Cleiver Fernandes

We get the Road to Dubai Champions Series with a Featherweight bout between a pair of fighters who have a combined record of 17-1.

Khavalov comes into this one with a perfect 8-0 record, but this will be his first fight under the PFL & Bellator banner. Of his 8 wins, 6 have come via KO, with only 2 fights going the distance.

Fernandes started life as a pro with a 1-1 record after his first 2 fights, but he has been unbeatable since them, reeling off 8 straight wins to move to 9-1 overall.

He was KO’ed in his lone loss, with the remainder of his wins split between submission and decision wins.

I think he is going to have a tough time going all 3 rounds in this one. I think there is a very good chance that this one could be over quickly, as I like Khavalov to get the KO, potentially in the opening round.

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Ibragim Ibragimov vs Kenny Mokhonoana

We stick with the Featherweights for the next bout, and again, it is another pair of fighters who are not familiar with losing.

Ibragimov comes in with an unbeaten record, going 8-0 as a pro, which includes a pair of victories under the PFL banner.

6 of those wins have come inside the distance via KO and submission, with the other 2 going all the way.

Mokhonoana comes into this bout with a 5-1 record, and it is going to be interesting to see how he responds to his first loss as a pro, which come to his last bout.

He has fought under the Bellator banner 3 times, going 2-1 in those bouts, so he is certainly deserving of a spot on this main card.

I would not be surprised to see this bout go the full 3 rounds, and I like Ibragimov to come away with the decision win.

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Nathan Kelly vs Akhmed Magomedov

As we move up the main card, we begin to see bouts between fighters who are a little more experienced. Both of these guys have good records, starting with Kelly, who is sitting at 11-2 right now.

He actually lost his first 2 fights as a pro before winning 11 straight, with 7 of those wins split between the PFL & Bellator.

Magomedov is 10-1 overall, but he is coming into this one having lost his last bout, so he is another fighter looking to bounce back with a signature win.

In his time with Bellator, he has gone 1-1, with half of his overall fights split between going all the way and finishing inside the distance.

This is another one that I believe has the potential to go the full 3 rounds. I think it will be Kelly that gets the decision.

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Vadim Nemkov vs Tim Johnson

The co-main event of the night promises to be a bruising battle between a pair of hard-hitting Heavyweight fighters.

Nemkov comes into this one with a 12-2 overall record, but perhaps more importantly, he is an unbeaten 10-0 with the PFL & Bellator. 15 of his fights have finished inside the distance.

Johnson is a veteran brawler who comes in with UFC experience and an overall record of 18-10. One thing to note here is that he has a losing record in his time with the PFL and Bellator, going 5-6 in those matchups.

20 of his 28 pro bouts have finished inside the distance, so expect more of the same here.

I would be stunned if this one went beyond Round 2, as I think Nemkov will get the KO blow pretty quickly.

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Usman Nurmagomedov vs Paul Hughes

We close the night out with a battle for the Bellator Lightweight Championship, with Nurmagomedov looking to defend his title. He comes into this bout with a perfect 18-0 record, as well as a recent No Contest.

7 of his wins have come under the Bellator banner, with 14 of his 18 wins coming inside the distance. Hughes may be a big underdog here, but it would be a mistake to suggest that he has no chance.

Hughes is 15-1 overall, although he does not have a ton of experience with PFL/Bellator, where he is 2-0. 9 of his 16 fights have finished inside the distance, but I think he might take this one all the way.

It is tough to bet against Nurmagomedov given his outstanding pro career, but I do think he will need to battle it out to won via decision.

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