Wednesday, March 5, 2014

Bellator 111 predictions

                                              

Bellator 111 Predictions
March 4, 2014
By Ryan Porzl


Blagoi Ivanov vs. Richard Hale
Nickname:                                            Bagata         |     Rare Breed
Height:                                                    5'11           |          6'4
Age:                                                          27            |           28
MMA Record (BMMA):               9-0, 1NC (4-0) |    21-6-1 (6-3)
Arm Length:                                           73 in.          |       80.5 in.
Team:                                      SK Absolute Bulgaria |   Koncete Gym
Weight Class:                                      Heavyweight (265 pounds)

Notes: Season Ten Heavyweight Tournament Quarter-finals

Preview: Ivanov is unbeaten in ten fights (nine wins, one no contest). His recent fight was a win over Keith Bell by submission at Bellator 109 (November 22, 2013). Hale is riding a two fight losing streak. His recent loss was to Ryan Martinez by KO at Bellator 96 (June 19, 2013).

Predictions: Ivanov. Ivanov has had two fights since coming back from his near fatal stabbing and seems like he's ready to go. Ivanov has the tools to beat Hale as he has good striking and knock out. He also showed in his recent fight against Keith Bell that he can survive powerful shots, get clipped, and can pull out victory from the jaws of defeat. If striking doesn't work, Ivanov is a world-class grappler as a former Sambo world champion. Hale also showed in his last fight with Martinez that if you hit him hard enough, he'll go down. Ivanov has the skills to do what Martinez did, take Hale down and hit him with powerful shots.

Alexander Volkov vs. Mark Holata
Nickname:                                             Drago            |    The Machine
Height:                                                    6'7                |         6'2
Age:                                                         25                |          31
MMA Record (BMMA):                  19-4 (3-1)         |     12-4 (3-2)
Arm Length:                                           81 in.             |         72 in.
Team:                                       RusFighters Sport Club | American Top Team OKC
Weight Class:                                        Heavyweight (265 pounds)

Notes: Season Ten Heavyweight Tournament Quarter-finals

Preview: Volkov is coming off a loss to Vitaly Minakov by TKO at Bellator 108 (November 15, 2013). Holata is coming off a loss to Vinicius Queiroz by submission at Bellator 75 (October 5, 2012).

Predictions: Volkov. Holata is coming off a sixteen month layoff which isn't good when he's going into a fight with Volkov. Volkov's takedown defense isn't good but he's good defensively on the ground. He's also a very good striker as he knows how to use his reach, has very good accuracy, and goes for combinations instead of sloppy haymakers. He also hits hard with fourteen wins by knockout while most of Holata's losses are by way of knockout. Holata has won most of his fights by submission but Volkov hasn't been submitted in four years.

Peter Graham vs. Siala-Mou Siliga
Nickname:                                      The Chief        |        Mighty Mo
Height:                                                 6'2             |             6'1
Age:                                                      38             |              43
MMA Record (BMMA):               10-6 (1-1)      |        5-2 (2-0)
Arm Length:                                        73 in.          |            74 in.
Team:                                            Wolfslair MMA | Aguirre Fighting System
Weight Class:                                     Heavyweight (265 pounds)

Notes: Season Ten Heavyweight Tournament Quarter-finals

Preview: Graham is coming off a loss to Cheick Kongo by unanimous decision at Bellator 107 (November 8, 2013). Siliga is riding a three fight win streak. His recent win was over Ron Sparks by submission at Bellator 105 (October 25, 2013).

Predictions: Siliga. Since arriving in Bellator, Graham has never shown good cardio. Graham is tough to finish but it shouldn't matter because if he gets tired then he won't be able to finish if he's exhausted. Siliga has also shown that he may not have the best cardio but he showed in the Dan Charles fight that he could still finish in the third round. Since returning to MMA last year, Siliga has clearly been making the most out of it. He's clearly worked on his ground game including submissions and sprawling. He's also benefited from the 265 pound weight limit as he's in the best shape of his combat sports career. Graham is a talented fighter, has good skills and good chin but if he can't get his cardio up or not be affected by jet lag then he won't go far.

Lavar Johnson vs. Ryan Martinez
Nickname:                                            Big             |          None
Height:                                                  6'4             |           5'11
Age:                                                       36              |            26
MMA Record (BMMA):                17-7 (0-1)      |       10-3 (3-2)
Arm Length:                                         81 in.          |           72 in.
Team:                     American Kickboxing Academy |     Infinite MMA
Weight Class:                                      Heavyweight (265 pounds)

Notes: Season Ten Heavyweight Tournament Quarter-finals

Preview: Johnson is riding a three fight losing streak. His recent loss was to Vinicius Queiroz by KO at Bellator 102 (October 4, 2013). Martinez is coming off a loss to Vitaly Minakov by TKO at Bellator 97 (July 31, 2013).

Predictions: Martinez. This is a nightmare fight for Johnson. Martinez hits very hard and Johnson is coming off a 20 second knockout loss. Worse of all, Martinez is an underrated wrestler and if he's not successful standing up then he can get it to the ground. Johnson is well known for bad takedown defense and even worse on his back. Worse case scenario for Martinez is to take Johnson down and grind out a decision because he won't be able to get back up. Martinez is getting up a lot of reach but it shouldn't matter as Richard Hale's arm were the same and it didn't help. Martinez is also a southpaw which could throw Johnson off.

Eduardo Dantas vs. Anthony Leone
Nickname:                                           DuDu            |          None
Height:                                                  5'10             |            5'6
Age:                                                        25              |             26
MMA Record (BMMA):                15-3 (5-0)        |       13-6 (3-3)
Arm Length:                                      Unknown         |        Unknown
Team:                                               Nova Uniao      |     Team Bombsquad
Weight Class:                                     Bantamweight (135 pounds)

Notes: For the Bellator Bantamweight Championship. Leone is replacing Rafael Silva.

Preview: Dantas is coming off a win over Marcos Galvao by KO at Bellator 89 (February 14, 2013). Leone is coming off a loss to Rafael Silva by unanimous decision at Bellator 102 (October 4, 2013).


Predictions: Dantas. Leone is talented but one-dimensional. Just look at his stats and you know what to expect. He's a ground fighter who prefers to go for submissions. He's not a striker and he doesn't have much power since he's never won a fight by knockout. Dantas is also a very talented fighter. He's very good on the ground and has not only won five of his fights by submission but he's never been submitted in his career. At the same time, he's aggressive and fearless standing up as he'll throw stuff like flying knees. He's also got knockout power and is capable of knocking Leone out.

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