Bellator 117 Predictions

                                              

Bellator 117 Predictions

April 14, 2014

By Ryan Porzl

Karl Amoussou vs. David Gomez

Nickname:                                           Psycho          |          None

Height:                                                   5'11            |            6'0

Age:                                                         28             |             30

MMA Record (BMMA):                 16-6-2 (4-3)   |       16-7 (0-0)

Arm Length:                                          70 in.           |       Unknown

Team:                                        American Top Team |      Shark Tank

Weight Class:                                    Welterweight (170 pounds)

Notes: Gomez's Bellator debut.

Preview: Amoussou is riding a two fight losing streak. His recent loss was to Paul Bradley by submission at Bellator 104 (October 18, 2013). Gomez is coming off a win over Quinton McCottrell by TKO at KOTC Beaten Path (March 6, 2014).

Predictions: Amoussou. Got to pick the safe one. I'll be honest, I know nothing about Gomez. I don't know his reach and never heard of the Shark Tank so it's not known if he has great sparring partners or coaches. Gomez is also coming off a fight one month ago. While it lasted less than a minute, he still trained for that fight and is now going right back to the gym with no rest so he may be coming to this fight too soon. Amoussou is a skilled fighter. He's very good on the ground with both ground strikes and submission. He's also pretty accurate with kicks. In recent times, he's also begun training with American Top Team which should help him prepare for this fight. Amoussou has never been submitted in his career and he's only been TKOed twice with the recent being a doctor's stoppage in the Ben Askren fight. Fortunately for Amoussou, Gomez doesn't have the wrestling that Askren has which Askren used to beat Amoussou.

Marcin Held vs. Derek Anderson

Nickname:                                           None        |          None

Height:                                                   5'9          |           6'0

Age:                                                        22          |       Unknown

MMA Record (BMMA):                17-3 (6-2)    |       11-0 (2-0)

Arm Length:                                       71 in.          |          74 in.

Team:                         Gracie Barra Bastion Tychy | Team Xplode MMA

Weight Class:                                   Lightweight (155 pounds)

Notes: Bellator MMA Season Ten Lightweight Tournament Semi-final

Preview: Held is riding a two fight win streak. His recent win was over Rodrigo Cavalheiro by submission at Bellator 113 (March 21, 2014). Anderson is undefeated with eleven wins. His recent win was over Brandon Girtz by KO at Bellator 113 (March 21, 2014).

Predictions: Held. This will likely be the toughest fight in Anderson's young career. For one thing, Anderson prefers to win fights by submission but he will likely not want this fight to go to the ground. Held is a very decorated grappler and will win the fight if it goes to the ground. Held has also shown improved striking and power in recent fights. While Anderson has never lost, Held has never been knocked out in his career and his only submission loss was to Michael Chandler who has since become one of the best lightweights in the world. Anderson has a lot of potential but he's no Michael Chandler.

Patricky Freire vs. Derek Campos

Nickname:                                            Pitbull         |       The Stallion

Height:                                                    5'7           |            5'9

Age:                                                         28            |            26

MMA Record (BMMA):                 12-5 (5-4)     |      14-3 (3-1)

Arm Length:                                         71 in.          |          68 in.

Team:                                              Team Nogueira |    Mohler MMA

Weight Class:                                       Lightweight (155 pounds)

Notes: Bellator MMA Season Ten Lightweight Tournament Semi-final.

Preview: Freire is riding a two fight win streak. His recent win was over David Rickels by KO at Bellator 113 (March 21, 2014). Campos is riding a five fight win streak. His recent win was over Tim Welch by unanimous decision at Bellator 113 (March 21, 2014).

Predictions: Freire. Freire is riding a lot of momentum and will have a lot of confidence since he's coming off knocking out the tournament favorite in David Rickels. Freire not only has a lot of knockout power but he'll have a three inch reach advantage. Campos has never been knocked out in his career but that shouldn't stop Freire as he has the power to knock fighters out. Freire also has a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu so he's not helpless on the ground. Rickels is a big lightweight and has good wrestling but he couldn't control Freire was able to take him down during a time when they were clinching. Freire is also hard to beat as he's has a good chin and submission defense as he's only been knocked out once by Eddie Alvarez and submitted once.

Douglas Lima vs. Rick Hawn

Nickname:                                           The Phenom   |     Genghis

Height:                                                     6'1              |       5'9

Age:                                                          26              |        37

MMA Record (BMMA):                    25-5 (7-1)      |  18-2 (10-2)

Arm Length:                                            71 in.          |       71 in.

Team:                             American Top Team Atlanta |   Tristar Gym

Weight Class:                                       Welterweight (170 pounds)

Notes: For the vacant Bellator Welterweight Championship

Preview: Lima is riding a four fight win streak. His recent win was over Ben Saunders by KO at Bellator 100 (September 20, 2013). Hawn is riding a four fight win streak. His recent win was over Ron Keslar by KO at Bellator 109 (November 22, 2013).

Predictions: Lima. Lima has been considered for a while to be the best welterweight in a world where there was no Ben Askren. Well, Askren isn't in Bellator anymore so it seems that the Welterweight Title is here for the taking. Lima is also a more well-rounded fighter with an even amount of wins by T/KO and submission (eleven each). Hawn has Olympic level judo but doesn't use it a lot as he prefers to strike and knock opponents out. While Askren was able to defeat Lima with wrestling, Lima has gotten better since then and that fight was two years ago. While Hawn has never been knocked out, Lima has a great chance of changing that. Lima is very good striker and packs a lot of power. His recent fight with Ben Saunders was brutal with Lima battering and destroying Saunders and finished him off with a highlight reel head kick. Hawn was also frustrated by Ron Keslar in his last fight and Lima is a much better striker.