Bellator 118 Predictions

                                              
                                                     Bellator 118 Predictions

April 29, 2014

By Ryan Porzl

Liam McGeary vs. Mike Mucitelli

Nickname:                                          None            |         Crazy

Height:                                                  6'6              |           6'5

Age:                                                       31              |            30 

MMA Record (BMMA):                 6-0 (3-0)        |  6-0, 1NC (4-0, 1NC)

Arm Length:                                       81 in.           |            77 in.  

Team:                                      Team Renzo Gracie |         Tai-Kai

Weight Class:                               Light Heavyweight (205 pounds)                         

Notes: Bellator MMA Summer Series Light Heavyweight Tournament Semi-final

Preview: McGeary is undefeated with six wins. His recent win was over Najim Wali by submission at Bellator 108 (November 15, 2013). Mucitelli is unbeaten in seven fights (6 wins, 1 no contest). His recent fight was a win over Ryan McCurdy by unanimous decision at Bellator 107 (November 8, 2013).

Predictions: McGeary. Both men are two of the biggest prospects not only in Bellator's light heavyweight division but McGeary is the superior of the two. Mucitelli is a good fighter but you know what to expect with him. He's won most of his fights by submission and will likely go for the takedown and try to submit McGeary. Mucitelli isn't a bad striker but he's not great either and won't be able to stand with McGeary especially since he's given away a lot of reach and hasn't shown knockout power. He's great with takedowns and striking on the ground but McGeary is no stranger on the ground and it will be tough for Mucitelli to control him on the ground. McGeary looks to be the more well-rounded fighter. He's a good striker with very good power and a huge reach. He's a very good grappler in his own right and has submission skills. McGeary is also a finisher as he's never gone the distance in any of his fights. Not only that but none of McGeary's three fights in Bellator have gone beyond two minutes and only two of his six fights have gone beyond the first round. It should also be pointed out that McGeary has nearly gone the distance as his debut fight in 2010 ended at round three at 4:45 so he has gone deep into a fight and shouldn't get tired if the fight goes long.

Marcos Galvao vs. Thomas Vasquez

Nickname:                                          Loro           |    The Die Hard Kidd

Height:                                                 5'7             |              5'6

Age:                                                       31             |              27

MMA Record (BMMA):               15-6-1 (5-3)   |          7-0 (0-0)

Arm Length:                                      67 in.          |         Unknown

Team:                                Marcos Galvao MMA |     Fisher's Bang Gym 

Weight Class:                                 Bantamweight (135 pounds)                       

Notes: Vasquez's Bellator debut

Preview: Galvao is riding a two fight win streak. His recent win was over Tom McKenna by TKO at Bellator 108 (November 15, 2013). Vasquez is undefeated with seven wins. His recent win was over Alex Rojas by submission at TPF (February 6, 2014).

Predictions: Galvao. Vasquez is undefeated but this should be the toughest fight of his career. Galvao is a very talented fighter. He's got very good takedown accuracy. He's good with striking on the ground and he's good with leg strikes. Though he's never won a fight by submission, Galvao has great Brazilian jiu-jitsu as he is a five time Brazilian national champion and two time world champion. Once on the ground, he is capable of either grinding out decisions or win with ground n' pound. Galvao also has power as he's won his last two fights by TKO. I don't know much about Vasquez but what I do know is he's won most of his fights by submission. However, Galvao has never been submitted in his career. It would probably be a big mistake for Vasquez to try to get this fight to the ground given Galvao's skills and creditionals. 

Andrey Koreshkov vs. Sam Oropeza

Nickname:                                       Spartan                |      Sammy O

Height:                                                6'0                    |            6'2

Age:                                                     23                     |            28  

MMA Record (BMMA):              15-1 (6-1)              |       11-2 (3-1)  

Arm Length:                                     74 in.                  |        72.5 in.   

Team:                                     RusFighters Sport Club | Philadelphia Fight Club   

Weight Class:                                   Welterweight (170 pounds)                

Notes: Bellator MMA Season Ten Welterweight Tournament Semi-finals

Preview: Koreshkov is riding a two fight win streak. His recent win was over Nah-Shon Burrell by TKO at Bellator 112 (March 14, 2014). Oropeza is riding a six fight win streak. His recent win was over Cristiano Souza by TKO at Bellator 112 (March 14, 2014).

Predictions: Koreshkov. Koreshkov is a tough fighter to beat. He's a very good striker with tons of knockout power. He's also very good striking on the ground and can viciously knock opponents out there as well. He'll also have a 1.5 inch reach advantage. Like his mentor Alexander Shlemenko, Koreshkov likes to strike from different angles and go to the body. While Oropeza has won a lot of fights by knockout, it probably wouldn't be the right move to strike. Koreshkov has taken on heavy handed fighters before and soundly beat them. He scored a decision win over Lyman Good and brutally demolished Marius Zaromskis. Oropeza is a good wrestler but Koreshkov should be ready for this as he's decorated in Pankration and has likely been training in wrestling since the Ben Askren loss. Oropeza has never gone the distance but it will be tough to finish Koreshkov off. His only loss was a TKO loss as getting outgrappled by Ben Askren and worked over for nearly four rounds. Oropeza won't have four rounds to work and isn't as great with wrestling as Askren is. Koreshkov has also never been submitted either.

Joe Warren vs. Rafael Silva

Nickname:            The Baddest Man on the Planet |    Morcego

Height:                                                      5'6           |        5'7

Age:                                                            37           |        29 

MMA Record (BMMA):                  10-3 (8-2)      |    21-3 (2-0)

Arm Length:                                           69 in.        |       65 in.  

Team:                                       Team Rhino Sports | Renovacao Fight Team     

Weight Class:                                  Bantamweight (135 pounds)

Notes: For the Interim Bellator Bantamweight Championship. Silva is replacing Eduardo Dantas.

Preview: Warren is riding a three fight win streak. His recent win was over Travis Marx by TKO at Bellator 107 (November 8, 2013). Silva is riding a thirteen fight win streak. His recent win was over Anthony Leone by unanimous decision at Bellator 102 (October 4, 2013).

Predictions: Warren. At one point I thought Silva would run away with the title once he got his shot regardless who he faced but now I have doubts. First problem for Silva is he's coming off a knee injury and is taking this fight on six days notice. It's not known if he will be ready. Second problem is that Silva has probably not faced many great wrestlers in his career like Warren. This fight could be Askren/Koreshkov all over again with the foreigner being dominated with wrestling. Silva could be affected by Warren's wrestling. He uses Capoeira but he may think twice about throwing kicks since Warren could catch him and take him down. Silva is also a good jiu-jitsu grappler but he may not be able to take Warren down or even control him since Warren is not only a wrestler but a strong bantamweight. He's also shown some evolution in his recent fights by scoring his first submission win, improved striking, and being more calm. Finally, Warren also wants it more. While Silva would love to become champion, he also knows he's 28, healthy, and will have more opportunities in the future. Warren in 37 years old and has said this is likely his last chance at a Bellator title. While he's competed in only thirteen fights, his age is something to consider. He's also had his share of wars. The fight with Joe Soto saw him get dominated in the first round only to come back with a knockout in the second. The fight with Pat Curran saw him get trashed with most believing the ref should have stopped the fight sooner than he did. Because of all this, he should be more motivated to win.