The 2018 debut of Bellator MMA takes place on Saturday night from Inglewood, California. The preliminary card starts live at 7:00pm Eastern time on Bellator.com, with the main card hitting the cable waves starting two hours later on Paramount Network (formerly known as Spike TV). There are two headliner bouts: a matchup of Chael Sonnen and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in the first round of the Bellator Heavyweight Grand Prix, and a welterweight bout between Rory MacDonald and the current welterweight champ, Douglas Lima. The preliminary bouts feature lightweights Michael Chandler against Goiti Yamauchi, and then two featherweight bouts, as Georgi Karakhanyan faces Henry Corrales and Aaron Pico takes on Shane Kruchten. Take a look at our Bellator 192 betting preview for this signature event.
Bellator 192 Betting Preview
Douglas Lima vs Rory MacDonald Welterweight Division
There are some bettors who think that MacDonald, a UFC veteran, will waltz right in and win this fight over the defending champ because of the talent gap between UFC and Bellator. However, in the lower weight divisions (beginning with welterweight) the talent gap does not see to be as large as it is in the heavyweight and light heavyweight divisions.
Even so, MacDonald enters as the favorite. At one point, MacDonald was seen as the next great fighter in UFC welterweight, and his most recent win came via submission over Paul Daley. Before that win, MacDonald had some rough moments, but those opponents were considerably tougher than what MacDonald will face in Lima. One came in the UFC title bout against Robbie Lawler, while the other came against Stephen Thompson, who has challenged for the UFC title twice.
What does MacDonald bring to the bout? His grappling skill is well above average, and he has also shows the ability to absorb punishment from some of the stronger strikers out there, winning more often than not. Lima does bring a good deal of skill with his leg kicks, but as far as striking and grappling go, MacDonald definitely has the edge.
Bellator 192 Betting Prediction: MacDonald wins by submission.
Chael Sonnen vs Quinton “Rampage” Jackson Heavyweight Division
Rampage brings a lot of striking power to this contest, but he doesn’t have the wrestling skills to take down a grappler. Sonnen’s strength comes in the grappling game, which means he will take Rampage to the ground as soon as he can. So early, the tension will be to see how long Rampage can keep the action upright before Sonnen takes matters down to the mat.
Expect to see Rampage fighting off Sonnen’s attempts to come in and grab hold and pull him down, while also trying to land the sort of blow that would give him a knockout. Because Rampage focuses so closely on punches, it will be easy for Sonnen to slip in eventually — which means that things will not go well.
Bellator 192 Betting Prediction: Sonnen wins by submission
Michael Chandler vs Goiti Yamauchi Lightweight Division
Yamauchi is more of a grappler, while Chandler is more of a pure striker. Yamauchi has, historically, been one of the stronger Bellator lightweights, but Chandler knows how to finish. He only lost to Brent Primus after suffering a leg injury in their bout, so this is a good chance to see how Chandler has progressed in his recovery. If Chandler can win this, he will make a major statement that it’s time for a chance to get a rematch with Primus. But can he overcome the savvy Bellator veteran?
Bellator 192 Betting Prediction: Chandler by unanimous decision
In the featherweight bouts, I like Aaron Pico over Shane Kruchten. Pico is a wrestler first and foremost, and he should follow this inclinations to get the less skilled Kruchten to the ground early. Trying to stand and trade punches could lead to a lucky blow for Kruchten — and hurt Pico’s reputation. He tends to let the opponent know when a takedown is coming, so some more subtlety will help him tremendously.
