Bellator heads to Israel on Thursday, with Bellator 234 set for Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv. You can catch all of the action on the Paramount Network and DAZN. The main event is a heavyweight bout featuring Linton Vassell and Sergei Kharitonov, and the co-headliner pits Roger Huerta against Sidney Outlaw in a lightweight matchup. We have the complete fight card for you as well as some Bellator betting insights on some of the top fights on the schedule.
Bellator 234 Odds, Preview & Predictions
Weigh-ins are in the books. Catch all the action Friday night on @ParamountNet!#Bellator234 pic.twitter.com/B0CFRxpUfM
— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) November 13, 2019
Event Info
- When: November 15th, 2019
- Where: Menora Mivtachim Arena, Tel Aviv, Israel
- TV: Paramount Network / DAZN
- Live Stream: Bellator Live
Main Card
- Sergei Kharitonov vs Linton Vassell (Heavyweight)
- Roger Huerta vs Sidney Outlaw (Lightweight)
- Aviv Gozali vs Zaka Fatullazade (Lightweight)
- Halm Gozali vs Artur Pronin (Welterweight)
- Austin Vanderford vs Grachik Bozinyan (Middleweight)
Preliminary Card
- Maslis Tomer vs David Malka (Welterweight)
- Itay Tratner vs Elias Mamadov (Featherweight)
- Nisim Rozalis vs Noam Voldman (Light Heavyweight)
- Itay Lipszyc vs Itzik Vakobov (Flyweight)
- Eli Aronov vs Sari Hleihi (Light Heavyweight)
- Ben Cohen vs Maksym Tkachuk (Bantamweight)
- Ofir Leibel vs Mikali Dulgher (Bantamweight)
- Raz Bring vs Naziri Daniliuk (Bantamweight)
- Kirill Medvedovsly vs Akhmed Fararzha (Featherweight)
- Gustavo Wurlitzer vs Vuqar Keramov (Lightweight)
- Simon Smotritsky vs Illia Hladkii (Welterweight)
- Adam Keresh vs Vladimir Fedin (Heavyweight)
- Robson Gracie Jr vs Ameer Basheer (Welterweight)
- Olga Rubin vs Sinead Kavanagh (Women’s Featherweight)
Sergei Kharitonov vs Linton Vassell
This one gives us a fighter on a six-bout winning streak in Kharitonov, who continues to chase a title fight in the heavyweight division. His background is in kickboxing, and he has brought many of those talents with him into th MMA cage. His opponent, Vassell, makes his second appearance as a heavyweight. In his debut at this weight, he lost to Valentin Moldavsky on the cards, giving him three straight setbacks.
One might onder why Kharitonov would face a fighter on a skid like this on the way to title contention. This will give him another victory (if he can take advantage of this chance), and winning streaks pay off big time in MMA. Kharitonov relies heavily on his striking; four of his six consecutive wins have come via knockout. If he is going to defeat Vassell, his striking game will be the key.
Vassell has taken knockouts in two of his three most recent losses, including a knockout coming on a kick to the head from Phil Davis. Davis is more of a wrestler than Kharitonov, who brings a lot more striking power, so Vassell is in danger here if the fight stays upright. Vassell’s strength is in the grappling game, with nine of his career victories coming via submission. His reach advantage here is eight inches, which could help him fend off Kharitonov’s strikes and end up with a win on the cards.
However, Vassell is not as quick as he used to be, so Kharitonov should be able to take advantage of that declining speed and take the win.
Bellator 234 Prediction: Kharitonov wins via knockout
Roger Huerta vs Sidney Outlaw
The fight brings Outlaw back to Bellator for the first time in over five years, although he comes in on an eight-fight winning streak. Huerta has dropped three of his last five bouts, with his last action coming over a year ago, when he lost to Patricky “Pitbull” Freire in a UFC fight.
In addition to winning eight fights in a row, Outlaw has won three in a row via submission, which should give him a boost of confidence against one of the more venerable veterans in Bellator, in the person of Huerta. For Outlaw to win, he will have to rely on his grappling skills, as submission is the most common path to wins for him. He has a five-inch advantage in terms of reach over Huerta, so he should be able to move in close and get takedowns, so as long as he can stay on top, he should be able to deliver the finish.
Huerta’s strengths come in the striking game. For him to win, the fight will need to stay upright, and he will have to slide inside Outlaw’s reach advantage to deliver enough bombs to outpoint Outlaw — or to deliver a knockout.
Bellator 234 Prediction: Outlaw wins via submission
