In the cold of winter, it makes perfect sense for Bellator to head for a tropical paradise, and Bellator 236 is set for Saturday, December 21, 2019, at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii. The main event is a bout for the Bellator Women’s Flyweight World Championship between Ilima-Lei Macfarlane, the current title holder, and challenger Kate Jackson. The co-main event is a quarterfinal bout in the Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix between A.J. McKee and Derek Campos. You can catch the entire slate on DAZN. In this sports betting preview, we have put together the complete fight card for you as well as thoughts on several of the top tilts for Bellator 236.
Bellator 236 Odds, Preview & Predictions
🌺🍍 @Ilimanator has returned home for her fourth straight title defense bout.
She will face @KPAJackson at #Bellator236 LIVE this Saturday on @DAZN_USA.#BellatorHawaii pic.twitter.com/bO9gJpxTFj — Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) December 18, 2019
- When: Saturday, Dec. 21 at 8:30 pm ET
- Where: Neal S. Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu, HI
- TV: DAZN
- Live Stream: DAZN
Main Card (10:00 pm ET, DAZN)
- Ilima-Lei Macfarlane vs Kate Jackson (Bellator Women’s Flyweight Championship)
- A.J. McKee vs Derek Campos (Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix Quarterfinal)
- Kiichi Kunimoto vs Jason Jackson (Welterweight)
- Juliana Velasquez vs Bruna Ellen (Women’s Flyweight)
- Raufeon Stots vs Cheyden Leilahoa (Bantamweight)
Preliminary Card (8:30 pm ET, DAZN)
- Swayne Lunasco vs Kaylan Gorospe (Bantamweight)
- Keoni Diggs vs Scotty Hao (Lightweight)
- Nate Yoshimura vs Chas Dunhour (Flyweight)
- Kai Kamaka III vs Spencer Higa (Featherweight)
- Benjamin Wilhelm vs Ke’ali’i Kanekoa (Welterweight)
- Dustin Barca vs Brandon Pieper (Lightweight)
- Nainoa Dung vs Zachary Zane (Lightweight)
Ilima-Lei Macfarlane vs Kate Jackson
This is Macfarlane’s fourth defense of a title that she has held since late 2017. She has beaten Alejandra Lara Valerie Letourneau and Veta Arteaga to keep her belt, and she remains undefeated. Indeed, she has not even had to finish a fight in her defense, delivering finishes. Kate Jackson was a contestant on the 23rd season of The Ultimate Fighter. In Bellator, Jackson has a 3-1 record.
If Jackson wants to have any shot at not just going the distance but perhaps even prevailing on the cards, she has to keep the fight upright. Macfarlane is an expert at getting her opponents to the ground and then delivering submissions. She tapped Emily Ducote out in the fifth round to dethrone Ducote and assume the belt, and then Lara and Letourneau were both finished in the third round. Arteaga lost via TKO, thanks to a doctor’s stoppage, after Macfarlane got her on the ground and started whaling away with the elbows. In Jackson’s Bellator loss, she fell to Letourneau, and she also lost on The Ultimate Fighter to Tatiana Suarez via submission in the first round. Jackson has some skills, but she’s not at Macfarlane’s level yet.
Bellator 236 Prediction: Macfarlane wins via submission
A.J. McKee vs Derek Campos
It takes us into the round of eight for the Bellator Featherweight World Grand Prix. McKee has not lost in 15 professional bouts and reached this round after finishing Georgi Karakhanyan in just eight seconds. Campos had lost three fights in a row before beating former Bellator champion Daniel Straus to make it to the quarterfinal round.
McKee has done a lot of damage in his time at Bellator. He beat Dominic Mazzotta in 75 seconds with a kick to the head. He needed just 69 seconds to finish John “Macapa” Teixeira, a former UFC fighter. He finished Daniel Crawford with an anaconda choke.
Campos will not be the toughest challenge that McKee has faced. He was stopped by Patricky “Pitbull” Freire and Pedro Carvalho, with a split decision loss against Sam Sicilia coming between them. His win over Straus was a significant upset, even though Straus has a reputation for being an up and down fighter. Campos has had issues with a glass chin in the past, and when he has advanced to face elite opposition in the past, he has tended to buckle. Given the momentum that McKee brings to the fight, not just in terms of the wins but also in his personal energy to deliver bombs, it’s hard to see Campos mounting much opposition.
Bellator 236 Prediction: McKee wins via decision
