Wintrust Arena in Chicago is the site for Bellator 297, scheduled for Friday, June 16. The main event features Vadim Nemkov defending his Bellator Light Heavyweight Championship against Yoel Romero. This was supposed to take place at Bellator 290, but Nemkov had to withdraw due to personal reasons. The co-headliner is for the Bellator Bantamweight belt, as Sergio Pettis will defend his belt against Patricio “Pitbull” Freire, who currently holds the Bellator Lightweight title and looks to become a two-division champ. We have the full fight card for you as well as Bellator betting predictions for several of the fights.
Bellator 297: Nemkov vs Romero Preview | MMA Lines
Main Card (Showtime)
- Vadim Nemkov vs Yoel Romero (Bellator Light Heavyweight Championship)
- Sergio Pettis vs Patricio Freire (Bellator Bantamweight Championship)
- Corey Anderson vs Phil Davis (Light Heavyweight)
- Daniel James vs Gokhan Saricam (Heavyweight)
Preliminary Card (YouTube / Pluto TV)
- Kyle Crutchmer vs Bobby Nash (Welterweight)
- Gadzhi Rabadanov vs Pieter Buist (Lightweight)
- Jaleel Willis vs Ramazan Kuramagomedov (Welterweight)
- Karl Moore vs Alex Polizzi (Light Heavyweight)
- Wladmir Gouvea vs Gabriel Sayeg (Heavyweight)
- Archie Colgan vs Emmanuel Sanchez (Lightweight)
- Mike Hamel vs Shamil Nikaev (Lightweight)
- Norbert Novenyi Jr vs Kamil Oniszczuk (Middleweight)
- Timur Khizriev vs Richie Smullen (Featherweight)
- Jordan Newman vs Matthew Perry (Middleweight)
- Cody Law vs Edwin Chavez (Featherweight)
Bet on the Bellator 297!
Vadim Nemkov (16-2, 1 NC) vs Yoel Romero (15-6)
is the latest adventure in the career of the apparently ageless Romero. He is now 46 years old, but he is still contending for a world championship. He has won two in a row, both via knockout, including a knockout win over Melvin Manhoef in the third round back in September. He takes on a fighter who has not lost in seven years, as Nemkov has an 8-0 record in nine fights under the Bellator umbrella, with one no-contest, which came against Corey Anderson in the finals of the original Grand Prix. The two had a quick rematch, though, and Nemkov controlled the action from start to finish.Romero is unpredictable because of the high ceiling he brings, both on the ground and in the striking game, and the inconsistency he shows in terms of concentration. He is one of the best wrestlers in the history of MMA, and he can also bring flying knees and strikes with power when the fight is upright. At other times, though, he almost seems bored during the fight and ends up losing on the cards. Because of that variety, I’m not sure he’s worth the value that you get. Nemkov is likely to enter with a fight with a detailed game plan to keep Romero at distance and use kicks with long straight shots.
Final Prediction: Nemkov wins via decision
Sergio Pettis (22-5) vs Patricio Freire (35-5)
is Freire’s attempt to make MMA history by holding belts in three different divisions. He’s currently the Bellator Featherweight champ and at one point held the Bellator Lightweight belt. The Bellator Bantamweight belt would make him a three-division champ. Pettis blew an ACL in training and had to vacate the title, which Patchy Mix holds on an interim basis. Pettis did defend his title once successfully, delivering a knockout with a spinning backfist to stop Kyoji Horiguchi in the fourth round. “Pitbull” already has the most decorative hardware in the history of Bellator, with a 10-1 record in his last 11 fights (the lone loss coming against A.J. McKee). “Pitbull” did get revenge with a rematch win over McKee on the cards, taking his Bellator Featherweight belt back.Pettis comes in as a huge underdog in this fight. He gives up a lot in size, and he was losing badly to Horiguchi before his backfist found its target. He’s going to have to use point fighting and kicks to get ahead on the cards, and it’s hard to say that “Pitbull” will allow that to happen. He brings power in his striking game, and he only needs one bomb to end a fight. Going to the ground plays into Friere’s superior strength, but he also doesn’t want to stay within striking range.
Final Prediction: Freire wins via stoppage
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