[THE_LOCKSMITH]

Spike, 9:00 pm ET
Fedor Emelianenko vs Matt Mitrione
Josh Thomson vs Patricky Freire
Cheick Kongo vs Oli Thompson
Mauricio Alonso vs Josh Koscheck

[JIBBBY]

Mitrone, Thompson, Kongo, and Alonso for me..

- Fedor too old, meat has the size, youth and better chin..

- Josh Thomspon to tough and well rounded.. Should beat Patricky..

- Kongo too experienced and is finding his second MMA wind in Bellator (3 straight wins now for Kongo Bongo - http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Cheick-Kongo-2193

- I don't care who Koscheck fights he's always fade material.. Nothing more needs to be said.. He's a KO waiting to happen in every fight now..

My MMA logic on these fights in a nut shell

[TPowell]

I'm loving Meat Head as well. Lined steamed from 135 to 200 quick but glad to see it low again. Think I'll make a decent sized play on him and then hope I can make something on him at EV money by finish as well. I like Thompson as well but man is he getting old. His last 2 fights have been against very poor competition as well. Think Patricky has to finish to win but Thompson's chin probably isn't all there and he'll be a decent favorite I'm sure...

[JIBBBY]

Tpow ^ Thompson now 38 has always kept himself in top shape, he's never been knocked out cold either that I can remember.. Takes head kicks flush and still never goes out cold. Josh won 2 straight, survived Tony Ferguson as well a little over a year ago.. I'll take my chances on Thompson.. http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Josh-Thomson-2394

[TPowell]

Tpow ^ Thompson now 38 has always kept himself in top shape, he's never been knocked out cold either that I can remember.. Takes head kicks flush and still never goes out cold. Josh won 2 straight, survived Tony Ferguson as well a little over a year ago.. I'll take my chances on Thompson.. http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Josh-Thomson-2394

Maybe so but name me the guys that have stayed solid at 38 in his division

[turbozed]

Tpow ^ Thompson now 38 has always kept himself in top shape, he's never been knocked out cold either that I can remember.. Takes head kicks flush and still never goes out cold. Josh won 2 straight, survived Tony Ferguson as well a little over a year ago.. I'll take my chances on Thompson.. http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Josh-Thomson-2394

He stays young by banging a lot of young asian girls.

Storytime: About 10 years ago I was partying at a club and I met a very hot Vietnamese chick server at a club. We exchanged numbers and the next day she tells me to meet her at a cafe nearby. i'm like "OK." So I show up there and who is sitting next to her but Mr. Joshua Punk Thompson himself. I put two and two together and realized that just wanted to make him jealous by calling me out there. Probably didn't work. Punk was slaying it out there in the bay area. Jake Shields too.

[JIBBBY]

He stays young by banging a lot of young asian girls.

Storytime: About 10 years ago I was partying at a club and I met a very hot Vietnamese chick server at a club. We exchanged numbers and the next day she tells me to meet her at a cafe nearby. i'm like "OK." So I show up there and who is sitting next to her but Mr. Joshua Punk Thompson himself. I put two and two together and realized that just wanted to make him jealous by calling me out there. Probably didn't work. Punk was slaying it out there in the bay area. Jake Shields too.

Rampage Jackson no different.. Seen him at Hollywood clubs slumming it out years ago looking for Asian bush.. Then drive off with one in his decked out Hummer after, I had to laugh..

Got many more stories to tell but why bother.. Seen it all.. Live in LA, Cali and all the MMA fighters hang out here and party it up. Vegas too..

[Unwritten Law]

I'm still a fan of Fedor and will always root for him, but this is tough since I like Fedor but I think Meathead will likely win. Lots going against Fedor as he's older, will be at a size disadvantage, and his wear and tear might not hold up. He was dancing on noodle legs last time vs Fabiano Maldonado.

[JIBBBY]

I'm still a fan of Fedor and will always root for him, but this is tough since I like Fedor but I think Meathead will likely win. Lots going against Fedor as he's older, will be at a size disadvantage, and his wear and tear might not hold up. He was dancing on noodle legs last time vs Fabiano Maldonado.

He sure was dancing the drunken dance..

I don't think Fedor can take Meat Head down, don't think he can knock him out standing either.. Meat Head did get dropped in his last fight and came back from the grave... I guess if Fedor clips Meat early and puts him on his back then maybe Fedor has a chance at the finish.. BIG IF THOUGH!!!

I think smart money has to be on Meat...

[PaperTrail07]

Patricky has a good right hand and NOTHING more lol...Thompson should win VERY easily...

Mitrone, Thompson, Kongo, and Alonso for me..

- Fedor too old, meat has the size, youth and better chin..

- Josh Thomspon to tough and well rounded.. Should beat Patricky..

- Kongo too experienced and is finding his second MMA wind in Bellator (3 straight wins now for Kongo Bongo - http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Cheick-Kongo-2193

- I don't care who Koscheck fights he's always fade material.. Nothing more needs to be said.. He's a KO waiting to happen in every fight now..

My MMA logic on these fights in a nut shell

[Thor4140]

Meat head is the perfect opponent (idiot) to make Fedor relevant again to his rabid fan base

[JIBBBY]

Meat head is the perfect opponent (idiot) to make Fedor relevant again to his rabid fan base

Meat Head is a goof and isn't really that good, that can't be denied... It's just that Fedor is old, in and out of retirement, doesn't fight very often anymore either.. He's looked like shit when he does fight.. Meat does have a granite chin also as he's never been put out cold..

Smart money has to be on Meat...

[Hugo de Naranja]

Liking all the favorites except Koscheck. Fading that bitch small even tho it's a bad matchup for Alonso

[Sanity Check]

Looks like an AKA practice room.

Does anyone know if Fedor is training at AKA with Velasquez, Cormier, Rockhold and those guys?

[TPowell]

Looks like it

http://www.mmamania.com/2017/2/16/14...ione-spike-mma

[JIBBBY]

MMA MANIA -





265 lbs.: Fedor Emelianenko (36-4, 1 NC) vs. Matt Mitrione (11-5)

It's hard not to get excited about the idea of this fight -- the spectacle of seeing Emelianenko return to North America for the first time in a half-decade -- and he comes into the main event on a five-fight win streak. That streak hasn't been without controversy though, including a recent fight with Fabio Maldonado where a judge was fired after appearing to score the fight for Emelianenko without noticing he was nearly finished in the first round. In fact, if he was anybody other than "The Last Emperor" the fight could easily have been stopped ... but it wasn't.
That's not the only thing that tarnishes the throne of the once dominant Heavyweight legend. His unbroken win streak from 2001 to 2009 should not be forgotten. He beat real competition during his era -- names like Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Mirko Cro Cop, Mark Hunt and Andrei Arlovski just to name a few. The problem was (and is) that Emelianenko has always been small for a Heavyweight at 5'11," 235 pounds, with a 74.5" reach. This flaw was finally exposed in Strikeforce when he was submitted by the 6'4" Fabricio Werdum and finished by the monstrous "Bigfoot" Silva in back-to-back fights. When the promotion realized its mistake and gave him a guy his size in Dan Henderson, he got knocked out AGAIN via H-Bomb.
That was the last fight fans saw Emelianenko in the States for a while. Since that time, he's fought exclusively in Russia and Japan, taking a three-year break during that span for a self-imposed retirement. And as he's now nearing 41 and had a really bad round with Maldonado, we need to evaluate the Emelianenko of 2017 with much different eyes -- ones that are still respectful, but also wary of his vulnerabilities.
The same can be said of Matt Mitrione, though. He's no spring chicken at 38, either, and while he's got a significant size advantage at 6'3" and 254 pounds, Fedor used to beat larger opponents regularly in his prime. Furthermore, even though Mitrione is undefeated in Bellator, he, too, benefited from a referee who wouldn't stop a fight. Had Mitrione not gotten such a late start in his MMA career, there's no telling how far he could have gone in UFC, but even now "Meathead" makes mistakes more experienced fighters wouldn't, relying on his heart and will to bail him out in bad situations. Sometimes that works ... and sometimes it doesn't.
UFC was willing to cut Mitrione because he was too inconsistent and at times too reckless to break through to the upper echelon of the division. In Bellator's Heavyweight division, he's a much bigger fish in a much smaller pond, and a win over Emelianenko is exactly the stepping stone he needs to move to the head of the line toward claiming the vacant Heavyweight title. It's hard to not see a win setting up a superfight with Bobby Lashley or a rematch with Cheick Kongo provided the latter wins as well. Matter of fact, it's hard to see Mitrione not winning if he uses his size and reach correctly. As long as he keeps Emelianenko at range the fight is his.
Final prediction: Matt Mitrione notches the biggest knockout win of his career

155 lbs.: Josh Thomson (22-8, 1 NC) vs. Patricky Freire (16-8)

Josh "The Punk" Thomson is looking for a fight with Lightweight champion Michael Chandler, but he's going to have to wait a little bit longer. Standing in his way is the man who lost a fight to Chandler at "Dynamite 2" in St. Louis to crown a new champion for the vacant belt. Thomson is looking for his third straight win since jumping to Bellator in his third straight appearance at SAP Center, so the San Jose native will definitely have the crowd on his side. Freire is not to be taken lightly, though, with 10 out of 16 wins coming by way of knockout. Still, when you think of the elder Freire, it's hard not to notice that he tends to fall short of title contention after stringing two or three wins together. I expect the same here.
Final prediction: Josh Thomson wins the co-main event via triangle choke

265 lbs.: Cheick Kongo (25-10-2) vs. Oli Thompson (17-9)

Speaking of "The Darkness," here is the aforementioned Kongo, holder of a career win over Mitrione at UFC 137. Kongo has been fighting in Bellator a bit longer, though, going 7-2 over his last nine fights, currently riding a three-fight win streak toward possible title contention. The lone blemishes inside the Bellator cage are a split decision loss to Muhammed Lawal and his previous title shot against Vitaly Minakov. Despite those setbacks, it's hard to argue any Heavyweight in Bellator has been better over the same span of time save for Bobby Lashley.
"The Spartan" Oli Thompson will look to redeem himself after a tough loss to Mitrione in London, but the jury's still out on whether the former holder of "Britain's Strongest Man" is up to the task of facing world class competition, having also lost both of his UFC fights in a short stint there. While his five straight wins in 2015 were impressive, they were against virtually nobody you've heard of except perhaps pro wrestler Ikuhisa Minowa a/k/a "Minowaman." Being the strongest outside of the cage doesn't mean you're the best inside of it.
If Thompson were a much younger man I might lean his way, but even at four years Kongo's junior (37 to 41), I can't see that being enough to make up for the other disparities. Kongo uses every bit of his 6'4" size and 82" reach to his advantage, making it incredibly difficult for opponents to tag him, then dragging them to the ground and humbling them through their inability to shake him off. Some men could overcome giving up three inches in height and seven inches in reach, but Thompson simply can't overcome Kongo's experience edge. While Thompson has been fighting pro wrestlers not named Bobby Lashley, winning some and losing some, Kongo's been in there with the best both Bellator and UFC had to offer. Even if you don't find him exciting, his ability to win against the best is proven, and Thompson's just not.
Final prediction: Cheick Kongo scores another decision victory

170 lbs.: Josh Koscheck (17-10) vs. Mauricio Alonso (12-7, 1 NC)

Koscheck was twice scheduled to face Paul Daley and twice it fell through, so for him to be brought in this time Bellator must be pretty sure he's going to win this time around. The problems are numerous, though -- a nearly two-year lay off from fighting, and five straight losses in UFC where every single Welterweight he faced seemed to eat his lunch. The good news for Koscheck is that Alonso is a middling Brazilian fighter who lost his only Bellator fight thus far to Nick Pica at "Dynamite 1" in this venue. In addition, 50 percent of his wins (six of 12) have come by decision, so if he wants to grind he'll fall straight into the wheelhouse of Koscheck as a four-time All-American, which one can assume is why they booked it.
Final prediction: Josh Koscheck wrestles his way to a unanimous decision

[Hugo de Naranja]

Agree with most of these. Could be some major grindfests. Especially the first two fights on the main card

[Hugo de Naranja]

Hey Jibs, do you know if 5Dimes has Live-Betting for Bellator? Also, who ya got for this card? My biggest bet is Mitrione

[MMANick]

Fedor definitely didn't get up to +200, tons of value on Meathead at his current price. If Fedor gets a TD it could be all over, but if it stays on the feet, I get a feeling Mitrione will stop Fedor by strikes. Size, speed, and athleticism will likely be too much here.

[JIBBBY]

Hey Jibs, do you know if 5Dimes has Live-Betting for Bellator? Also, who ya got for this card? My biggest bet is Mitrione

No, I've never seen it up for Bellator or AXS... I only only checked a few times in the past.. Gave up checking..

[JIBBBY]

Fedor definitely didn't get up to +200, tons of value on Meathead at his current price. If Fedor gets a TD it could be all over, but if it stays on the feet, I get a feeling Mitrione will stop Fedor by strikes. Size, speed, and athleticism will likely be too much here.

I'm not convinced Fedor these days could sub out Meat on the ground.. Meat is the bigger stronger younger man and does have some submission defense in his grappling bag of tricks.. Meat is a veteran now of the sport..

I won't rule out Meat gaining top control on the ground either if goes in that direction as long as Meat isn't dropped from a punch first..

I can see Meat Head dropping Fedor standing though myself. Something like this gif.. Meat just has to avoid those straight rights and looping round house bombs from Fedor that he likes to throw..

[JIBBBY]

I'm fading Kos.. He's been out to long.. I know he could easily wrestle his way to a win but I'm not sure he's going there, he's become a stand up fighter these days.. He could be showing up just for a paycheck these days.. I think he gets dropped again..

Kos 39 years old lost 5 straight fights now.. http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Josh-Koscheck-9418

$50.00

$127.50

Pending

2/18/17 9:31pm Bellator Fighting 3301 Mauricio Alonso +255* vs Josh Koscheck

[JIBBBY]

Weigh in pictures.. http://www.sherdog.com/news/news/Bel...17575#/slide/1

Fedor looks like Fedor...

[Hugo de Naranja]

I'm fading Kos.. He's been out to long.. I know he could easily wrestle his way to a win but I'm not sure he's going there, he's become a stand up fighter these days.. He could be showing up just for a paycheck these days.. I think he gets dropped again..

Kos 39 years old lost 5 straight fights now.. http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Josh-Koscheck-9418

$50.00

$127.50

Pending

2/18/17 9:31pm Bellator Fighting 3301 Mauricio Alonso +255* vs Josh Koscheck

Me too.

Also, Mitrione/Fedor is basically a Pick 'Em now

[Unwritten Law]

Mitrione vs Fedor now EVEN odds -110.....they must know something and maybe Fedor might make his debut a success....we'll see. Haven't made a play but now leaning towards Fedor for some reason.

[Hugo de Naranja]

Bellator 172: Fedor vs. Mitrione Picks:
Josh Koscheck Split Decision (29-28 x2, 28-29)
Cheick Kongo Unanimous Decision (30-27 x2, 29-28)
Josh Thomson Unanimous Decision (30-27 x3)
Matt Mitrione Round 2 TKO (Punches)

[Hugo de Naranja]

Bellator 172: Fedor vs. Mitrione

Main Card:

Fight #1: Koscheck vs. Alonso
Alonso (+212) .75u

Fight #2: Kongo vs. Thompson
Kongo+Thompson Over 1.5 (-140) 1.4u to win 1u
Kongo Decision (+150) .25u

Fight #3: Thomson vs. Freire
Thomson -3.5 (+180) 1u
Thomson ITD (+330) .5u

Fight #4: Fedor vs. Mitrione
Mitrione (-125) 2.5u to win 2u

Straight Parlays:
Thomson/Mitrione (+144) 1u

Multi-Event Parlays:
Fedor+Mitrione Under 1.5/Hendricks +3.5/Lewis+Browne Won’t Start R2 (+476) .5u

[Hugo de Naranja]

Liking Thomson and Mitrione here. We'll see how that works out

[TPowell]

like Meathead and Kongo but I think Kongo finishes this fight on the ground after Thompson gases. The under is a good play IMO. I got fight doesn't go distance at -140

[THE_LOCKSMITH]

Fedor fight now a pick em' at most sites

[Hugo de Naranja]

like Meathead and Kongo but I think Kongo finishes this fight on the ground after Thompson gases. The under is a good play IMO. I got fight doesn't go distance at -140

Nah Kongo going to grind Thompson up against the fence, grab his shorts, and knee him in the balls for 3 rounds.

[TPowell]

Nah Kongo going to grind Thompson up against the fence, grab his shorts, and knee him in the balls for 3 rounds.

After about a round Thompson will be so gassed he'll give it up I think. I like Meathead and the UNDER 1.5 in the main event. My worry is the quick takedown from Fedor and a sub

[Hugo de Naranja]

Apparently Mitrione is out of the fight due to illness. WHAT THE FUCKK! Stop getting sick on fight day

[Hugo de Naranja]

A fighter pulling out AFTER weigh-ins is literally my least favorite thing. Fuckk you Meathead

[Kermit]

Fukk.