Bellator 272: Pettis vs. Horiguchi MMA Odds and Picks

Kyle Smith

Last Updated: December 1, 2021 1:13 PM EST • 2 min 40 sec read. Twitter link Google News Link

CHICAGO, IL - JUNE 09: Sergio Pettis (gray shorts) kicks Joseph Benavidez (black shorts) in the first round in their flyweight bout during the UFC 225: Whittaker v Romero 2 event at the United Center on June 9, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. Pettis won in a split decision. Dylan Buell/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Dylan Buell / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)

Two of the finest bantamweights on the planet are set to exchange violent pleasantries when Kyoji Horiguchi and Sergio Pettis square off in the main event of Bellator 272 on Friday night. We tee it up with our top Pettis-Horiguchi picks.

It's the battle of the belt collectors.

Long considered the best 135-pounder plying his trade outside of the Octagon, Horiguchi is hell on wheels. A Tasmanian Devil dust cloud of violence. The Rizin FF champion possesses prodigious power, and he boasts an impressive 29-3 record over his 11-year career. Fifteen of those victories came via KO/TKO.

Pettis is looking to add another championship to his mantle. Much like Horiguchi, the Bellator bantamweight champ was forged in the fires of the UFC. He has continued to flourish since walking away from the company in 2019. The 28-year-old owns a 21-5 record, with seven stoppage victories (three TKO/KO’s and four submissions).

Here are my picks and predictions for Friday’s Bellator 272 bantamweight title tilt between Horiguchi and Pettis (odds via DraftKings Sportsbook; pick confidence based on a 1-to-5-star scale).

Pettis vs. Horiguchi Fight Info

Date/Time: Friday, Dec. 3, 10 p.m. ET (main card)TV: ShowtimeLocation: Mohegan Sun Arena, Uncasville, CT

Pettis vs. Horiguchi Odds Analysis

After opening as a -180 favorite on some sportsbooks, Horiguchi can be found at -170 at DraftKings. If backing the underdog is more your flavor, Pettis can be found at +150 at DraftKings. He's offered as high as +154 at FanDuel Sportsbook.

Kyoji Horiguchi Betting Profile

Horiguchi can put fools to sleep.

A former Bellator champion in his own right (he vacated his title due to a knee injury), the American Top Team product avenged his only loss of the last five years when he returned to the Rizin ring last December. In the main event of Rizin 26, Horiguchi hobbled Kai Asakura with a series of leg kicks before sparking him with a giant right hand. He then burried him in an avalanche of ground-and-pound en route to a first-round knockout.

A venomous finisher, “The Gooch” is 11-1 in his 12 bouts since leaving the UFC. Eight of those wins ended in either a knockout or submission.

Also, the man didn’t leave the UFC on a down note. Instead, Horiguchi racked up an impressive 7-1 record inside of the Octagon, with his only loss coming against Demetrious Johnson, who is widely considered the greatest 135-pound champion in MMA history.

Sergio Pettis Betting Profile

Pettis has been on a bit of a tear since moving over to the Bellator cage after a decent campaign in the UFC in which he racked up a 9-5 record with notable wins over Joseph Benevidez, Brandon Moreno, and John Moraga.

The Roufusport stalwart is a perfect 3-0 since making the jump, and captured the Bellator bantamweight title with an upset victory over Juan Archuleta in the main event of Bellato 258 in May. In a workmanlike performance, Pettis effectively countered the champion over five rounds en route to a clear-cut unanimous decision victory.

Prior to the Archuleta win, Pettis notched decision victories over Ricky Bandejas and Tyson Nam. He also defeated Alfred Khashakyan via guillotine choke.

Pettis vs. Horiguchi Picks

To win: Horiguchi (-170) ????Winning method: Horiguchi to win via KO/TKO (+250) ???

Pettis vs. Horiguchi Predictions

Horiguchi to win (-170)

All of this hinges on how good Horiguchi’s knee feels. After returning from knee surgery against Asakura, Horiguchi didn’t spend enough time in the ring to truly see how his knee would hold up to continuous punishment.

That said, if his knee is 100%, Horiguchi has this one. Pettis doesn’t have the killer instinct to finish Horiguchi. While he has been finished via TKO only once in his career, Pettis can’t withstand a violent Horiguchi onslaught.

Horiguchi to win via KO/TKO (+250)

As I so crudely said before, Horiguchi finishes fools.

Once he smells blood in the water, he unleashes hell until his opponent is completely overwhelmed. Sure, Pettis isn’t completely overmatched here, and he has been inside the cage with some certified killers, but he just won’t be able to stay upright once Horiguchi catches him with something deadly.

SEE ALSO: All picks and odds. Be sure to check out SportsbookReview.com’s community forums and betting tools.

Pettis-Horiguchi picks made on 12/01/2021 at 8:30 a.m. ET.

Written By:
Kyle Smith

A sportswriter for more than a decade, Kyle Smith was once voted “World’s 78th Greatest Lover” by ‘Relatively Attractive People Magazine’.* After covering nearly every sport under the sun for theScore, Smith settled in as head MMA writer where he helped shape the company’s coverage and establish its combat sports identity. Since then, he’s dipped his toes (cannonballed) into the world of betting, where he specializes in the UFC and NHL. Constantly chasing that gigantic Parlay Dragon, Smith was devastated when a Leon Edwards head kick completely obliterated a recent five-leg parlay. You can read his rantings and ravings on Twitter @Heldrificus. *Not a real publication.