Bellator 207 takes place Friday, October 12 at Mohegan Sun Resort in Uncasville, Connecticut. The offshore sportsbooks recently released the full opening odds for the card, and here they are.
Bellator 207 Opening Odds
Ryan Bader -210
Matt Mitrione +160
Roy Nelson -245
Sergei Kharitonov +175
Kevin Ferguson Jr. -475
Corey Browning +325
Carrington Banks -305
Mandel Nallo +225
Lorenz Larkin -425
Ion Pascu +305
And here are my thoughts on the Bellator 207 opening odds:
– The main event is a heavyweight semi-final between Bader and Mitrione, two UFC outcasts who have fared amazing in Bellator so far. Bader is 3-0 in Bellator and is coming off of a 15-second KO over King Mo. Mitrione, meanwhile, is 4-0 in Bellator and beat Roy Nelson in his last fight. Mitrione will be the bigger man but Bader isn’t small by any means. He’s such a good wrestler that even with the size disadvantage I see him being able to take Mitrione down and grind out a decision or win via stoppage on the mat.
– In other heavyweight action, Nelson takes on Kharitonov in what should be a fun fight. Nelson is just 1-1 in Bellator but we all know how tough and durable he is. Kharitonov, meanwhile, is coming off of four straight wins and is 9-1 over his last 10 fights. That KO loss he had to Javy Ayala doesn’t sit well with me, but stylistically this is a good fight for Kharitonov if he’s able to keep the fight standing avoid the big punch of Nelson. I’d have to go with the dog in this one based on the odds.
– The Ferguson Jr. vs Browning fight is a total squash match. Kimbo Slice Jr. is 3-1 in Bellator with three stoppage wins while Browning is just 3-2 overall in his career and coming off of consecutive submission defeats in VALOR Fights. Ferguson should be able to get an early finish in this fight and it seems clear Bellator is building him up.
– Banks had three straight wins to open his Bellator career before losing to Adam Piccolotti in his last fight. But we know now that Piccolotti is a pretty good fighter so that’s not that bad of a loss in hindsight. Nallo picked up a huge head kick win in his Bellator debut and is still an undefeated prospect fighting out of TriStar in Montreal. Considering the odds, I would probably take a punt on Nallo in this fight. I just couldn’t lay that kind of big juice in Carrington after his last fight.
– In a welterweight tournament alternate bout, Larkin should be able to take out Pascu. Larkin is only 1-2 in Bellator but he’s fought high-level competition and we saw during his UFC run that he’s a top-15 welterweight in the world when he’s at his best. Pascu is a guy with a lot of experience but he’s never really won that big fight to make him a name and mostly been used as a gatekeeper in his career. I think Larkin should have a big striking and speed advantage in this fight and he should be able to get a knockout win.
