Another great event for Bellator is in the books, and it was a good one from a betting perspective if you bet on Emanuel Newton, who scored a historic upset over Muhammed Lawal. Overall three favorites at Bellator 90 came through, while two underdogs cashed. Here’s a betting recap for the event based on closing MMA odds: BELLATOR BETTING FAVORITES THAT WON In a welterweight semifinal matchup, Douglas Lima knocked out Bryan Baker with a punch to move onto the finals. Lima was a -230 favorite, while Baker was a +210 dog. It was another devastating performance by Lima, who has looked better and better ever since his loss to Ben Askren last year. Right now it’s fair to say that Lima is the favorite to win the entire welterweight tournament. In a light heavyweight semifinal matchup, Mikhail Zayats defeat Jacob Noe via submission to move on to the finals. Zayats closed as a -230 favorite, while Noe was a +210 dog. It was an extremely dominant performance by Zayats, who controlled the fight right from the opening bell. The M-1 veteran will be in tough with King Mo in the finals, but he’s still a very solid fighter and could pull off the upset if he fights smart. In a welterweight semifinal, Ben Saunders defeated Raul Amaya via head kick KO to move onto the finals. Saunders was a big -430 favorite while Amaya was a +380 dog. It was a rematch of their first fight which Saunders won via decision, but he proved tonight that he was the better man by finishing Amaya with one of the most picture-perfect head kicks in recent memory. Saunders now faces Lima in the finals. BELLATOR BETTING UNDERDOGS THAT WON In the featherweight finals, Shahbulat Shamhalaev defeat Rad Martinez via knockout to earn a featherweight title shot. It was an awesome performance by Shamhalaev, who owned Martinez in the striking department throughout the contest. Martinez showed a lot of heart, but Shamhalaev was just too much. Martinez closed as a -245 favorite, while Shamhalaev cashed as a +225 underdog. In a light heavyweight semifinal, Emanuel Newton knocked out Muhammed Lawal with a spinning back fist in what is one of the biggest upsets in the history of the sport. Newton was a +975 underdog, while Lawal was a -1175 ridiculous favorite. Lawal kept his hands low the entire fight, completely disregarding his opponent’s power and was knocked out cold with a fluke strike. But this is MMA, and anything can happen. Lawal busted most people’s parlays, so if you bet on him don’t feel too bad. If you bet on Newton, though, congratulations. OTHER MMA BETTING ODDS AND ENDS FROM THE DAY Some other news to note from today’s UFC 157 pre-fight press conference. According to UFC president Dana White, the winner of Lyoto Machida vs. Dan Henderson will fight the winner of UFC 159’s main event between Jon Jones and Chael Sonnen for the UFC light heavyweight championship. The fight is expected to take place later this year. As well, White confirmed that the UFC will cut 100 more fighters over the coming weeks and months. Yesterday the promotion released 16 fighters, including welterweight contender Jon Fitch, but according to White a ton of more fighters will get cut since the promotion doesn’t have enough roster space after the signings of the former Strikeforce fighters and the introduction of the women’s division. Expect fighters like Yoshihiro Akiyama (1-4) to be among those targeted for release — basically anyone on a high salary but with a losing record in the promotion. White also mentioned that Urijah Faber could be among those cut if he doesn’t have a good showing this weekend against Ivan Menjivar. And finally, White said that the UFC has signed heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez to a new eight-fight contract, replacing the old three-fight deal he had. White said that Velasquez is a fan favorite who always delivers exciting fights, and that’s why they signed him to a deal amidst all the releases of the other fighters. It’s a lesson to UFC fighters that they have to be exciting and put on good fights in order to keep their space on the roster, so hopefully all the fighters have noticed what’s going on and continue to put on great fights.
