Bellator 253: Pitbull vs. Carvalho takes place on Thursday, November 19 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The offshore sportsbooks recently opened up the betting odds for the event, and MMAOB staff writer Adam Martin takes a look at the opening odds below.
Bellator 253 Odds
AJ McKee -205
Darrion Caldwell +165
Benson Henderson -175
Jason Jackson +145
Joey Davis -260
Bobby Lee +200
Raufeon Stots -350
Keith Lee +275
Lance Gibson Jr. -215
Shane Kruchten +175
Jeremy Kennedy -400
Matt Bessette +300
Jaleel Willis -115
Mark Lemminger -115
Mark Glover -135
Sullivan Cauley +105
Ricardo Seixas Filho -240
Marcus Surin +190
Kevin Ferguson Jr. -350
Kaheem Murray +275
Jay Jay Wilson -350
Sergio de Bari +275
Here are my initial thoughts on the Opening Odds For Bellator 253:
- The main event of Bellator 253 is an incredible five-round featherweight tournament bout between AJ McKee (16-0) and Darrion Caldwell (15-3). The winner of this fight will get a chance to fight for the title and a $1,000,000 grand prize. McKee has been a member of the Bellator roster since 2015 when he was just 20. His father, Antonio McKee, was a former UFC fighter who didn’t have much success at the highest levels of the sport, but his son looks poised to become a superstar. McKee is a perfect 16-0 with all of his pro fights coming in Bellator with 11 of those wins coming by stoppage. He has beaten the likes of Pat Curran, Derek Campos, and Georgi Karakhanyan as he’s worked his way up the featherweight ladder. As for Caldwell, the 32-year-old is the former Bellator bantamweight champion and since moving up to 145 he has won back-to-back fights over Henry Corrales and Adam Borics. Both McKee and Caldwell are excellent fighters, but I really believe in McKee. I’ve been backing him for several years now and I won’t stop here. My pick is for McKee to defeat Caldwell.
- The co-main event should be a good one as Benson Henderson (28-9) takes on Jason Jackson (12-4). Henderson, the former UFC lightweight champion, was last seen getting KOed by Michael Chandler to snap a four-fight losing streak. He now moves up to 170lbs for the first time in four years when he takes on Jackson, one of the hottest fighters in the division. Jackson is coming off of back-to-back wins over UFC veterans Kiichi Kunimoto and Jordan Mein as he looks to be a future title contender in the Bellator welterweight division. Henderson opened as the favorite but the line quickly flipped and now Jackson is the favorite. I see a competitive fight here but I think the early action is right coming in on Jackson as the dog.
- Another main card fight sees Joey Davis (7-0) takes on Bobby Lee (12-4). Just 25, Davis has already racked up seven wins in all seven of his Bellator fights and he looks like a serious prospect at 170lbs. As for Lee, the former LFA prospect is making his Bellator debut after having won his last two fights. I don’t like this matchup for Lee given the fact Davis has incredible finishing power and has never lost before. It looks like Bellator has a really top prospect on their hands in Davis and he continues to be given favorable stylistic matchups.
