In a first for the promotion, Bellator will be holding events on back-to-back days this weekend. The WinStar Resort and Casino will play host to Bellator 166 on Friday, and 167 on Saturday, as the promotion looks to suss out their bantamweight division and find contenders at featherweight. Friday night’s event will be headlined by the biggest Bellator fight of the weekend, as Eduardo Dantas and Joe Warren meet for the second time to decide the organization’s bantamweight belt. The circumstances are quite similar to their first encounter, as Dantas enters the champion and seems to have refined his game nicely while Warren is often looked at as the veteran on the way out. That narrative did not play out in their first meeting, however, as Warren was able to take three rounds to capture the title. The co-main event of Bellator 166 features one of the brighter prospects anywhere at 145 pounds in AJ McKee Jr. The son of noted fighter Antonio McKee has impressed early in his career, holding a pro record of 5-0 with five stoppages. At age 21, he has the look of a future champion. His latest test will be a fairly stiff one in Ray Wood — although it should be noted that McKee hasn’t been taking cupcake opponents to this point. Wood’s only two professional losses have come against rising star Adam Piccolotti and WEC veteran Anthony Morrison. Another fight that will help determine the order of Bellator’s bantamweight division pits former champion Marcos Galvao against LC Davis, who has seen a major title shot elude him thus far in his successful 30-fight career. A win over Galvao could change that while the former champion could get right back into the title hunt just one bout after dropping his title to Dantas. Rounding out the main card, standout wrestler Chris Honeycutt will look to further erase the memories of his lone career loss, as he takes on Ben Reiter. Honeycutt has picked up a pair of wins since being knocked out by Paul Bradley while Reiter has finally committed to a career stateside after racking up an impressive record throughout South America. MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened the betting lines for Bellator 166 today at Several Bookmakers sportsbook. Take a look… ——————– Bellator 166: Dantas vs. Warren 2 DECEMBER 2, 2016 WinStar World Casino and Resort | Thackerville, Oklahoma MAIN CARD (Spike TV, 9pm ET) Bantamweight Title: Joe Warren +165 Eduardo Dantas -215 Over 2.5 -130 Under 2.5 -110 – Ray Wood +400 A.J. McKee -600 Over 1.5 -185 Under 1.5 +145 – L.C. Davis +135 Marcos Galvao -175 Over 2.5 -230 Under 2.5 +170 – Ben Reiter +180 Chris Honeycutt -260 Over 2.5 -150 Under 2.5 +110 ——————– Brad’s Analysis: I haven’t seen any marked decline in Warren’s abilities since the first fight with Dantas. If anything, he’s actually improved in some aspects. Still, I’m picking Dantas to retain his title here. It may not be in spectacular fashion, but I believe his more measured approach will work well against Warren. His skill and length on the feet give him a big advantage there, which means it’s up to his ability to earn Warren’s respect with his power (unlikely) or avoid the clinch and takedowns (somewhat likely) to win this fight. I expect Warren to score a few takedowns in this fight but Dantas to avoid the majority of them with an improved focus, as he works harder to get back to his feet than he did in their first meeting. Across five rounds, it will be tight, but I lean towards Dantas. He’s also got the much better opportunity to end this fight in a moment, which makes me swing further his way. McKee seems like the real deal. If he can match the way Adam Piccolotti dispatched Wood, that would go a long way towards confirming that suspicion. I think he can, as he has shown a natural aptitude for MMA that a lot of fighters never develop. The only question with Bellator moving him up to face legitimate competition already is: When does he eventually get a crack at one of the division’s top 145ers? Davis gets overlooked a lot. He’s also a bad matchup for Galvao. Davis is fully capable of scoring a couple of takedowns, maintaining top position and taking a decision here. Even if he just avoids Galvao’s takedowns, he can win this on the feet, as I believe that area is pretty much a wash, but Davis should control some time againt the cage. That said, if Galvao can get top position regularly, he’s great at controlling opponents and winning rounds. Or the Brazilian’s striking could be even further improved and give him an advantage standing. However it plays out, I expect this to be competitive and think the only value could be in Davis if the public comes in on Galvao. The one legitimate grappler Reiter has faced in his entire career submitted him. Honeycutt isn’t much of a submission threat, but he is a dominating wrestler, and I think he’ll be able to go back to that early and often against Reiter. Maybe he can bull his way into a TKO, or maybe Reiter survives to a decision, but either way I like Honeycutt.
