Bellator 96 took place tonight at Winstar World Casino in Thackerville, OK, and the result was a very entertaining card from a fan’s perspective and a from a bettor’s perspective as three favorites and two underdogs cashed out. Here’s a recap of Bellator 96 based on the closing odds at Several Bookmakers: Bellator 96 Betting Favorites That Won In the main event of the evening, Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal knocked out Seth Petruzelli with a huge one-punch KO on the ground to advance to the finals of the Bellator Summer Series light heavyweight tournament. The former Strikeforce light heavyweight champion fought smart and used his wrestling to take Petruzelli down and then knock him out with some of the most vicious ground and pound seen in a while. Lawal closed as a -750 favorite (bet $750 to win $100), with the comeback on Petruzelli +600 (bet $100 to win $600). In a heavyweight tournament semifinal, Vitaly Minakov knocked out Ron Sparks with punches very early in the bout to move on to the tournament finale. It was an impressive performance by Minakov and he certainly looks like a prospect to keep an eye on in Bellator. Minakov cashed at -485, while Sparks was +425. In a welterweight bout, War Machine returned from a very long layoff to defeat Blas Avena via first-round TKO. War Machine was able to get the takedown and once he was able to secure the crucifix position the TKO came easily. War Machine cashed at -220, while Avena was a +200 underdog. Bellator 96 Betting Underdogs That Won In a light heavyweight semifinal, Jacob Noe defeated Renato Babalu Sobral via third-round TKO to advance to the finals of the tournament where he will take on King Mo. Noe looked great against Sobral as he was able to land a number of power punches until Sobral was no longer able to defend himself and the ref stopped it. Noe cashed as +195 dog, while Sobral was a -215 favorite. In a heavyweight bout, Ryan Martinez knocked out Rich Hale to advance to the finals of the Bellator heavyweight tourney and take on Minakov in the finals. Martinez looked great in this fight as he was able to get Hale to the ground and then finish him with some brutal punches. Martinez cashed out as a +135 dog, while Minakov was a -145 favorite.
