Aside from some the continuation of “Tuesday Night Contenders” along with the standard AXS TV offerings, August is going to be a slow month for MMA fans. Towards the end, it will start to pick up though, and that begins with Bellator 182 on August 25th. A surprisingly deep card for Bellator puts an emphasis on the promotion’s welterweight and featherweight divisions, with some high-profile bouts in each. The main event should provide some fun for striking fans, as former welterweight champion Andrey Koreshkov takes on Chidi Njokuani.
This will mark Koreshkov’s first appearance since dropping his title to Douglas Lima back in November, his first loss in over three years. Wins over Benson Henderson and Lima highlighted the six-fight winning streak that saw him capture the Bellator title during that time. Njokuani has been impressive in his own right in Bellator, racking up a 4-0 record in the promotion thus far, but this is by far his biggest test. We’ve seen Koreshkov willing to use his wrestling when faced with dangerous strikers, and he may choose to do so against Njokuani here, which could provide an extra wrinkle to this fight.
The co-main event is also at 170 pounds, as Brennan Ward takes on Fernando Gonzalez in a bout where the combatants are used to spending very different amounts of time in the cage. Ward has seen a third round just once in his 19-fight career, while Gonzalez has gone to decision in eight of his last 11. That will make the total in this fight very interesting, not to mention the wild style of Ward making all of his fights exciting.
In addition, the main card of Bellator 182 features the promotion’s continuing build of featherweight prospect AJ McKee. All eight of the 22-year-old’s pro fights have come in Bellator, and he has had his hand raised each time. His opponent here will be Blair Tugman, a six-foot featherweight who has come into his own since joining the promotion. Tugman started his career 5-5, but he has been victorious in five of his past six on Bellator preliminary cards to earn this bump up to the main card in a high-profile spot.
Finally, the Spike TV card opens in the women’s flyweight division, as a pair of fighters with matching 3-1 records look to pick up the biggest win of their careers. Brazilian 21-year-old Bruna Ellen has gone 1-1 in Bellator thus far while Veta Arteaga has gone 2-1 — and could arguably be 3-0, as many felt she deserved the decision over Anastasia Yankova in their bout.
The undercard of Bellator 182 has some solid fights as well, the most notable of which are featherweight contests featuring Georgi Karakhanyan and Daniel Pineda plus Henry Corrales and Noad Lahat. Also, in the frontrunner for weird outcome of the night, Chris Honeycutt takes on The King, Kevin Casey, who has just one victory in his last seven bouts, to go along with two losses, two draws and two No-Contests.
MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened full betting odds for the Bellator 182 card today at Several Bookmakers. Those lines can be seen below…
(Main Card Lines Went Live On 8-5-17, Preliminary Card Lines Added 8-24-17)
Bellator 182: Koreshkov vs. Njokuani
AUGUST 25, 2017
Turning Stone Resort Casino | Verona, New York
Main Card – (Spike TV, 9PM ET)
Chidi Njokuani+205
Andrey Koreshkov -285
Over 2.5 -185
Under 2.5 +145
–
Fernando Gonzalez +100
Brennan Ward -140
Over 1.5 -125
Under 1.5 -115
–
Blair Tugman +435
AJ McKee -705
Over 1.5 -185
Under 1.5 +145
–
Bruna Ellen +185
Veta Arteaga -265
Over 2.5 -350
Under 2.5 +250
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Preliminary Card – (Spike.com, 7PM ET)
Daniel Pineda +165
Georgi Karakhanyan -215
Over 2.5 -175
Under 2.5 +135
–
Arlene Blencowe -105
Sinead Kavanagh -135
Over 2.5 -230
Under 2.5 +170
–
Henry Corrales +180
Noad Lahat -260
Over 1.5 -170
Under 1.5 +130
–
Marc Stevens +220
Ricky Rainey -300
Over 2.5 -135
Under 2.5 -105
–
Kevin Casey +265
Chris Honeycutt -385
Over 2.5 -160
Under 2.5 +120
–
Philipe Lins +160
Vadim Nemkov -210
Over 1.5 -135
Under 1.5 -105
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