Bantamweight bout: Anthony Leone (+155) vs Rafael Silva (-165) Fight Breakdown: The Bellator 102 main card features a bout between Anthony Leone and Rafael Silva in the finals of the Bellator Summer Series bantamweight championship tournament. Leone is currently the underdog at +155 ($100 to win $155), while Rafael Silva is the favorite at -165 ($165 to win $100) at Several Bookmakers. Anthony Leone (12-5 MMA, 3-2 Bellator) is making his sixth Bellator appearance, coming off a rear-naked-choke submission victory over Frank Baca at Bellator 97. He is undefeated in his recent run in the promotion, owning two decision victories over Claudio Ledesma and former Bellator bantamweight title holder Zach Makovsky. After a loss to Brylan Van Artsdalen in 2011, Leone made the move from featherweight to the bantamweight division and has since been undefeated at 135, owning two victories with two finishes. He is an aggressive fighter who likes to dictate the pace and control where the fight goes. He’s strong and effective with his striking but doesn’t have knockout power. Leone’s submission defense and takedown defense are both very solid, and when taken down, he is quick to get back to his feet. He is a talented wrestler who works great takedowns. He has good conditioning, even at bantamweight. I expect him to be prepared to go hard for fifteen minutes against the Brazilian. Rafael Silva (20-3 MMA, 1-0 Bellator) is comng off a very impressive second round rear-naked-choke victory over fellow Brazilian Rodrigo Lima. He is a talented Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner who is always dangerous to go to the ground with. As dangerous as he is on the ground, with nine of his twenty professional mixed martial arts career wins coming by way of submission, he proves to be equally as dangerous on the feet, as eight of the twenty came by way of knockout. The 28 year old Brazilian is riding a 12 fight win streak heading into this match up against Leone, who will possibly give him fits with his offensive wrestling game. Silva generally has decent takedown defense but he probably will not be able to stop Leone’s attempts. Silva has good conditioning and should be prepared for a three round war. Fight Prediction: I see this being an exciting fight, some back and forth, with Leone edging rounds using his superior wrestling. Gabe’s Pick: Anthony Leone by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27) Gabe’s Recommended Play: Anthony Leone +155
