Bellator 126: "Shlemenko vs. Halsey" takes place this Friday night (Sept. 26, 2014) at the Grand Canyon University Arena in Phoenix, Arizona. Alexander Shlemenko returns to action for the first time since May, when he took a fight with Tito Ortiz in his Bellator MMA debut. "Storm" moved up a weight class to make the match happen, and many predicted the exciting striker would fare well, but the naturally larger Ortiz caught him with an arm-triangle choke in the first round.
Criticism of Shlemenko has been muted since he made it possible for Bellator to put Ortiz on pay-per-view (PPV). If anything, he's perceived as having done the company a huge service. He'll get no benefit of the doubt against Brandon Halsey, though. Halsey submitted Brett Cooper by armbar in the season 10 middleweight tournament finals, improving to a perfect 7-0, and earning a shot at Shlemenko's title in the process.
The co-main event sees Patricky Freire, older brother of current featherweight champion Patricio Freire, facing off against Polish phenom Marcin Held in a bout to conclude the season 10 lightweight tournament. The match was originally scheduled for the same PPV where Ortiz made his Bellator debut, but "Pitbull" was forced off the card due to multiple hand injuries. The tournament winner will have to next deal with either Will Brooks or Michael Chandler.
Check out our Bellator 126 preview and predictions below:
185 lbs.: Alexander Shlemenko (50-8) vs. Brandon Halsey (7-0)
Shlemenko is one of the most exciting fighters in the Bellator cage. A whirling dervish of striking that has made him a longtime favorite dating back to when Bellator event numbers were in the teens. His only loss as a middleweight in the promotion was to Hector Lombard nearly four years ago. Halsey has never lost PERIOD. Curiously, all of his fights to date save one took place in California, and the last time he had his closest fight ever, a split decision win over Joe Yager in Oklahoma.
Experience is the key to this fight. Although the two men are only two years apart in age, Shlemenko has over eight times as many professional bouts, and there's little he can say he hasn't seen before or already trained for. Halsey is a versatile prospect who has many ways to win, but he's only recorded one technical knockout victory so far. His best hope is to take the fight to the ground, but even though Shlemenko doesn't do it often, he does have eight wins by decision. If he stays anywhere within striking range standing, this won't last long.
Final prediction: Shlemenko def. Halsey by knockout
155 lbs.: Patricky Freire (13-5) vs. Marcin Held (19-3)
One might be unwise to use the term "Lesser Pitbull" in his presence, but Patricky has yet to ascend to the heights of success of his older brother. The good news for Freire is that he's in the midst of a career rebound, having followed three straight losses with three straight wins, now finding himself a stone's throw away from a title shot. The last time Freire reached a tournament final, he lost it to Michael Chandler. That's not to say Freire can't win the big fight, but history has shown us he has a hard time getting over the hump.
Held is a young wizard of the submission game -- almost one-dimensional in that respect -- but it's a dimension where he has clearly outmatched his foes. If Held goes for a leg and gets it, his opponent should probably start tapping immediately as the end is already in sight. Unfortunately, Held knows a different kind of pain, one he shares with Freire, and that's being a runner up in a Bellator lightweight tournament. Both men have something to prove in Phoenix, but Held is unlikely to find an easy submission this time, as Freire has only been tapped out once.
Final prediction: Freire def. Held by unanimous decision
145 lbs.: Thiago Meller (19-5) vs. Bubba Jenkins (7-1)
Jenkins has transformed himself over and over again in his MMA ascent. He brought elite college wrestling experience at Penn State and Arizona State into the cage, and was a 2011 Division-I champion at 157 pounds for the latter. Soon after his pro debut, he showed off his ground game with two straight rear-naked choke victories, and of late his improved striking has led to technical knockout finishes in three of his last five fights. His only career blemish to date was being knocked out by LaRue Burley late in the third round of a fight at Bellator 100.
Like many recent additions to the Bellator roster, Meller's fight record has been built largely in Brazil, although he does have a few wins outside his home country: Jai Bradney in Brisbane, Australia, and Chris Saunders in Culver City, California, to name two. Meller gets the better of lower level competition regularly, but his career losses read like a glass ceiling: Jose Aldo, Rafael Dos Anjos, Aaron Riley, and so on.
It's fair to say that a win over Jenkins would be a career-defining moment for Meller and a great start to his Bellator career. Three of his five losses are by decision though and Jenkins is no doubt aware of that fact. If he doesn't gas out early, Jenkins can outstrike and outlast Meller.
Final prediction: Jenkins def. Meller by split decision
135 lbs: Mike Richman (16-5) vs. Ed West (18-8)
The opening contest on TV is a chance for both fighters to rebound. West is coming off a loss to Antonio Duarte in Mexico this past February, but fight fans may remember his spectacular head kick knockout of Josh Montoya nearly one year before. It is a little troubling though that West only seems to take one fight per year, and after dropping three of his last four, he's got a lot of time and losses to make up for.
Richman is similarly afflicted with losses in three of his last four, but the good (or bad) news for Richman is that they were all decisions. Richman wins almost 50-percent of his fights by knockout, West has only done it once. Richman's best chance is to come out fast and overwhelm West, who doesn't seem to have the power in his hands to make Richman back down. The danger of course is that if Richman over-commits while striking, he could be open for an easy takedown, and exactly 50-percent of West's career wins are by submission.
Final prediction: Richman def. West by knockout
Stay tuned for up-to-the-minute weigh-coverage tomorrow night, as well as extensive Bellator 126 live results and coverage this weekend!