Bellator 245 Odds, Picks & Betting Preview – Davis vs Machida 2

• Phil Davis and Lyoto Machida have their rematch seven years in the making
• Will the winner get the first crack at the new champion, Vadim Nemkov?
• See the odds, picks, and betting preview for the full Bellator 245 main card, below

Bellator MMA is set for a very solid back-to-back night of fights in Uncasville, Connecticut.

In the main event of the first card on Friday, September 11, a key light heavyweight bout headlines the card as Phil Davis and Lyoto Machida have a rematch seven years in the making. The co-main event sees former UFC title challenger, Cat Zingano makes her Bellator debut against Gabrielle Holloway.

Bellator 245 main card airs live at 10 pm ET on DAZN and Paramount Network. The table below shows odds for the main card at FanDuel and DraftKings, followed by best bets for the event.

Bellator 245 Main Card Odds

All odds as of Sept. 8

Will the Winner Get a Title Shot?

In the lead-up to this fight, all the talk has been that the winner of Phil Davis vs Lyoto Machida will get the first crack at the new light heavyweight champion, Vadim Nemkov. So, the stakes are high for this one. It could also be the final run at a title shot for the Brazilian in Machida.

Davis & Machida Recent Fights

Although Lyoto Machida is 42-years-old he is still as dangerous as ever and isn’t getting enough respect at the sportsbooks. Phil Davis did win the first fight back in 2013 at UFC 163 by decision, but since then, both have had a ton of success in Bellator.

This should be a striking matchup between two elite strikers. Both men are hard to fight given they have a tough point fighting style and make it hard to get inside. Yet, just like the first fight, Davis will be the more active striker and look for the odd takedown here and there to bring Machida’s hands down and hopefully land the knockout punch.

Davis should be able to do enough on the feet and in the grappling department to win a decision just like he did back in 2013. At this current line, however, it is hard to play straight but he could be a parlay piece with someone like Raymond Daniels or Ed Ruth.

Pick: Phil Davis (-335)

Davis vs Machida Stats

Will Zingano Have a Succesful Bellator Debut?

After being signed back in October of last year, Cat Zingano will finally make her Bellator debut. The fight will also take place at featherweight, which is where Zingano’s last UFC fight took place back in 2018.

Zingano & Holloway Recent Fights

There is no question Bellator wants Cat Zingano to win so they can set up a fight between her and Cris Cyborg. Zingano is still a big name in the sport, partly due to the fact she fought Ronda Rousey for the UFC title back in 2015 and holds a win over Amanda Nunes. So, if she wins, Cyborg vs. Zingano is about the biggest fight Bellator can do at women’s featherweight.

Holloway has not fought since 2017 and is just 6-5. Zingano should be able to win this fight however she wants whether it is by TKO or by taking her to the ground and submitting her. Regardless, Zingano should get her hand raised and do so fairly early into this fight but at -625 there is no way you can pay that price.

Pick: Cat Zingano (-625)

Other Bellator 245 Picks:

• • Ed Ruth (-300): Ruth will be the much better wrestler and eventually will get a submission win to get back into the win column.
  • Raymond Daniels (-300): This is a setup fight for Daniels to get a highlight-reel KO. As mentioned, he is a good parlay piece with Ruth and Davis to get better odds.