Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
Check out the Bloody Elbow staff’s picks and predictions for Friday’s Bellator 241 card.
The Bloody Elbow team has made its predictions for Bellator 241, which will now take place without fans on Friday night in Connecticut due to the coronavirus outbreak. We are all in agreement that Patricio “Pitbull” Freire will defend his featherweight title and advance to the tournament semifinals, and most of us believe he’ll be facing Emmanuel Sanchez, who is taking on Daniel Weichel in the other semifinal.
Note: Predictions are entered throughout the week and collected the day before the event. Explanations behind each pick are not required and some writers opt not to do so for their own reasons.
Patricio Freire vs. Pedro Carvalho
Mookie Alexander: I am not going to pick against Patricio Pitbull. The dude is one of the best fighters not in the UFC and one of the top fighters in general regardless of promotion. He can knock you out cold, he can grab a hold of your neck and choke you out on the ground, and he is incredibly durable. Even though Carvalho is a good fighter, I don’t see anything in his game to suggest he’s got some special secret sauce that will lead to Patricio’s downfall. Just about everything Carvalho is good at, Patricio is great at. The only x-factor is Patricio’s mindset after the recent birth of his son, but beyond that and strictly from a fighting standpoint he’s going to outclass the SBG product. Patricio Freire by submission, round 2.
Zane Simon: Carvalho has been picking up quality wins, but there’s no real two ways about this, beating Derek Campos and Sam Sicilia just isn’t really a meaningful path to fighting Patricio Pitbull in your next bout. And I don’t really trust SBG to get him in a place where he’s making big technical leaps from fight to fight. He’s got some power, he’s a dangerous fighter, but we’ve seen Pitbull beat those before. Patricio Pitbull by decision.
Staff picking Freire: Ed, Shak, Alex, Mookie, Stephie, Zane, Eddie
Staff picking Carvalho:
Daniel Weichel vs. Emmanuel Sanchez
Mookie Alexander: Sanchez is someone whom I trust more to have his cardio hold up over five rounds. While Sanchez is a good striker he’s not very powerful, but he is a more than capable grappler with a good submission game. It won’t be easy to outgrapple Weichel but I think he can do it, and he probably should go that route as Weichel is a heavier hitter. Emmanuel Sanchez by unanimous decision.
Zane Simon: Weichel and Sanchez are both fighters who tend to do a lot of everything, but don’t always dominate anywhere. Sanchez has been steadily improving and coming into his prime however, and finding more luck with his submission game as he does so. Weichel is a tough guy to out-grapple, so I’m not necessarily sure Sanchez gets a finish, but I think he can probably edge out the fight he lost last time. Emmanuel Sanchez by decision.
Staff picking Weichel: Alex
Staff picking Sanchez: Ed, Shak, Mookie, Stephie, Zane, Eddie
Paul Daley vs. Sabah Homasi
Mookie Alexander: This will be a fun brawl for however long it lasts. Homasi’s chin is unlikely to hold up against Paul Daley’s left hook, and we have very rarely seen Daley get rocked by anybody outside of Nick Diaz and Douglas Lima. Expect this to be the most entertaining fight of the night, and also expect Paul Daley by KO, round 1.
Zane Simon: I don’t how he does it, but Paul Daley has still only been KO’d once in his entire career, by Nick Diaz. Homasi is a willing brawler, but he doesn’t have that kind of chin. Seems like a good way for ‘Semtex’ to add another piece to his long, long highlight reel. Paul Daley via KO, round 2.
Staff picking Daley: Ed, Shak, Alex, Mookie, Stephie, Zane, Eddie
Staff picking Homasi:
Anatoly Tokov vs. Fabio Aguiar
Mookie Alexander: Tokov is damn good and he’ll be too strong for Aguiar to keep up. Anatoly Tokov by unanimous decision.
Zane Simon: If Aguiar isn’t going to present a viable KO threat, or high end grappling attack to really put Tokov in danger, he’s just not very likely to win this fight. Tokov is a physical beast, and skilled enough everywhere that he’s rarely going to give a fight away just by being caught out of position. Anatoly Tokov via TKO, round 3.
Staff picking Tokov: Ed, Shak, Mookie, Stephie, Zane, Eddie
Staff picking Aguiar: Alex
Matt Mitrione vs. Ronny Markes
Mookie Alexander: Either Mitrione knocks out Markes early or he finds himself on his back without a clue as to what to do for an overwhelming majority of the fight. I’ll lean with the latter, but Markes doesn’t have a great chin and Mitrione hits really hard, so a Mitrione KO doesn’t surprise me. Ronny Markes by unanimous decision.
Zane Simon: Does Markes have a heavyweight chin? Will it matter if Mitrione can’t find it fast? I guess I’ll bet Mitrione gets the KO over a guy who could be knocked cold at 185, but if he doesn’t do it in the first two minutes he probably loses. Matt Mitrione via KO, round 1.
Staff picking Mitrione: Zane, Eddie
Staff picking Markes: Ed, Shak, Alex, Mookie, Stephie
Nick Newell vs. Zach Zane
Mookie Alexander: Zane Simon is a coward, I repeat, a COWARD, for not picking Zane to win this fight. Nick Newell by submission, round 1.
Zane Simon: Can I really pick against my namesake without committing some kind of ultimate betrayal? Considering Zane really likes to grapple and aggressively sub hunt? Yeah I think I can. Nick Newell by decision.
Staff picking Newell: Ed, Shak, Alex, Mookie, Stephie, Zane, Eddie
Staff picking Zane: