Bellator 45 will be taking place Saturday, May 21, 2011 in Lake Charles, LA.
This is a very solid card and will feature the featherweight and light geavyweight tournament finals. In the featherweight finals we will see Daniel Straus vs. Patricio Freire, in what will be a very explosive matchup.
In the light heavyweight final we will see Richard Hale vs. Christian M’Pumbu.
Patricio Freire is a very explosive fighter. He is 16-1 with his lone loss coming to Joe Warren via split decision. Daniel Straus is 14-3 and has really come from under the radar. He has won 12 fights in a row, and now has the chance to fight for the Bellator featherweight title with a win over the “Pitbull” Saturday night.
The style matchup truly favors Straus coming into this match. He is the type of fighter that is more known for taking you to the distance, while Freire is explosive and can end the fight at any given moment.
Expect both fighters to be pushed to the limit. Freire could pull off the win, and in many eyes should but I am leaning towards Straus to win this fight via Unanimous decision.
In the light heavyweight final, Richard Hale has a 17-3-1 record and won a controversial split decision in his last bout over DJ Linderman. He is very well-rounded and can pull out a victory from every angle.
Christian M’Pumbu is also 17-3-1 it is funny because they both have the same amount of submission, knock out and decision victories.
I expect a fight where neither man holds back. I personally think that M’Pumbu has the slight advantage, but you never know, because it’s MMA and anything is possible.
I say it starts close and end of the second or early third round M’Pumbu catches him and finishes the fight via TKO.
Overall the event will be a solid card that is definitely worth the watch. So check it out on MTV2.
*Fight Card*
Bellator Light Heavyweight Tournament Final
Richard Hale vs. Christian M’Pumbu
Bellator Featherweight Tournament Final
Daniel Straus vs. Patricio Freire
Karl Amoussou vs. Sam Alvey
Luis Santos vs. Nicolae Cury
Joseph Abercrombie vs. Ben Parpart
Shawn Jordan vs. John Hill
Tim Ruberg vs. Mike Fleniken
Rene Nazare vs. Kalvin Hackney
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