Bellator 195 Betting Preview & Predictions

On Friday night, Bellator 195 will unfold at the Winstar World Casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma. The main event for the night features Darrion Caldwell and Leandro Higo tangling for the bantamweight belt, as Caldwell enters as the defending champ and Higo puts forth a challenge. This would be Caldwell’s first successful defense if he can win. Higo makes his second attempt to pry away the title, having lost to Eduardo Dantas (whom Caldwell defeated to take away the belt). The co-main event features Joe Taimanglo fighting Joe Warren, also in the bantamweight division. Taimanglo is fighting for another chance to challenge Caldwell, this time for the belt. Check out our online betting preview for this premier MMA event. Catch the action live, starting at 9pm Eastern time, on the Paramount Network and be sure to check out the latest MMA lines for this event.

Bellator 195 Betting Preview & Predictions

Darrion Caldwell vs. Leandro Higo

In the tilt between Caldwell and Higo, we see one of the best prospects in Bellator in Caldwell looking to establish himself as an ongoing champion. He had a wrestling background in college, and since he entered Bellator he has just taken a single loss (against Joe Taimanglo). Since that setback, though, Caldwell has beaten every comer that Bellator has put in front of them. Caldwell’s wrestling skill means that he should be able to elude Higo’s attempts to bring a submission via a takedown — he appears to have learned that lesson from that loss to Taimanglo, which came via a submission in the third round. Higo does bring a strong submission technique to the fight. However, he is not as skilled a fighter on his feet as Caldwell is, and Caldwell’s striking power should keep Higo off balance enough to allow Caldwell to keep pressing the advantage. If you like Higo, you think that he can catch Caldwell off guard and submit him on the ground. After all, Higo does have a 9-1 record dating back to July 2012. But if you like Caldwell, you see him using striking power to wear down Higo and then bring him to the floor himself. We predict Caldwell winning via submission. He has won all four of his previous stoppage wins in Bellator via submission, and we think this will go the same way.

Joe Warren vs. Joe Taimanglo

In the co-main event, we see Warren and Taimanglo, two fighters who have both fallen to Caldwell (with Taimanglo posting a lifetime 1-1 record against the defending champ). Taimanglo is the better fighter of the two, but Warren has developed a reputation within Bellator as taking any matchup they will give him, and in a promotion at this level, that sort of attitude goes a long way toward getting the right matchups.  Warren will be taking part in his 19th Bellator fight, more than any other MMA fighter has done, except for Patricky Freire and David Rickels. This is his 14th bantamweight bout, more than anyone else in his division. He has held both the featherweight and bantamweight titles at different times, so he definitely has the experience. However, he has alternated wins and losses in his last seven fights, and his last fight was a win, as he took the victory at Bellator 181 back in July.  If Warren can somehow get by Taimanglo, it would not be surprising to see Warren listed against the winner of Caldwell and Higo for the next title bout. We predict that Taimanglo will win by decision.

Emily Ducote vs. Kristina Williams

Another interesting bout on the main card features Emily Ducote and Kristina Williams. Williams has a 1-0 record in MMA and is still looking to establish heself within the organization. Ducote (6-3 MMA, 4-2 Bellator) faces Williams in her seventh flyweight bout for Bellator, more than any other woman in Bellator history. Of her four wins in the division, three have come via stoppage. We predict that Ducote will take down Williams by submission as well, adding to her already impressive stats in the division — at the age of 24, she is the youngest fighter on the main card.