Bellator 275: Mousasi vs. Vanderford Best Bets (Archive)
This weekend Bellator returns to action as they present Bellator 275 from Dublin, Ireland which looks to be a star-making night for native Irish fighter, Sinead Kavanagh, but Kavanagh’s fight will not be the headlining fight of the night.
Current Bellator Middleweight champion and one of the baddest humans walking the earth, Gegard Mousasi, will battle undefeated challenger Austin Vanderford. Let’s take a look at the Bellator odds for this fight!
Gegard Mousasi vs. Austin Vanderford
Bellator Middleweight Championship Bout
Friday, February 25, 2022 – 08:00 PM EST at 3Arena
Betting Preview
While Vanderford is known more for being married to the former UFC and BKFC fighter Paige VanZant, “the Gentleman” is not just taking risque pictures for him and his wife’s Instagram.
Amassing an 11-0 pro-record while training at American Top Team (seen most recently alongside VanZant and ATT owner Dan Lambert on AEW Dynamite in a feud with Chris Jericho), Vanderford has gone 5-0 inside the Bellator cage, starting with two straight stoppages following his signing in early 2019.
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And while Vanderford won his last three fights, the Oregonian has gone the distance in his last three bouts and has only fought once annually since 2020, with a win in May of 2020 against Vinicius de Jesus and a 2021 win over Fabian Edwards.
Betting Analysis
If you’re stepping inside the Bellator Cage against a guy like Mousasi, who gave that cage and the Bellator middleweight division legitimacy, you need to have a bit more on your resume in my opinion.
Could Austin Vanderford beat the shit out of me? Yes, that’s the easiest question ever asked to a human being. But for a guy who only had one fight go to a decision prior to starting in Bellator and five stoppage wins including a star-turn on the Dana White Contender Series?
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You have to wonder if Vanderford’s skill set can apply to a five-rounder against someone at Gegard’s level.
Mousasi has won 11 of his last 12 fights across the UFC and Bellator, defeating Rory MacDonald, getting revenge on Lyoto Machida, winning back his middleweight title against Douglas Lima, and despite the loss to Rafael Lovato Jr., (who then retired due to suffering from cerebral cavernoma), Mousasi may be one of the most unstoppable fighters on the planet.
Betting Prediction
Vanderford would be pulling a massive upset in Dublin if he were able to out-work Mousasi, especially with Vanderford only fighting past the third round once in a 2017 win over Ben Fodor, aka Phoenix Jones… that’s right the dude who dresses up as a superhero and wanders the streets of Seattle looking to whoop-ass.
I wouldn’t touch the over despite it being set at +100 for 4 ½ rounds according to BetOnline (visit our BetOnline Review), but I would keep my money on Mousasi (-220) and parlay that with a Kavanagh win straight up (-140) for my Bellator picks and pour myself a nice glass of Irish whiskey and enjoy the violence.
Parlay Picks
- Bellator Pick: Gegard Mousasi to Win ML (-220)
- Kavanagh vs. McCourt Pick: Sinead Kavanagh to Win ML (-140)
Bellator Pick: Two-Legged Parlay (+174) at BetOnline
Think I’m wrong? Are you mad that I didn’t talk about PVZ more? Take me to task on Twitter at @MryanConsulting or not, I really don’t care, I just want you to have a chance to feel good about yourself as often as possible.
*The line and/or odds on picks in this article might have moved since the content was commissioned. For updated line movements, visit BMR’s free betting odds product.