Bellator MMA is back this Saturday in Dublin, Ireland. The main event bout is going to be where you can see the long-awaited return of Bellator welterweight champion Yaroslav Amosov defending his belt against veteran Logan Storley.
With all the MMA fights this weekend, this main event title fight is arguably the most exciting of the weekend slate for MMA fans. Read further for an in-depth betting analysis and the official Amosov vs Storley prediction before it takes place this weekend.
Yaroslav Amosov vs. Logan Storley Information
Yaroslav Amosov vs Logan Storley
Location: 3Arena, Dublin, Ireland.
Date and Time: February 25, 2023, 4:00 PM ET.
How to Watch: Showtime
Yaroslav Amosov vs. Logan Storley Recent Fights
Amosov is making his first appearance since winning the belt over Douglas Lima back in June of 2021.
Storley has won three fights in a row now, including his last against Michael Page in May of 2022.
Yaroslav Amosov vs. Logan Storley Betting Analysis
Yaroslav Amosov Facts to Know
It is no secret that the biggest question mark of this weekend will be how Amosoz will look in the cage after not competing for almost two years while his home country is at war with Russia. In case you missed it, there was a very touching story on the internet about how Amosov hid his Bellator belt away from the Russian military, and it even survived a bombing of his neighborhood.
The Ukrainian martial artist has been one of the most dominant Bellator titleholders ever. Out of his 26 professional fights, he is undefeated with 19 finishes. The interesting thing is that he has only two finishes in Bellator while having seven total fights.
Logan Storley Facts to Know
Storley is an everyday South Dakotan wrestler that turned into a great fighter. He carries around the work ethic and mentality that they have over there at the Sanford MMA gym. The main gym in Florida has some of the best fighters in the world. The one in South Dakota is the Mecca of midwestern MMA.
He is 14-1 with eight KOs under his belt so far. Storley has the power to KO people along with the experience of being a 4-time All-American wrestler at the University of Minnesota. This is going to be a great test between American-style wrestling and the style of grappling that Amosov trains around.
Updates
No injury updates were provided to the Dublin Athletic Commission.
Yaroslav Amosov vs. Logan Storley Betting Preview
Before coming up with the best Amosov vs Storley prediction, we need to take a look at the betting lines and break this fight down through that lens. MMA betting odds have Amosov as the -160 betting favorite in his return fight this weekend.
Amosov has yet to be a betting underdog in any of his Bellator bouts. He was a -200 favorite at the closing lines of the first time he fought Storley. With this being a rematch, it would be okay to assume that the oddsmakers are doing their best job with this line.
Storley saw moments of success in their first meeting, where the majority of the fight was spent in wrestling scrambles and positions on the ground. As the fight progressed, it seemed that Amosov just had more left in the tank and was able to do more offensively. He can also control all wrestling exchanges.
It is currently -175 for this fight to go the full 25 minutes, and for Amosov to win by decision again, it is +165. The first fight was only a 3-round affair, and both men were extremely gassed by the end. With this being a title fight, you need to assume that the style of fighting will be much different than their first meeting.
If you are doing any fantasy sports betting on this card, the only advice I have for you is to remember that the pace of this fight will probably be different than the first meeting. I don’t think both guys can survive with nonstop pressure and wrestling for 25 minutes.
Yaroslav Amosov vs. Logan Storley Betting Prediction
Making MMA picks for a Bellator event has proven to be one of the easier things to do in the sport. The betting lines aren’t always close, but this main event bout is going to be a very competitive fight and has great odds.
For our final Amosov vs Storley prediction, we got to go with Amosov keeping that undefeated record and defending his cherished belt. The story of these last two years and the things that Amosov has been through is going to be too much for Storley to stop this weekend.
You can read all the analytics and breakdown the styles however much you want; Amosov is just going to want this belt more than Storley. Assuming they are both healthy enough to be on a level playing field, Amosov is going to have answers for the wrestling of Storley and will potentially finish a choke this time around.
The dynamic ability of Amosov in just about every potential position in the cage is very impressive and is the reason he is the undefeated world champion. This guy is officially a trained killer and will be ready to show up and fight for his Bellator championship belt.
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