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It all comes to an end this Thursday Night for Bellator’s eighth season and the company is closing out the season with a featherweight title bout. The company has also loaded up the eight fight preliminary card with a lot of top MMA talent and competitors. In all, there will be three UFC veterans on the preliminary card and a former Bellator Welterweight Champion.
Kicking off the action is a lightweight division fight as Darrel “The Saint†Horcher (7-0-0) is in action against Phillipe “Super†Nover (7-5-1). Horcher is an undefeated fighter who has already competed twice in Bellator, defeating EJ Brooks and Chris Ligouri. Nover has only won two of four fights since his UFC release, which came after a loss to Robert Emerson at UFC 109. Nover has not really been that impressive since his UFC release, which is why Horcher will get the biggest win of his career.
A pair of welterweights will be in action next as Shedrick “Chocolate Thunder†Goodridge (3-4-0) competes against Sam Oropeza (7-2-0). Goodridge has only won one of his last four pro bouts, with that lone victory coming over Brett Oteri at a CES MMA event. Oropeza enters the fight riding a two fight winning streak and has once competed in the Strikeforce promotion. Barring a major upset, there is no reason that Oropeza should not be defeating his overmatched opponent in Goodridge.
Middleweight action will be happening next as Carlos Brooks (4-2-0) stands across the cage from Tom DeBlass (7-2-0). Brooks is coming off of a three fight run in the Ring Of Combat promotion, where he won two of those fights. DeBlass is competing for the first time since a self-imposed retirement, which came after a loss to Riki Fukuda at UFC On Fuel TV VI. DeBlass did not too great in his two fight UFC run, but he does have enough skills to get the job done on Brooks.
We drop to the bantamweight division for the next fight as Brian “Boom†Kelleher (8-3-0) will do battle against Jimmie “El Terror†Rivera (11-1-0). Kelleher enters the fight riding a four fight winning streak, with none of those four fights going past the second round. Rivera is currently undefeated in Bellator competition, having defeated Willie Gates, Nick Garcia and Jesse Brock. Rivera is one of the best bantamweight prospects in MMA right now and he will show why with a victory over Kelleher.
A couple of featherweights are competing next as Michael Brent Hess (3-1-0) will battle Will Martinez (5-2-1). Hess will be looking to rebound from his first professional MMA defeat, which came to Christian Leonard at Shogun Fights VII. Martinez is currently undefeated in Bellator competition, having defeated the duo of Terrell Hobbs and Casey Johnson. Martinez has been looking really dominant in his last four fights and that will continue as he wins his fifth straight.
Light heavyweights will be dueling it out next as Liam McGeary (3-0-0) takes on Anton Talamantes (5-3-0). McGeary is currently undefeated as a professional MMA fighter and none of his three fights have gone to the judge’s scorecard. Talamantes is currently winless under the Bellator banner, having suffered a defeat to Anthony Gomez at Bellator 84. McGeary is facing his biggest challenge thus far in his young MMA career, but it will be a challenge that the fight passes.
Up next is a featherweight division contest as Kevin “K-Rod†Roddy (12-14-1-1NC) battles Brylan Van Artsdalen (7-5-0). Roddy will be entering this fight riding a two fight winning streak, but this will be his first MMA bout in nearly a year. Artsdalen has only won one of six under the Bellator banner, with that lone victory coming over Jay Haas. These are two unspectacular fighters competing in this battle, but it will be Artsdalen picking up his second Bellator victory.
Headlining this portion of the card is a welterweight division fight as Lyman “Cyborg†Good (14-3-0) faces Dante Rivera (15-6-0). Good is a former Bellator Welterweight Champion who made it to the finals of the season seven welterweight tournament, losing to Andrey Koreshkov. Rivera has won four of six since getting his UFC release, which came after a loss to Matt Riddle at the UFC Ultimate Fighter 7 Finale. The winner of this fight should be granted access to the next welterweight tournament and it will be Good getting another tournament opportunity.
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