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The Bellator Summer Series is coming to a close this Wednesday with a card featuring a pair of title fights and two tournament finals. The preliminary card is stacked to the gills as well, with nine total fights streaming on Spike.com before the main card. The preliminary card is so stacked that a pair of bantamweight tournament semi-final fights are part of the card.
Kicking off the action is a featherweight division fight as Donald Sanchez (28-13-0) is in action against Cliff Wright (7-4-0). Sanchez will enter the fight riding a three fight winning streak and the fighter is a longtime veteran of the King Of The Cage promotion. Wright has only won one of three in Bellator competition, with that lone win coming over Bobby Reardanz at Bellator 75. Sanchez has a huge experience edge over Wright in this fight and that will help carry him to victory.
We move to the bantamweight division for the next bout as Felipe “Flip†Chavez (5-3-0) competes against Adrian “Killa†Cruz (4-0-0). Chavez has won three of his last four fights, but this upcoming bout will be his first fight in almost four years. Cruz is currently undefeated as a professional MMA fighter, including a victory over Nick Gonzales at Bellator 91. The long layoff is going to hurt Chavez in this fight as Cruz wins to remain undefeated in his MMA career.
A lightweight division contest is up next as Richard Jacquez (0-1-0) looks for the win against Javier Palacios (0-0-0). Jacquez is returning to action after a two year layoff, with his lone fight being a loss to Dorian Rojo at Sun City Battle I. Palacios will be making his professional MMA debut in this fight, but he did go undefeated as an amateur. This is a pick ‘em if there ever was one on this card, but it will be Palacios making a successful professional MMA debut.
More bantamweight action is up next as Shawn “Bunch The Great†Bunch (1-0-0) does battle with Russell Wilson (1-2-0). Bunch made his professional MMA debut back at Bellator 82, where he defeated Chad Coon by unanimous decision. Wilson will enter the fight riding a two fight losing streak and he has not achieved a victory in almost two years. Bunch looked great in his professional MMA debut and he will look great again as he remains undefeated.
Middleweights will be entering the cage next as Keith “KO Kid†Berry (15-10-0) dukes it out with Jeremy Kimball (9-3-0). Berry is currently undefeated in Bellator competition, having defeated both Richard Rigmaden and Cortez Coleman. Kimball will enter the fight riding a five fight winning streak, which includes victories over UFC veterans Tom Speer and Drew McFedries. Berry and Kimball are on great runs right now, but it will be Kimball pulling through with the win in this one.
Another lightweight division fight is up next as Mike Barreras (5-5-0) does battle against Bubba “The Highlight Kid†Jenkins (3-0-0). Barreras will return to action after a three-plus year break from action, but has competed against UFC veteran Isaac Vallie-Flagg. Jenkins is currently undefeated as a professional MMA fighter, with none of his three fights going past the opening round. Jenkins is a highly touted prospect in MMA right now and he will show why as he defeats Barreras here.
The first bantamweight tournament opening round fight is up next as Frank Baca (16-2-0) battles Anthony Leone (12-5-0). Baca is coming off of an eight fight run in the King Of The cage promotion, where he won seven fights. Leone will enter the fight riding a three fight winning streak, which includes a victory over former Bellator Bantamweight Champion Zack Makovsky. These are two fighters who could make a big name for themselves by winning the tournament, but it will be Leone advancing to the finals.
Up next is another bantamweight tournament semi-final fight as Rodrigo “Ratinho†Lima (11-1-0) faces Rafael “Morcego†Silva (19-3-0). Lima is coming off of the biggest victory of his MMA career when he defeated Ronnie Mann at Bellator 91. Silva will enter the fight riding an eleven fight winning streak and he holds a victory over UFC veteran John Lineker. These are two of the better international bantamweight competitors in Bellator right now, but it will be Silva advancing to the final round.
Headlining this portion of the card is a lightweight division fight as Will “Ill Will†Brooks (9-1-0) takes on Cris “The Lightning†Leyva (9-5-0). Brooks advanced to the semi-finals of the season eight lightweight tournament, losing to Saad Awad via knockout. Leyva will enter the fight riding a four fight losing streaks, with some of those losses coming to UFC vets Tim Means, Michael Guymon and Joe Riggs. Brooks is a top rated lightweight that already has a spot in the next tournament and he will show why he gets the spot as he defeats Leyva.
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