The second biggest mixed martial arts promotion in the sport has its moment in the sun this weekend, with Bellator 299 seeing an incredible 20 fights taking place in Dublin on Saturday night. Headlining the event will be American Johnny Eblen, who puts his middleweight championship belt on the line against home favourite and challenger Fabian Edwards.
The defending champion heads to Dublin unbeaten across his 13 professional fights, posing a fearsome challenge for Edwards to dethrone. However, the Englishman is on a three-fight winning streak and will have confidence that if he can fight this bout on his terms, the middleweight belt could be his on Saturday night.
Read on as we break down all the latest betting odds from bookmaker William Hill and outline the best bets to make on Eblen vs. Edwards at Bellator 299 this weekend.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: September 23rd, 7:00 A.M. (GMT)
Looking at the outright betting odds ahead of Bellator 299, it’s clear that bookmaker William Hill has Johnny Eblen as a strong favourite to defend his title on Saturday night. The American is paying odds of just 1.20 to win, compared to Fabian Edwards return of 4.50, should the Englishman cause an upset.
In terms of how this one is expected to end, again, bookmaker William Hill has a clear idea. Eblen winning by decision is the heavily preferred option, with odds at 2.00. The champion winning by submission is next at 4.00, just ahead of an Eblen knockout at 4.75. For Edwards, his best chance is a decision, but even that is paying long odds of 8.50
※ Current Odds Date & Time: September 23rd, 7:00 A.M. (GMT)
Looking at the track records of both these fighters, there are two bets that jump out as being smart plays, and both of them involve Eblen retaining his belt. Firstly, backing the champion to win by decision is the conservative wager. Of the American’s nine fights in Bellator, seven have come by way of decision. The middleweight champion is simply a master at exploiting his opponents’ weaknesses, and accruing points while avoiding damage himself. More than likely, that’s how this Saturday night will play out as well.
The slightly riskier bet is to wager on Eblen winning in the first round. While seven of Eblen’s 13 professional fights have ended on the judges’ cards, the other six have all been first round knockouts. Admittedly, the majority of these were earlier in the 31-year-old’s career, however, he did knockout both Collin Huckbody and Daniel Madrid in the first round of their 2021 fights. It’s less likely, but with a return of 5.50, would lead to a handy payout if successful.
