Back-to-back events in Hawaii from Bellator kick off tonight with Bellator 212 and Cageside Press has their picks set.
| Staff Writer | Lara vs. Velasquez | Campos vs. Sicilia | McKee vs. Crawford | Mir vs. Ayala | Primus vs. Chancdler |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heath Harshman (133-74) |  |  |  |  |  |
| Dan Doherty (132-81) |  | | | | |
| Paarth Pande (125-79) | | | |  | |
| Eddie Law (118-77) | |  | | | |
| Mike Straus (128-84) | | | | | |
| Josh Evanoff (74-52) | | | | | |
| Gabriel Gonzalez (102-80) | | | | | |
| Jay Anderson (117-96) | | | | | |
| Mike McClory (103-87) | | | | | |
The main event of Bellator 212 is a long overdue rematch between lightweight champion Brent Primus and former champ Michael Chandler. Primus won the first fight by injury TKO after Chandler suffered an ankle injury. However, Primus has not fought since then due to a knee injury. Chandler, on the other hand, has won a pair of fights since losing the title in June 2017. Chandler was unanimously picked.
Frank Mir continues his career against Javy Ayala in the co-main event. Mir, a former UFC heavyweight champion, lost in his Bellator debut in the first round of the heavyweight grand prix to Fedor Emelianenko and has not fought since. Javy Ayala has struggled recently, losing to Cheick Kongo and Roy Nelson after going on a two-fight win streak. All but two writers picked Mir.
AJ McKee looks to continue his trek towards the featherweight title against Daniel Crawford. McKee’s entire career has been in Bellator, sporting a 12-0 record in the cage. Crawford is a British prospect with a 10-2 record, falling in his promotional debut in his last fight. McKee was picked by every writer.
Derek Campos looks to rebound against Sam Sicilia. Campos was on a four-fight win streak before falling to Patricky Pitbull in February. Sam Sicilia is 1-1 since joining Bellator after losing his final three fights in the UFC. Six of nine writers picked Campos.
Opening up the Bellator 212 main card will be Alejandra Lara vs. Juliana Velasquez. Lara is 7-2 in her MMA career, coming off a spirited contest against Ilima-Lei MacFarlane. Juliana Velasquez is an undefeated Brazilian prospect who is 2-0 since joining the promotion. Velasquez has won both of those fights by stoppage. Five of nine writers selected Velasquez.
