The Bellator cage returns to Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut on Friday for Bellator 264. The card is headlined by Gegard Mousasi defending his middleweight championship against John Salter.
Mousasi won the Bellator middleweight title for a second time in his most recent outing, taking a unanimous decision victory over Douglas Lima this past October. The victory was the second consecutive win for the Strikeforce and UFC veteran and came two fights after a majority decision loss to Rafael Lovato Jr. that ended Mousasi’s first run as Bellator champ.
The loss to Lovato is Mousasi’s only loss since 2016, a stretch that includes 11 fights across both Bellator and the UFC.
Salter is also a UFC veteran, though his Octagon career came to a close after just three fights, all in 2010. Since that 1-2 stint in the UFC, Salter has compiled a 13-2 record, including going 8-1 in the Bellator cage. Like Mousasi, Salter’s lone Bellator loss came against Lovato.
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Salter earned his shot at Mousasi and the title with a three-fight winning streak, most recently defeating Andrew Kapel by submission in August 2020. That finish continued Salter’s impressive trend of avoiding the judges’ scorecards, with only one of his 22 career fights going to decision.
Four other fights fill out the undercard on Friday night, including some interesting contests in the welterweight and bantamweight divisions. Former champion Andrey Koreshkov is back in action when he faces Sabah Homasi in the co-main event at 170 pounds. Koreshkov has not fought for the promotion since October 2019. Plus, Magomed Magomedov and Raufeon Stots are set to meet in a crucial bantamweight bout that’s slated as a featured contest. The two have just two losses combined on their resumes and carry the promise of big action in the lower ranks. The winner is likely headed to a title shot against Sergio Pettis next.
Here’s the fight card for Bellator 264 with the latest odds from Caesars Sportsbook.
Bellator 264 card, odds
|
Gegard Mousasi (c) -400 |
John Salter +310 |
Middleweight championship |
|
Andrey Koreshkov -470 |
Sabah Homasi +360 |
Welterweight |
|
Magomed Magomedov -420 |
Raufeon Stots +330 |
Bantamweight |
| Davion Franklin -370 |
Everett Cummings +290 |
Heavyweight |
| Ty Gwerder -300 |
Khadzhimurat Bestaev +240 |
Middleweight |
Bellator 264 viewing information
Date: Aug. 13 | Start time: 9 p.m. ET
Location: Mohegan Sun Arena — Uncasville, Connecticut
TV Channel: Showtime
Prediction
Gegard Mousasi vs. John Salter: Salter is on an impressive run and he has an incredible finishing rate. That said, Salter’s success has come against fighters one or two tiers lower on the sport’s hierarchy than Mousasi, who has been fighting elite competition for 15 years. Salter is likely to push the pace, but Mousasi is a patient and technical fighter who will avoid most of what his opponent throws at him while picking spots to score more effectively. The early rounds may be a bit slow but look for Mousasi to score a late finish, especially when considering that Salter has been stopped in all four of his career losses. Pick: Gegard Mousasi via TKO4
