Bellator 288 Nemkov vs Anderson 2: Nemkov Opens As an Underdog

• Vadim Nemkov opens as a +195 underdog in his championship title defense rematch vs Corey “Overtime” Anderson

• Usman Nurmagomedov once again opens as a massive favorite going into his title shot vs Patricky Pitbull at -660

• Undefeated Timur Khizriev to make his Bellator debut vs #7 ranked Daniel Weichel

• Both Tyrell Fortune and Roman Faraldo will be looking to finish their opponents early

Vadim Nemkov vs Corey Anderson 2 - Light Heavyweight Championship

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Light heavyweight champion Vadim Nemkov is yet to meet his match in the promotion and remains undefeated at Bellator so far.

Nemkov put together a string of wins over Philipe Lins, Liam McGeary, Phil Davis, and Rafael Carvalho before making quick work of Ryan Bader in his title fight, snatching the belt away from the American.

Since earning the light heavyweight title, Nemkove has defended his belt twice vs Phil Davis who he defeated by unanimous decision, as well as Julius Anglickas who he defeated via kimura submission in round four.

However, Nemko’s most recent title defense was vs Corey Anderson himself, who was doing a fantastic job of controlling the fight before an accidental clash of heads that brought a stop to the bout which ultimately ended in a no contest.

Corey “Overtime” Anderson was on a four-fight winning streak over Patrick Cummings, Glover Teixeira, Ilir Latifi, and Johnny Walker, before finally being stopped by Jan Blachowicz in the first round of their UFC fight.

After the loss, which happened to be the final fight of his UFC contract, Anderson decided to make the switch over to Bellator and he has been dominating the competition so far.

He started off his Bellator run with a second-round TKO over MMA legend Melvin Manhoev before earning a third-round ground and pound finish over Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov.

Anderson would follow up with a first-round ground and pound victory over former Bellator light heavyweight champion Ryan Bader, before the accidental clash of heads in his title shot vs Nemkov.

Our Picks

• Corey Anderson to win by KO/TKO/DQ in round two (-230)

Patricky Pitbull vs Usman Nurmagomedov - Lightweight Championship

Bellator lightweight champion Patricky Pitbull Freire joined the promotion back in 2011 and has so far put together a record of fifteen wins and eight losses, with multiple brawls and wars along the way.

Pitbull has faced Micheal Chandler, Eddie Alvarez, Josh Thompson, and many others along the way leading to his most recent title fight vs Peter Queally, who he defeated by second-round knockout at Bellator Dublin.

Usman Nurmagomedov is most probably the best fighter in Bellator at the moment and the promotion is yet to match him up with an opponent who can give him any real problems.

Usman’s head coach also happens to be his cousin, former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Usman is on such an elite level that despite all the hype, this fight should just be business as usual, and he will undoubtedly be looking for a first-round finish as always.

With a win over current champion Patricky Pitbull, Usman Nurmagomedov may very well end up becoming the promotion's biggest star.

Nurmagomedov has finished all three of his most recent opponents by first-round finish, with one knockout, and two submissions

Our Picks

• Usman Nurmagomedov to win by submission in round one (-660)

Daniel Weichel vs Timur Khizriev - Featherweight Division

Daniel “Drake” Weichel has had an extremely long career and has fought in many promotions across the globe, winning the vast majority of his fights along the way.

Weichel has put together a record of eleven wins and five losses so far at Bellator and seems to struggle whenever there is a step up in competition.

In his most recent fight at Bellator 281, Weichel defeated Robert Whiteford by first-round knockout with a combination of an uppercut and right hook.

Timur “Imam” Khizriev is an undefeated 11-0 prospect fighting out of Dagestan Russia, who possesses a solid striking and grappling game.

He has won most of his fights by unanimous decision but finishes his most recent opponent by rear naked choke in the first round.

Our Picks

• Timur Khizriev to win by unanimous decision

Tyrell Fortune vs Daniel James - Heavyweight Division

Tyrell Fortune is a very rare case of a fighter who started off his mixed martial arts career with a major promotion, in fact all of Fortune's fights have taken place under the Bellator banner and the promotion seems to be very fond of the former two-time state wrestling champion.

His most notable win in the promotion so far was his first-round finish of Matt Mitrione who tapped out to the strikes raining down from Tyrell Fortune.

Despite losing a split decision to Linton Vassell in the following fight, Fortune would bounce back with a first-round knockout win over Rakim Cleavland in his most recent Bellator outing.

Coincidentally, Daniel “The American Predator” James also made his pro-mma debut with Bellator, however, he has moved around multiple promotions throughout his career and has managed to finish most of his opponents.

James has been away from Bellator for a couple of years and has won his last three fights at ACA in spectacular fashion with all three wins coming by way of knockout.

Our Picks

• Tyrell Fortune to win by KO/TKO/DQ in round one (-300)

Roman Faraldo vs Levan Chokheli - Welterweight Division

Roman Faraldo started off his mixed martial arts journey on the amateur circuit where he put together a six-fight winning streak before making the jump up to pro-MMA, where he remains undefeated to this day.

Faraldo is yet to go the full fight distance in his pro career and has finished every single one of his opponents inside the first two rounds.

Faraldo made his Bellator debut in 2020 and started things off with a flying knee win over Pat Casey, and more recently finished Luis Ingues by first-round knockout at Bellator 283.

Levan Chokheli started off his mixed martial arts career fighting on the regional circuit where he remained undefeated, up until his Bellator debut.

Chokheli would face Kyle Crutchmer in his first fight with the promotion but would ultimately lose the fight by unanimous decision.

In his next fight, Chokheli would secure a unanimous decision win of his own over Vinicius de Jesus at Bellator 272.

In His most recent Bellator fight, Levan Chokheli faced Goiti Yamauchi who defeated him by arm-bar submission in the first round.

Our Picks

• Roman Faraldo to win by KO/TKO/DQ in round one (-190)

Bellator 288 Information

• Event: Bellator 288: Nemkov vs Anderson 2

• Location: Wintrust Arena, Chicago Illinois, United States

• Date / Time: Friday 18th November - 6 PM ET

• How to watch: Showtime