Mar 28, 2023

The PFL regular season returns as the promotion kicks off its 2023 action with the featherweights and light heavyweights at The Theater at Virgin Hotel in Las Vegas on Saturday (5:30 p.m on ESPN+).

In the main event, last season's featherweight champion Brendan Loughnane will take on former UFC men's bantamweight title challenger Marlon Moraes in his regular-season debut. Also on the card, in the co-main event, former UFC light heavyweight title challenger Thiago Santos will make his PFL debut against last season's light heavyweight champ Robert Wilkinson.

On Friday night, Bellator MMA will host Bellator 293 at Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, California (10 p.m. ET on Showtime). The main event will feature Marcelo Golm facing fellow heavyweight contender Daniel James. Cat Zingano will fight Leah McCourt in the co-main event.

ESPN betting expert Ian Parker gives his insight and analysis on the most intriguing bets he likes on this weekend's PFL 1 and Bellator 293 fight cards.

Best bets for PFL 1

Featherweight: Brendan Loughnane vs. Marlon Moraes

Editor's Picks

Loughnane to win, inside the distance. Moraes could be a dangerous opponent for anyone at 145 pounds, if his chin could hold up. Unfortunately, time and time again, it fails him. If Moraes can't get Loughnane to the ground and hold him there, Loughnane's boxing will overwhelm him and eventually put him out. Loughnane has shown stellar takedown defense and, knowing him, he will want to set the tone at the beginning of the season with a highlight-reel knockout.

Light heavyweight: Robert Wilkinson vs. Thiago Santos

Wilkinson to win. This should be a very exciting fight as both men are willing strikers with plenty of power in their hands. Wilkinson's underrated ground game is the difference in this matchup and that is where I believe he will shine. As much as Wilkinson would love to have a knockout win over Santos on his resume, he knows how dangerous striking with Santos can be. We have also seen a lack of urgency from Santos in his last few fights. He's not the same aggressive finisher he once was. Look for Wilkinson to use his strikes to set up a takedown sooner rather than later, then use his ground game to get the win.

Featherweight: Movlid Khaybulaev vs. Ryoji Kudo

Khaybulaev to win, use in parlay. Kudo made quite an impact in his debut last season. In his first fight, he took on Loughnane and lost by a close decision. And in his second fight, he landed one of the best knockouts of the season on Alejandro Garcia. Kudo will look to start the season with a bang once again. However, he has a large mountain to climb in 2021 featherweight champion Khaybulaev. He returns for the 2023 regular season after missing all of last season because of injury. Khaybulaev carries great speed and power in his hands, but he is absolutely dominant on the ground, and that's where he likely gets the job done.

Featherweight: Chris Wade vs. Bubba Jenkins

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Over 2.5 rounds, fight goes the distance. Coming off a loss in last season's championship final, Jenkins will want a fresh start with a win over Wade. In their last fight back in 2021, Wade won by unanimous decision, using his wrestling to control the fight, which was surprising. This time around, I think the fight will be spent mostly on the feet as the wrestling might cancel itself out and both fighters have improved on their striking. As much as both fighters want to get a finish in the first round, I just don't see it happening. I expect a back-and-forth fight from bell to bell with the result going to the scorecards.

Best bets for Bellator 293

Women's featherweight: Cat Zingano vs. Leah McCourt

Zingano to win. McCourt will go for her second win in a row as she takes on Zingano, her toughest challenge to date. Zingano is undefeated since moving to Bellator (3-0) and could lock in a title shot in the near future with a win over McCourt. Stylistically, this is a nightmare matchup for McCourt. She is a jiu-jitsu practitioner with limited striking going against a strong grappler in Zingano with good technique and power on the feet. When Zingano does decide to take the fight to the mat, I believe she will be too strong with top pressure to allow McCourt to land any submissions.

Middleweight: John Salter vs. Aaron Jeffery

Jeffery to win. Coming off a TKO win over former title contender Austin Vanderford, Jeffery might be one fight away from a title shot. He takes on Salter, also a former title contender, who has lost back-to-back fights. Salter might have an advantage on the ground, but with nine of his 13 wins coming by knockout, I expect Jeffery to try to keep the fight standing. This should be a fun fight for as long as it lasts, but I'm taking Jeffery to get finish No. 10.

Expert picks best bets bettors back pfl 1 bellator 293

2023-04-30 21:31:39