Bellator 299 is the headline MMA event this weekend, with Johnny Eblen (-500) facing Fabian Edwards (+375) for the Middleweight World Championship in Dublin, Ireland. Eblen is the champion, and he will not only be putting his title on the line when he takes on Fabian Edwards but also his unbeaten record. Here, we name our Bellator betting picks for what promises to be a spectacular matchup.
Often upstaged by the UFC in the world of Mixed Martial Arts, Bellator is an organization growing in size and stature, with the best UFC betting sites offering odds on all of the Bellator main events. And when you look at the quality of the fight card that Bellator has put together for Dublin this weekend, you can see why the organization is becoming a force on the world stage.
The show in Dublin is the tenth time Bellator has staged an event in the city. The main event is an intriguing contest between the 185-pound champion Johnny Eblen of the USA and his challenger, Fabian Edwards from Birmingham in the UK.
Johnny Eblen is the favorite at odds of just -500. The 31-year-old American is unbeaten in his Bellator career with a 13-0-0 record. He won his Bellator Middleweight title by defeating Gegard Mousasi by unanimous decision in June 2022.
Since gaining the title, Eblen has successfully defended it once, beating Anatoly Tokov unanimously in February of this year.
Facing Eblen is Fabian Edwards of Team Renegade in England. Edwards is the outsider in this contest at odds of +375. The 30-year-old hails from Kingston, Jamaica, but is now UK-based after relocating at a young age.
His record in MMA reads 12-2-0. The two losses were against Costello van Steenis in 2021 and Austin Vanderford in 2022, both by decision. Since losing to Vanderford, Edwards has won three fights in a row, including a title eliminator win over Gegard Mousasi by unanimous decision at Bellator 296 in May of this year.
Edwards is the younger brother of UFC Welterweight Champion Leon Edwards. So he comes from good fighting stock.
Eblen is the clear favorite to win the fight at odds of -500. Edwards is +375 to cause an upset and take the belt of the undefeated champion.
The best sites offering UFC Vegas betting odds have plenty of props markets available on the Bellator fight between Eblen and Edwards, and these make for interesting reading.
For the fight to go the distance, BetOnline is offering -175. To end early, it is +145. Johnny Eblen is +175 to win inside the distance. With Edwards a massive +700 to win inside the distance.
In the method of victory betting, Eblen is -120 to win on points, +375 to win by submission, and +500 to win by KO/TKO/DQ.
Edwards is +500 to win on points, +1000 to win by KO/TKO/DQ, and +1600 to win by submission.
| Eblen vs. Edwards Betting |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnny Eblen | -500 | -500 | -500 |
| Fabian Edwards | +375 | +375 | +375 |
| Eblen win on Points | -120 | -120 | -120 |
| Edwards win on Points | +500 | +500 | +500 |
| Eblen win by KO/TKO/DQ | +500 | +500 | +500 |
| Edwards win by KO/TKO/DQ | +1000 | +1000 | +1000 |
| Eblen win by Submission | +375 | +375 | +375 |
| Edwards win by Submission | +1600 | +1600 | +1600 |
The odds are heavily favoring Johnny Eblen and are suggesting a one-sided fight. This is the reality of the situation for Fabian Edwards, as the UK-based fighter looks inferior to his unbeaten opponent in just about every aspect of MMA.
Eblen has the height advantage, and as a wrestler by trade, he will be looking to use his superior frame to take the fight down onto the canvas. But as well as having superior wrestling skills, the American can also mix it when the fight remains upright, and he has five knockouts on his resume to back that theory up.
But Fabian Edwards can’t be underestimated. His brother Leon is also from the Team Renegade stable, and this is the team that played an instrumental part in plotting the two victories over Kamaru Usman, the two biggest UFC wins of Leon’s career.
The wins over Usman were tactical victories, with Leon Edwards successfully defending 11 of Usman’s 15 takedown attempts in the rematch for the Welterweight Championship at UFC 286. This tactical know-how played a part in his win, and Fabian will be hoping his team can plan his tactics for taking on Eblen just as successfully.
The mood music here points towards Johnny Eblen wrestling his way to a win. Edwards and his team will have a plan to combat that, but it’s one thing planning and another executing the battle plan.
We are going to try to be creative with our betting picks. Johnny Eblen has never fought outside the USA, so this is new territory for him. Will it affect him? Probably not. But let’s assume that Edwards has a plan to exploit this. He may feel Eblen might take a round or two to settle into a different environment, and try to catch him cold and go for the knockout..
So, at odds of +1000, we are placing a small wager on Fabian Edwards to win via KO/TKO/DQ.
We do feel that Johnny Eblen will ultimately win out in this fight. All the statistics and the latest form suggest that if he does, he is likely to get the job done on the canvas. We feel Eblen will wrestle his way to victory. So the best Bellator 299 betting pick is for Johnny Eblen to win on points at -120.
See below the best Las Vegas sportsbooks, where you can wager online and choose the best one for you:
