Bellator 297: Vadim Nemkov vs. Yoel Romero kicks off the main card with a fight in the heavyweight division between No. 4 ranked Daniel James and No. 10 ranked Gokhan Saricam. James is riding a 5-fight winning streak into this matchup meanwhile, Saricam is coming off his first loss in four years in his last outing. With that said, check out our Bellator odds series for our James-Saricam prediction and pick.
Daniel James (15-6-1) has been a surprise since signing with Bellator. He is currently on a 5-fight win streak while winning each of his first two fights with the promotion with all 5 wins coming by KO or TKO. He is looking to make it 6 in a row against his toughest adversary to date in hopes of a potential title shot in the future.
Gokhan Saricam (8-2) was having a nice run in Bellator winning 4 in a row until a showdown against top prospect Oleg Popov proved too much for the Turkish fighter. Saricam is a former kickboxer that turned to professional MMA back in 2014. He has finished 6 of his 8 wins by knockout and will be looking to make it 7 as he takes on the surging Daniel James on Friday night.
Here are the Bellator Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
Bellator 297 Odds: Daniel James-Gokhan Saricam Odds
Daniel James: +100
Gokhan Saricam: -122
Bellator 297: How to Watch Daniel James vs. Gokhan Saricam
TV: Showtime
Stream: Showtime App
Time: 9:00 p.m. ET/ 6:00 p.m. PT (Main Card)
Why Daniel James Will Win
Daniel James is one of the oldest fighters on the Bellator roster at 41 and made his debut at the age of 40 years but he quickly showed that age is just a number by knocking out two heavyweight prospects in each of his last two fights. He is one of the tallest heavyweights on the roster as well standing in at 6'6″ with an 80″ reach showing that he will have a decent height and reach advantage in this fight.
James has the ability to mix things up with his powerful strikes on the feet to the cage and clinch work to slow down his opponent. Being able to do that will serve him well against an experienced striker in Gokhan Saricam. We've seen Saricam struggle mightily on the mat in each of his two losses in Bellator so James' best path to victory is to get this fight to the mat and go to work.
Why Gokhan Saricam Will Win
Gokhan Saricam is one of the better strikers in the heavyweight division. For someone as big as he is, he moves around very well on the feet and has exceptional striking abilities. He mixes it up between boxing and leg kicks to keep his opponents guessing as they try to enter range to get ahold of him.
As we saw in his last fight against Popov, he didn't want to fight at a distance against Saricam as he was far too skilled for him in those regards. He should make it very hard on James as long as he is able to stay on the outside and pepper him with strikes as he tries to get within range to take him to the mat.
Final Daniel James-Gokhan Saricam Prediction & Pick
This should be a slow-paced striking affair between these two heavyweight contenders. If this fight doesn't hit the mat Saricam has a fairly large advantage on the feet fighting at his range. He is way more versatile with his strikes and should be able to avoid the wild power shots that James possesses. As long as Saricam can keep his back off the cage and off the mat he should be able to outstrike James to either a late finish or unanimous decision victory.
Final Daniel James-Gokhan Saricam Prediction & Pick: Gokhan Saricam ( -122)
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