MMASucka staff picks are slowly reaching its closure of 2020. Last night, November 12 saw Bellator 252 take place at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut. The main card began at 7:00pm ET (4:00pm PT) live on CBS Sports Network.
Stay tuned tomorrow for our UFC on ESPN+ 41 staff picks.
The Fights
Back in June, the promotion’s Featherweight World Grand Prix was put on hold due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Last night, the quarter-finals resumed with a main event between current champion Patricio Pitbull and challenger Pedro Carvalho. Two-time 145-pound champion Pitbull looked for his fourth current and six overall defense of the title, most recently defeating Juan Archuleta in the Grand Prix’s opening round. The Brazilian phenom also holds the lightweight belt having defeated the former king of Michael Chandler with a blistering fast knockout. Pitbull’s opponent, Carvalho, targeted his fifth straight Bellator victory and the championship at just 25 years of age. The growing star’s advancement in the tournament came with an impressive second-round submission over Sam Sicilia last year.
The fourth and final quarter-final fight of the Grand Prix fell in the co-main event between Emmanuel Sanchez and Daniel Weichel. The pairing came as a rematch, the two having faced off in July of 2016 with Weichel taking a split decision. Sanchez looked to back up his submission over the previously undefeated Tywan Claxton while Weichel aimed for his second straight following his decision over SBG Manchester’s Saul Rogers. The winner of Sanchez and Weichel will take on the winner of the main event between Pitbull and Carvalho at a later date.
Due to the main card consisting of only three fights, a fight between Aaron Pico and John de Jesus had been added to our picks. Check out our remaining MMASucka staff picks for Bellator 252 further below.
Staff Picks
Throughout the remainder of the year, staff picks will be composed of two different MMA promotions: UFC and Bellator. As of September 25th, the events of ONE and RIZIN will no longer be counted for our picks (including a recent deduction of the last two RIZIN cards from our records). With the cancellation of PFL for 2020, this promotion will be excluded as well.
Main cards will makeup both UFC and Bellator picks. The WINNER of staff picks will have a choice between receiving a championship belt from ProAmBelts or a championship chain from Championship Chains. The 2019 winner was awarded to Michael DeSantis, compiling a record of 321-178. Second-place Connor Deitrich collected a close score of 319-180 with third-place Ed Gallo not far behind totaling at 312-183.
See our staff picks from Bellator 252: Pitbull vs. Carvalho below.
Staff Records after UFC on ESPN+ 40:
1. Michael DeSantis: 179-75
2. Connor Deitrich: 174-80
3. Wesley Riddle: 166-83
4. Dan Rose: 156-99
5T. Jeremy Brand: 155-91
5T. Jack Buchanan: 155-77
7T. Frazer Krohn: 154-101
7T. Nate Freeman: 154-97
9. Mike Lynch: 152-88
10. Ash Camyab: 148-107
11T. Matt Bricker: 136-90
11T. Andrew Benjamin: 136-113
13. McKenzie Guardiero: 126-101
14. Ryan Hobbs: 95-64
15. Ashwin Viswanathan: 83-51
16. Mike Skytte: 67-45
17. Mitchell Banuelos: 64-39
18. Joshua Yule: 55-28
19. Ed Gallo: 54-27
20. Jeremy Cook: 14-6
*Note: not all staff pick for every event*
Aaron Pico (6-3) vs. John de Jesus (13-8)
Jeremy Brand: Pico via Round 1 TKO
Wesley Riddle: Pico via Round 1 TKO
Michael DeSantis: Pico via Round 2 TKO
Connor Deitrich: de Jesus via Round 3 TKO
Ash Camyab: Pico via Round 2 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Pico via Round 1 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Pico via Round 2 TKO
Dan Rose: Pico via Round 1 TKO
Mike Lynch: Pico via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Pico via Round 1 TKO
Jack Buchanan: Pico via Round 1 TKO
Staff picking Pico: 10
Staff picking de Jesus: 1
Yaroslav Amosov (24-0) vs. Logan Storley (11-0)
Jeremy Brand: Storley via UD
Wesley Riddle: Storley via SD
Michael DeSantis: Amosov via UD
Connor Deitrich: Amosov via Round 2 TKO
Ash Camyab: Amosov via UD
Andrew Benjamin: Amosov via UD
Frazer Krohn: Storley via SD
Dan Rose: Amosov via Round 1 TKO
Mike Lynch: Amosov via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Amosov via UD
Jack Buchanan: Amosov via UD
Staff picking Amosov: 8
Staff picking Storley: 3
Daniel Weichel (40-11) vs. Emmanuel Sanchez (19-4)
Jeremy Brand: Weichel via UD
Wesley Riddle: Weichel via UD
Michael DeSantis: Sanchez via UD
Connor Deitrich: Sanchez via UD
Ash Camyab: Sanchez via UD
Andrew Benjamin: Sanchez via UD
Frazer Krohn: Sanchez via UD
Dan Rose: Sanchez via UD
Mike Lynch: Sanchez via UD
Nate Freeman: Sanchez via SD
Jack Buchanan: Sanchez via UD
Staff picking Weichel: 2
Staff picking Sanchez: 9
Patricio Pitbull (30-4) vs. Pedro Carvalho (11-3)
Jeremy Brand: Pitbull via UD
Wesley Riddle: Pitbull via Round 3 SUB
Michael DeSantis: Pitbull via Round 2 TKO
Connor Deitrich: Pitbull via Round 1 TKO
Ash Camyab: Pitbull via Round 2 TKO
Andrew Benjamin: Pitbull via Round 2 TKO
Frazer Krohn: Pitbull via Round 3 TKO
Dan Rose: Pitbull via Round 1 TKO
Mike Lynch: Carvalho via Round 2 TKO
Nate Freeman: Pitbull via Round 3 TKO
Jack Buchanan: Pitbull via Round 3 TKO
Staff picking Pitbull: 10
Staff picking Carvalho: 1
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