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Bellator 247 Odds, Picks & Betting Preview – Jackson vs Kielholtz

Cole Shelton

by Cole Shelton in Mixed Martial Arts News

Updated Mar 8, 2021 · 11:24 AM PST

LFA
during a UFC 249 mixed martial arts bout Saturday, May 9, 2020, in Jacksonville, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
  • Bellator holds their first event in Milan, Italy on October 1st since moving to CBS Sports
  • Kate Jackson vs. Denise Kielholtz promoted to the main event on just 24 hours notice
  • See the odds, picks, and betting preview for the full Bellator 247 main card

Bellator is officially on CBS Sports and will start regularly holding events on Thursday night and the first one goes down on Oct. 1 in Milan, Italy.

In the main event, former Bellator flyweight title challenger and The Ultimate Fighter Season 23 competitor, Kate Jackson takes on Denise Kielholtz. The co-main event features undefeated Hungarian prospect, Norbert Novenyi Jr. vs Laid Zerhouni.

Bellator 247 main card airs live on CBS Sports at 4 PM EST. Let’s take a look at the odds for this event and which bets I’m targeting.

Bellator 247 Main Card Odds

Fighter Odds
Kate Jackson -110
Denise Kielholtz -110
Fighter Odds
Norbert Novenyi Jr. -700
Laid Zerhouni +500
Fighter Odds
Brian Moore -213
Simone D’Anna +183
Fighter Odds
Chris Duncan -215
Iamik Furtado +185

All Odds Taken Oct. 1

Will Kielholtz Earn a Title Shot With a Win?

This is a really good step up in competition for Denise Kieholtz to see if she is among the elite fighters in Bellator’s women’s flyweight division. Kate Jackson just fought for the belt against Ilima-Lei MacFarlane and had some success in the fight.

The fight was also promoted to the main event on Wednesday after Paul Daley was hospitalized due to a bad weight cut.

Jackson & Kielholtz Recent Fights

Jackson
VS
Kielholtz
Ilima-Lei MacFarlos, loss by decision Fight 1 Kristian Williams, win by submission
Lena Ovchynnikova, win by TKO Fight 2 Sabriye Sengul, win by submission
Anastasia Yankova, win by decision Fight 3 Bryony Tyrell, win by TKO
Valerie Letourneau, loss by decision Fight 4 Veta Arteaga, loss by submission

This is a great matchup but it is no doubt disappointing for Bellator to have this as the main event for their first event on CBS Sports. Although Jackson might be known to MMA fans due to her appearance on TUF, Kielholtz is someone that is surprisingly unknown to the casual audience.

YouTube video

The fight really comes down to – can Kielholtz get Jackson down. The Dutch’s gameplan is to take this fight to the mat and look for the submission, even though she has a kickboxing background. However, Jackson has solid takedown defense and even jiu-jitsu wizard in MacFarlane couldn’t get the submission win.

Expect Jackson to stuff the takedowns, while using her height and reach advantage to piece up Kielholtz on the feet en route to a decision win. Jackson has proven herself among the best in Bellator and Kielholtz isn’t on that level just yet. At -110, I think that is a great price to play the Englishman straight up.

Pick: Kate Jackson (-110)

Jackson vs Kielholtz Stats

Jackson
VS
Missing Team
34 Age 31
5’8″ Height 5’3″
67″ Reach 66″
2 Bellator finishes 4

Can Zerhouni Pull off the Massive Upset?

There is no question this fight is setup for Norbert Novenyi Jr. to get another win and remain undefeated as Bellator looks to build him up.

Novenyi Jr. & Zerhouni Recent Fights

Novenyi Jr.
VS
Zerhouni
Will Fleury, win by decision Fight 1 Souhaib Dahmani, win by submission
William Lavine, win by submission Fight 2 Felix Klinkhammer, loss by submission
Mehmet Yueksel, win by submission Fight 3 Nayed Hezam, win by TKO
Ben Reeve, win by submission Fight 4 Cedric Severac, win by submission

This fight should end quickly and be another stoppage win for the highly-touted Hungarian prospect. Zerhouni is simply not on his level and has not fought great competition.

Expect Novenyi Jr. to take Zerhouni down early and land some ground and pound shots. Novyeni Jr. will eventually sink in a choke to earn a first-round submission win. Although he is -700, he really should be a -1000 so you could throw him in a parlay with Brian Moore and Chris Duncan who I also like.

Pick: Norbert Novenyi Jr. (-700)

Other Bellator 247 Picks:

  • Brian Moore (-213): As I mentioned above I think a parlay of Novenyi Jr., Moore, and Duncan is solid. Moore should be able to win this fight standing or on the ground. Expect him to finish it as well.
  • Chris Duncan (-215): Just like Novenyi Jr., this is a setup fight for Duncan to remain undefeated with another stoppage win.
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