Neiman Gracie and Logan Storley square off in the main event this Saturday at Bellator 274, a battle of top-five welterweights. Gracie is looking to build some momentum after splitting his last four fights–but that will be an extremely difficult task against Storley, who needs to piece together a winning streak in order to get another shot at Yaroslav Amosov.
Here is a breakdown of the bout:
Who has the advantage?
Neiman Gracie has a submission-oriented offense and a lineage like few others. Coming off a TKO finish in September against Mark Lemminger–the first TKO of his MMA career–he had a disappointing loss last April to Jason Jackson. Gracie (11-2) enters this bout as the favorite, but all signs point to this being a breakout moment for Logan Storley.
A victory for Storley (12-1) would help propel him even further in the division. He went the distance in November of 2020 against Amosov, who won by split decision–and then went on to defeat Douglas Lima in his next fight to win the middleweight title. Storley needs a convincing victory to put himself in line for a title shot, and he will do that if he makes Gracie tap out.
Gracie is going to struggle if he can’t get Storley’s back. Storley is an elite wrestler, and submitting Gracie would be a major addition to his highlight reel.
Erin Bormett/Argus Leader-Imagn Content Services, LLC
Will this go the distance?
Neither of these fighters have much history going deep into the championship rounds.
Storley has never fought more than three rounds. Gracie had one bout enter the fourth round (a 2018 submission victory against Ed Ruth), as well as one that went a full five rounds (a unanimous decision defeat in 2019 to Rory McDonald), so it isn’t exactly as though he is swimming in experience when it comes to going 25 minutes.
This won’t go the distance, either. These are two fighters headed in different directions. Storley is the better wrestler, and he is also going to take Gracie’s No. 4 ranking after he wins this fight.
The pick
Storley by submission, putting himself in the thick of the title picture.
More MMA Coverage:
• The Weekly Takedown: Brennan Ward's Endless Fight Against Addiction
• Mandel ‘Rat Garbage’ Nallo Explains Origin of Nickname
Justin Barrasso can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.
