Bellator 236 predictions: Will anyone pick against Ilima-Lei Macfarlane in Hawaii?

	Macfarlane vs. Jackson	Campos vs. McKee	Jackson vs. Kunimoto	Ellen vs. Velasquez	Leailoha vs. Stots	Dung vs. Zane
MMA Junkie readers’ consensus picks 2019: 210-125 (63%)	Macfarlane (xx%)	McKee (xx%)	Kunimoto (xx%)	Velasquez (xx%)	Stots (xx%)	Dung (xx%)
Simon Head @simonhead 2019: 127-66 (66%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Nolan King @mma_kings 2019: 121-67 (64%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Dan Tom @DanTomMMA 2019: 215-120 (64%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Ken Hathaway @kenshathaway 2019: 214-121 (64%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Brian Garcia @thegoze 2019: 214-121 (64%) 2017 Champion	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
John Morgan @MMAjunkieJohn 2019: 212-123 (63%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Simon Samano @SJSamano 2019: 210-125 (63%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Kunimoto	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Mike Bohn @MikeBohnMMA 2019: 207-128 (62%) 2014 Champion	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
George Garcia @MMAjunkieGeorge 2019: 206-129 (61%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Farah Hannoun @Farah_Hannoun 2019: 110-72 (60%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Abbey Subhan @kammakaze 2019: 201-134 (60%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Kunimoto	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Dave Doyle @davedoylemma 2019: 137-106 (56%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Kunimoto	Velasquez	Stots	Dung
Matt Erickson @MMAjunkieMatt 2019: 175-160 (52%)	Macfarlane	McKee	Jackson	Velasquez	Stots	Dung

Bellator is back in Hawaii for a doubleheader weekend for the second straight December.

Bellator 236 takes place Saturday at Neal S. Blaisdell Center in Honolulu. The main card streams on DAZN following prelims on MMA Junkie. Friday, the same venue hosts Bellator 235 (“Bellator and USO Present: Salute the Troops 2019”), an event exclusively for military members stationed in Honolulu.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, women’s flyweight champion Ilima-Lei Macfarlane (10-0 MMA, 9-0 BMMA), a native of Hawaii who grew up in Honolulu, puts her title on the line against British challenger Kate Jackson (11-3-1 MMA, 3-1 BMMA). Macfarlane is a heavy favorite at the sports books with odds for her as high as 7-1. Not surprisingly, our 13 MMA Junkie editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers are taking the champ unanimously.

The co-main event is another unanimous pick from our staff members – one of five 13-0 blowouts on the main card. A.J. McKee (15-0 MMA, 15-0 BMMA) is as much as an 8-1 favorite in his fight against Derek Campos (20-9 MMA, 9-7 BMMA), which is a quarterfinal matchup in Bellator’s ongoing featherweight tournament.

Juliana Velasquez (9-0 MMA, 4-0 BMMA) will try to stay unbeaten when she takes on Bruna Ellen (5-2 MMA, 3-2 BMMA) in a women’s flyweight bout. Velasquez is more than a 4-1 favorite and one of our five unanimous picks.

Raufeon Stots (12-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) recently got a long-awaited call from a big-time promotion when Bellator brought him on board. Stots, who trains at Roufusport in Milwaukee, is a 7-1 favorite against local fighter Cheyden Leialoha (7-1 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), and he’s a 13-0 pick from our staff members.

The other unanimous pick goes to Nainoa Dung (3-0 MMA, 2-0 BMMA), who opens the main card against Zach Zane (13-9 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) in a lightweight fight. Dung, from Hawaii, made his Bellator debut a year ago in Honolulu and will try to repeat his success Saturday.

Our only contentious fight on the main card is between Jason Jackson (10-4 MMA, 1-1 BMMA) and Kiichi Kunimoto (20-8-2 MMA, 0-1 BMMA). Jackson stepped up on short notice when Neiman Gracie fell off the card earlier this week with an injury. He’s more than a 2-1 favorite, and even though it’s not unanimous, Jackson still has a massive 11-2 lead in the picks.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Macfarlane (95%), McKee (88 percent), Jackson (60 percent), Velasquez (81 percent), Stots (70 percent) and Dung (57 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.