UFC 252 *The leans below will not count to my stats here in this thread. Follow or fade, it's up to you!LOSS - Take
JOHN DODSON over Merab Dvalishvili (10:10p.m., Saturday, August 15th)
Next up in the bantamweight division, we have a matchup between John Dodson (21-11) and Merab Dvalishvilii (11-4). The UFC have been using John Dodson as a gatekeeper of sorts for some time now, and Dodson has made it clear publicly how disrespected that has made him feel. He was matched up against up and comer Nathaniel Wood back in February and came out with the KO win. It seems as though John has some of that confidence back which lead to him being one of the elite fighters in the division, and that will be put to the test on Saturday night when he faces off against Merab Dvalishvili who is on a 4-fight winning streak. Merab has good wrestling and looks to outwork and out grind his opponents. He's able to out-grapple and win rounds in most instances with ease, but his most recent performances are playing into the price here. Dodson has outstanding takedown defense including solid cardio. Merab has also not impressed us much on the feet and is very hittable, which could be problematic against a supreme power hitter like Dodson. This is a fight which in all honesty, feels like a coin flip. For that reason, there is tremendous value on Dodson at +205.
WIN - Take
DANIEL PINEDA over Herbert Burns (10:35p.m., Saturday, August 15th)
Kicking off the PPV at UFC 252, we have a featherweight matchup between Daniel Pineda (26-13) and Herbert Burns (11-2). This is a fight, and a situational spot we love to take advantage of. Herbert Burns is the more known fighter. He is the brother of welterweight championship contender Gilbert Burns and has been getting all the public attention since entering the UFC in 2019 which he has responded to by finishing his first 3 opponents. Burns is a high-level black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and showed that off in his recent win where he submitted Evan Dunham. The average bettor will not really know much about Daniel Pineda on the other hand. While we have seen many talks about how it will be Pineda's UFC debut, it should be noted he has quite a bit of UFC experience. He debuted for the organization back in 2012 but had an underwhelming 3-5 record before being released. Like Burns - Pineda is also a high-level black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and has an impressive 18 wins by submission. It would seem as though Burns is the "better black belt" as he has never lost by submission, nor been in any danger in that department. While this may be true, there is simply not enough evidence of this. Pineda is the far more experienced mixed martial artist and we expect this to play out a lot more evenly than the current odds suggest. This fight should play out on the ground and we will learn a lot about both fighters, but there are too many questions surrounding the actual ability of Herbert Burns.
LOSS - Take
JUNIOR DOS SANTOS over Jairzinho Rozenstruik (11:00p.m., Saturday, August 15th)
Next up we have a matchup in the heavyweight division between Junior Dos Santos (21-7) and Jairzinho Rozenstruik (10-1). Intriguing and exciting fight! Both fighters will be pushing extra hard for a win here as Dos Santos has lost his last two and is looking to avoid a three fight skid for the first time in his career, while Jairzinho will want to come back strong after being knocked out by Francis Ngannou and prove that he is still a contender for the belt. Rozenstruik is a very high-level kickboxer with a professional record of 76-8, with 64 of those wins coming by KO! However, we must remember this is MMA, and not kickboxing. When it comes to MMA there is little debating who is the more well-rounded fighter - and that is Junior Dos Santos. JDS should be able to use his speed, movement, and solid boxing ability to pepper Jairzinho from the outside. In our opinion, this really comes down to if Dos Santos can avoid the knockout blow which will be hauled his way. If he can, he should be able to out-volume and out-work Rozenstruik. We cannot pass up this much value on the more proven, talented mixed martial artist that has more ways to win. There is no doubt he's a little "over the hill" and potentially on a steep decline, but value is value.
WIN - Take
MARLON VERA over Sean O'Malley ((11:25p.m., Saturday, August 15th)
In the co-main event of the evening we have a bantamweight matchup between Marlon Vera (17-6) and up and coming undefeated sensation, Sean O'Malley (12-0). The UFC is putting a ton of promotional and marketing dollars into Sean O'Malley. They are pushing for this kid to be a star, and he has looked very impressive in the UFC thus far which is helping build a huge fanbase. There is no doubt that O'Malley has tremendous potential. He is loaded with talent and has the charisma to match. He has unorthodox striking, throws combinations at lightning speed, and always remains confident and loose. He creates angles and finds holes in his opponents' games which shows technical ability far beyond his years. The only question mark around Sean O'Malley is his resume and the level of competition he has faced. The UFC has set him up to look good, and it has worked out so far, but eventually when you keep winning, you will come across a legitimate contender who will test your true ability. This is where Marlon Vera comes in. Vera is a high skilled fighter that is flying under the radar. He has a long frame and has been on an absolute tear as of late. Although his record indicates he lost his last fight to Song Yadong, most would agree (including us) that he won that fight and lost a poor judging decision. If not for that loss, Vera would be on a six-fight winning streak right now. The consensus is that we will see yet another impeccable performance from Sean O'Malley as he moves up in the rankings. Well - not so fast. Vera may not be as impressive in the striking department as O'Malley, but he does have an incredible gas tank with a serious "dog fight" bully attitude, and this is how he will need to approach this fight. Vera can bully O'Malley and if he can get inside and not get caught watching like many others have, he could find himself wearing on Sean and securing takedowns as the fight progresses. That is an unproven area in O'Malleys game, and even if Vera is unable to get this to the ground, it should allow him time on the feat considering the threat is always there. We still do not know how good O'Malley really is. He could be the next big thing! But then again, he may not. Vera will absolutely be the one to fight through fire and test him for the whole three rounds. This line is too wide, and we expect Vera to at least show well here and make this an awfully close fight. The only reason we see this price is due to the huge popularity of Sean O'Malley. In all honesty, the recreational bettor and everyday fan would probably lay any price on O'Malley here. For this reason, we are getting tremendous value in a proven winner, who has fought at the higher level, for longer.