5 months agoMike Malott (10-1-1) will be fighting at home as he takes on Neil Magny on the main card of UFC 297 on Saturday in Toronto. Malott is coming off a submission win over Adam Fugitt back in June in Vancouver and will now get the first-ranked opponent of his UFC career. Despite being unranked, Malott is a massive favorite as DraftKings has him at a salary of $9,300 which is the second-highest on the card. In his three UFC fights, he's averaging 106.8 fantasy points per fight. Malott has only gone the distance once in his career, which was scored a draw.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoDricus Du Plessis (20-2) is set to fight for the middleweight title for the first time in the main event of UFC 297 on Saturday in Toronto. Du Plessis earned the title shot after scoring an upset TKO win over Robert Whittaker back in July. Despite being 6-0 in the UFC with five of those wins coming by stoppage, Du Plessis is the underdog as DraftKings has him at a salary of $8,000. In his UFC tenure, he's averaging 109.35 fantasy points per fight. Both of his career losses came by knockout.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoSean Strickland (28-5) scored one of the biggest upsets of 2023 as he beat Israel Adesanya to become the new middleweight champion. Strickland will now defend his belt for the first time against Dricus Du Plessis on Saturday night in the main event of UFC 297 in Toronto. Strickland enters the fight as a slight favorite as DraftKings has him at a salary of $8,200. In his UFC career, Strickland is averaging 78.2 fantasy points per fight. Strickland has won 10 of his 15 fights by decision while two of his five losses in the promotion came by knockout.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoMagomed Ankalaev Khalil picked up a second-round knockout win over Johnny Walker in the main event of UFC Vegas 84, serving as vindication for a fight that ended in a no-contest three months ago. The bout had significant implications for the light-heavyweight title picture. Ankalaev landed a right hook that dropped Walker to the mat. With Walker on his backside against the cage, Ankalaev landed an uppercut that broke Walker's nose. In 7:42 of action, Ankalaev landed 39 significant strikes, while Walker landed 24. It was the exclamation point that Ankalaev needed after the way the first fight ended. He's now undefeated in 11 straight fights, including a draw with Jan Blachowicz and the no-contest against Walker.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoJohnny Walker suffered a second-round knockout loss to Magomed Ankalaev at UFC Vegas 84 on Saturday. The first meeting between Walker and Ankalaev took place back in October 2023 at UFC 294. The fight ended in the first round, following an illegal knee strike from Ankalaev. Once the second round began, Ankalaev found his rhythm and connected on a flush right hook that sent Walker flying into the cage. In 7:42 of action, Walker landed 24 significant strikes. With the loss, Walker's UFC record is 7-5.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoGabriel Benitez suffered a third-round submission loss to Jim Miller at UFC Vegas 84 on Saturday. Before this fight, Benitez was out of action for quite some time. His last fight took place in August 2022 where he scored a first-round knockout against Charlie Ontiveros. The fight was competitive as both fighters had their moments. As the fight progressed, Miller pushed the pace and eventually managed to get to Benitez's back, submitting Benitez via neck crank. In 13:25 of action, Benitez landed 80 significant strikes. With the loss, Benitez's UFC record is 7-7.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoPhil Hawes suffered his third-straight knockout loss at UFC Vegas 84 on Saturday, as he was KO'd by Brunno Ferreira in the first round. Hawes was coming off a KO loss to Ikram Aliskerov and before that, was knocked out by Roman Dolidze. Hawes decided to stand with Ferreira and got caught with a flying knee which the Brazilian followed up with punches to knock him out with five seconds left in the first round. With the loss, Hawes dropped to 12-6 as a pro and is now 4-4 in the UFC with all four of his losses coming by knockout, while also being on a three-fight losing streak.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoBrunno Ferreira rebounded from his first career loss in a big way at UFC Vegas 84. Ferreira was coming off a first-round knockout loss to Nursulton Ruziboev back in July after he KO'd Gregory Rodrigues in his debut. On Saturday, Ferreira was taking on Phil Hawes, in a fight he was a small favorite in. The Brazilian ended up landing a flying knee to punches that knocked Hawes out with five seconds left in the first round. With the KO win, Ferreira improved to 2-1 in the UFC and 11-1 overall with all 12 of his professional fights ending by stoppage.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoRicky Simon dropped a one-sided decision to Mario Bautista at UFC Vegas 84, which was his second straight defeat. Simon was coming off a TKO loss to Song Yadong in his first main event and then took on the unranked Bautista on Saturday. Simon entered the fight as the favorite, but he struggled to get Bautista down. Simon went 2-for-13 on takedowns and was outstruck 118-to-52. With the loss, Simon will likely fight someone outside of the rankings once again as he looks to snap his two-fight losing streak.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoMario Bautista scored a clear-cut decision win over Ricky Simon at UFC Vegas 84 on Saturday. Bautista entered the fight as the underdog, as he was unranked and getting a shot at a top-15 opponent in Simon. Bautista was able to keep the fight standing, as Simon went 2-for-13 on takedowns, and on the feet, the unranked bantamweight landed the better shots. When the final bell rang, Bautista outstruck Simon 118-to-52 to win the clear-cut decision. With the win, Bautista will now enter the bantamweight rankings.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoJim Miller improved to 37-17 and one no contest with a third-round submission win over Gabriel Benitez in the co-main event of UFC Vegas 84 on Saturday. Miller entered the fight as a small favorite and the bout was back-and-forth early on. Miller and Benitez both landed 32 significant strikes in the first round, but Miller took over in the second round, as he got his first takedown and had nearly three minutes of control. Finally, in the third round, Miller got Benitez down again and got the rear naked choke win.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoA title shot could be at stake on Saturday in the main event of UFC Vegas 84 when Johnny Walker takes on Magomed Ankalaev. The No Contest in his last fight against Ankalaev, at UFC 294 interrupted a three-fight winning streak for Johnny Walker, which included victories over Anthony Smith, Paul Craig, and Ion Cutelaba. DraftKings sees Walker as the underdog with a salary of $6,800. He averages 68.5 fantasy points per contest throughout 11 UFC bouts. Walker's professional record is 21-7 and he's won 19 by stoppage.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoMagomed Ankalaev is set to face Johnny Walker in a main event of UFC Vegas 84 on Saturday. This light heavyweight bout is a rematch of the clash that took place at UFC 294 in October. It was that event's only disappointing fight, as it was stopped due to an accidental but illegal knee strike from Ankalaev which rendered Walker unable to continue, leading to a declaration of No Contest. Ankalaev is unbeaten over his past 11 octagon appearances, including wins over Anthony Smith, Volkan Oezdemir, and Thiago Santos. He fought to a split draw with Jan Blachowicz in a shot at the vacant UFC light heavyweight title. DraftKings sees Ankalaev as the favorite with a salary of $9,400. He averages 83.1 fantasy points per contest throughout 11 UFC bouts.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoMatheus Nicolau and Manel Kape will rematch at UFC Vegas 84 in Las Vegas after their controversial split-decision bout in March 2021. Nicolau comes into this fight on the back of a defeat at the hands of Brandon Royval, which ended his four-match winning streak in the UFC. Nicolau's recent loss to Royval will likely prevent a title shot, particularly given the upcoming Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi match-up. But a victory against Kape, who is one of the biggest names in the division, would put him on the right path to being one of the candidates to receive a title shot. DraftKings sees Nicolau as the underdog with a salary of $7,200. He averages 67.7 fantasy points per contest throughout nine UFC bouts.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoThis weekend, UFC flyweights Manel Kape (19-6) and Matheus Nicolau will rematch at UFC Vegas 84 inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. Kape will look to avenge a split decision loss dating back to 2021. He has amassed a four-fight winning streak since suffering the loss and has gained quite a lot of momentum in the division. This bout could decide the next flyweight title contender. DraftKings sees Kape as the favorite with a salary of $9,000 on Saturday. Throughout his UFC career of six bouts, Kape averages 76.9 fantasy points per contest.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
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