2 weeks agoDanny Roberts (18-6) will hope to avoid back-to-back losses on Saturday, but he will have to do so against a very dangerous knockout artist in Jack Della Maddalena. Roberts is 7-5 in the UFC and three of his last five bouts have ended in defeat, with two of them coming via finishes, a dangerous ingredient stepping into the Octagon with a fighter like Maddalena. DraftKings sees Roberts as the night's biggest underdog with a salary of $6,600. Throughout his UFC career, Roberts averages 54.4 fantasy points per contest. Maddalena has proven to be a dangerous finisher, and this looks to be another matchup for him to continue his climb.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: UFC

2 weeks agoLooking to remain undefeated in the UFC since his Contender Series victory, Jack Della Maddalena (12-2) will face another tough task in the form of Danny Roberts. Impressing since his Contender Series decision win, Maddalena has won both of his UFC bouts via the finish, including a liver shot that ended the night of Ramazan Emeev in the first round. A dangerous striker and finisher, 10 of his 12 career wins have come by the finish. DraftKings sees Maddalena as Saturday night's biggest favorite with a salary of $9,600. Throughout his UFC career, Maddalena averages 112.3 fantasy points per contest. Roberts is looking to rebound from a loss.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: UFC

2 weeks agoThe reign of dominant middleweight champion Israel Adesanya has come to a temporary end after his fifth-round TKO loss to rival Alex Pereira in the main event of UFC 281 on Saturday. Though he was up on the judges' scorecards 3-1 heading into the fifth and final round, Pereira used his superior striking game to earn a TKO stoppage after several unanswered strikes to Adesanya against the cage. It would not be a surprise for us to see an immediate rematch of these two fighters.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

2 weeks agoProven to be the kryptonite of Israel Adesanya, Alex Pereira captured the UFC's middleweight championship in the main event of UFC 281 on Saturday via fifth-round TKO. In just his eighth career MMA bout, Pereira now sits on top of the UFC throne. In 22:01 of action, Pereira out-struck Adesanya by landing 91 significant strikes (140 total strikes). Down 3-1 on every judges' scorecard, Pereira needed something big, and he got just that with a TKO stoppage. It would not be a surprise if we see a rematch between these two fighters in the near future.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

2 weeks agoThe second reign of Carla Esparza as strawweight champion did not last as long as she would have liked, as she suffered a second-round submission in her first title defense against another former champion in Weili Zhang on Saturday. In 6:05 of action, Esparza only tallied six significant strikes (19 total strikes), but some of her strikes were finding the mark in the first round. After being rocked in the second round while shooting in for a takedown, Esparza gave up her back, thus giving up her championship after a rear-naked choke was locked in.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

2 weeks agoOur first of two title changes on Saturday night came in the co-main event, where former champion Weili Zhang recaptured her UFC strawweight title from Carla Esparza via second-round rear-naked choke at UFC 281. In 6:00 of action, Zhang collected 37 significant strikes (42 total strikes), dominating in that statistical category. After hurting the champion with a big right hand in the second round, Esparza charged in for a takedown, but Zhang locked in the fight-ending submission to recapture the championship.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

2 weeks agoAfter a potential first round of the year, Michael Chandler was unable to score off of his second-round performance and suffered a third-round submission loss to Dustin Poirier on the main card of UFC 281 on Saturday. In 12:00 of action, Chandler actually out-struck Poirier by landing 43 significant strikes (65 total strikes) and landed three of his seven takedown tries. After a solid second round against the former champion, Chandler gave up his back to the BJJ black belt and had his night ended with a rear-naked choke. Chandler now moves to 2-3 in the UFC.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

2 weeks agoThe Diamond continues to shine as Dustin Poirier earned a huge victory over another top-ranked lightweight in Michael Chandler on Saturday by securing a third-round submission via rear-naked choke. In 12:00 of total action, Poirier tallied 38 significant strikes (63 total strikes) while being slightly out-struck by Chandler. After a barn-burner of a first round, Chandler looked to take the second round before Poirier secured Chandler's back in the third to lock in the rear-naked choke. Poirier has now won four of his last five fights, with his lone loss coming in a title matchup with Charles Oliveira.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

2 weeks agoNo doubt a future Hall of Famer with 30 UFC bouts (18-11-1), former UFC champion Frankie Edgar hung up his gloves after a first-round knockout loss to Chris Gutierrez on the main card of UFC 281 on Saturday. A perfectly timed knee was all it took to put out the former champion. Edgar has had quite the career, debuting with the UFC in 2007 at UFC 67.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

2 weeks agoEarning his fourth straight win since a draw and improving to 7-1-1 in the UFC, Chris Gutierrez earned the biggest victory of his career by knocking out former champion Frankie Edgar in the first frame of action on Saturday. In 2:01 of total action, Gutierrez tallied 10 significant strikes while only absorbing two strikes, showing to be the much more dominant and quicker fighter. A perfectly timed knee by Gutierrez ended the night (as well as the career) of Edgar, who would go on to retire after the fight.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

2 weeks agoUnable to earn his sixth straight victory in the Octagon, Claudio Puelles suffered a second-round TKO loss via body kicks to Dan Hooker in the main-card opener of UFC 281 on Saturday. In 9:06 of total action, Puelles only tallied five total strikes. He did attempt eight takedowns and missed on every single attempt. Puelles was just unable to adapt to Hooker's ability to prevent him from moving the bout to the ground.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

2 weeks agoOn a main card full of finishes, Dan Hooker returned to his winning ways by securing a second-round TKO via body kick against Claudio Puelles to open up the main card of UFC 281 on Saturday. In 9:06 of action, Hooker tallied 29 significant strikes (37 total strikes) while only absorbing five total strikes. Hooker continues to show that he deserves to be in the conversation as one of the top lightweights in the world. The victory also ends Hooker's losing skid and stops Puelles' winning streak in its tracks.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: ESPN

3 weeks agoMiddleweight king Israel Adesanya (23-1) will look to remain just that when he faces a personal demon in the form of Alex Pereira in the main event of UFC 281 on Saturday. Both meetings between the two in the world of kickboxing have ended with Pereira coming out victorious, including a highlight-reel knockout. In the world of MMA, though, Adesanya has been dominant, posting a 12-1 record, with that lone loss coming to light-heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz. DraftKings sees Adesanya as the favorite with a salary of $8,600. Throughout his UFC career, Adesanya averages 83.0 fantasy points per contest. The third time looks to be the charm for the champion as they meet in a whole different world of MMA.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: UFC

3 weeks agoIt's not often you come across a matchup where the opponent has the dominant champion's number, but that is the situation we find ourselves in heading into the main event of UFC 281 on Saturday. Challenger Alex Pereira (6-1) is set to challenge dominant middleweight champion Israel Adesanya for the first time in MMA. In the world of kickboxing, Pereira has won both of the meetings, including a highlight-reel knockout. It's no surprise that five of Pereira's six professional wins have come by way of knockout/TKO. DraftKings sees the challenger as the underdog with a salary of $7,600. Throughout his UFC career, Pereira averages 94.8 fantasy points per contest. MMA is a different game than the standup world of boxing or kickboxing.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: UFC

3 weeks agoAfter losing her strawweight championship by first-round knockout and being unsuccessful in her bid to reclaim it in a rematch, Weili Zhang (22-3) will get another chance to regain her crown when she meets Carla Esparza in the co-main event of UFC 281 this Saturday. A dangerous finisher in the strawweight ranks, 18 of her 22 career wins have come by the finish, with 11 of them coming via knockout/TKO, including her most recent victory -- a second-round TKO via spinning back fist in June. DraftKings sees Zhang regaining her crown as one of the night's biggest favorites with a salary of $9,400. Throughout her UFC career, Zhang averages 92.2 fantasy points per contest. Esparza has proven to be a tricky test, and it will hinge a lot on which version appears in the Octagon to face the hungry challenger.--Matt Bricker - RotoBallerSource: UFC