This weekend’s best bets features UFC 288 and of course, the return of the biggest PPV star in boxing today, Canelo Alvarez. We also sprinkle in a little ONE Championship action for you to have a flutter on.
UFC 288 is upon us and we have got you covered for all your best bets. The main event sees bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling take on the returning former champ-champ, Henry Cejudo for the 135lbs strap. The co-main event is a welterweight clash between top five welterweights, Gilbert Burns and Belal Muhammad which could see the next #1 contender crowned. The rest of the main card is littered with ranked fighters as is the undercard in what is a strong card top to bottom.
UFC 288 Best Bets
Marina Rodriguez to Win via Decision
Marina Rodriguez is 6-2-2 in her UFC career thusfar and despite losing her last match-up, she’s still a dangerous prospect for anyone at 115lbs. We know she can out-point any opponent, which was certainly on show in her main event slots against both Mackenzie Dern and Michelle Waterson which both went the distance. With that being said, we know she also has power, which was on show against Amanda Ribas.
Virna Jandiroba is also dangerous finishing half of her UFC fights thusfar. With that being said, two have come via submission and one via injury. If Rodriguez can stop herself from being submitted by Dern, she should be able to survive with Jandiroba if the fight hits the floor.
With 13 submission victories across 18 wins, Jandiroba will be looking to get the fight to the floor, however, Rodriguez has a 65% takedown defence. She also knows how to fight long and can keep Jandiroba at bay for 15 minutes. Don’t expect her to take too many risks in this one as she’ll be looking to simply get back in the win column. Rodriguez via decision is the one to go with in this one.
Drew Dober vs. Matt Frevola – Under 2.5 rounds
Headlining the prelims is a lightweight banger between Drew Dober and Marr Frevola. Simply put, don’t blink. Both of these guys are vicious knockout artists with a combined 25 finishes across 36 wins. They’re both on winning, knockout runs finishing their combined last five opponents.
For Dober, he’s only seen the final bell once in his past nine fights and Frevola once in his last four. This is certainly trending towards both men putting it all on the line for as long as it lasts.
Expect a high-paced stand-up battle between two fringe top 15 lightweights fighting for a place in the rankings. A knockout, either way, is a logical pick in this one, but play it safe, back under 2.5 rounds and don’t expect to hear the final bell.
Charles Jourdain to win via Decision
Opening up the main card is a featherweight clash between the always-exciting, Charles Jourdain and the returning, Kron Gracie. Jourdain has been extremely active during his UFC career, making the walk 10 times in four years. The same cannot be said for his opponent, Gracie. The legendary name is what has got him on the main card, however, having competed just twice since 2016, it’s hard to argue that he’s passionate about the sport.
His credentials speak for themselves with multiple ADCC medals as well as plenty of big names on his resume, he’s a threat on the ground, however, as he showed against Cub Swanson in his last fight, if he can’t get the fight to the floor, his stand-up needs some work.
Jourdain on the other hand is a huge threat on the feet, however, like we hinted at with Rodriguez, don’t expect him to take too many risks and potentially be taken down by the BJJ ace.
Jourdain is highly experienced, going 15 full minutes with top featherweights Shane Burgos and Nathaniel Wood in his last two fights. Expect him to fight smart in this one, snap his losing streak and get the W after 15 minutes.
Canelo vs. Ryder
Canelo to win via KO/TKO rounds 6-9
Canelo Alvarez returns to Mexico this weekend to take on Brit, John Ryder for the WBA (Super), WBC, IBF, WBO and The Ring super-middleweight titles. It marks the first time that Canelo will be fighting in Mexico since 2011.
Expect him to win, especially as the fight is taking place in Mexico. With that being said, don’t expect a shootout early on. Ryder knows how to handle himself. Of his, five losses, only one has come via TKO and that was in the seventh round.
Canelo will want to soak up the atmosphere, enjoy the moment and ultimately put on a show for his home fans. But rest assured, he won’t go the full 12 rounds. A KO/TKO between rounds 6 and nine is a solid choice in this one.
ONE Fight Night 10
Rodtang via TKO/KO
ONE Championship makes their US debut on Friday with ONE Fight Night 10. The co-main event sees phenom, Rodtang Jitmuangnon take on the debuting, Edgar Juarez Tabares. It’s a bit of a shame that we couldn’t get a bigger name for Rodtang, but it is what it is as Max Holloway would say and one thing is for sure, expect the 25 year old Thai native to look to entertain the US fans. A logical bet would be Rodtang via TKO/KO.
