UFC 301: Pantoja vs Erceg heads to Rio de Janeiro this Saturday. A flyweight main event is on tap, with the champion Alexandre Pantoja defending against one of the fastest-rising contenders in history, Steven Erceg. The main event is going to be a banger, but we dug deeper into the card as well to give you all our UFC 301 best bets. Come check out these UFC 301 picks and tail along.
Go here for more UFC picks!
UFC 301: Pantoja vs Erceg – Predictions & Best Bets
Alexandre Pantoja ML (-180) vs. Steven Erceg
I don’t always like jumping out on the moneyline of a title fight, but I think this is an example of the public riding the hype just a bit too much. While I agree that the Erceg narrative is such a fun one, the stylistic clash here is going to be a touchy one for him. Pantoja is particularly hard to counter in the grappling and is smart defensively. Those two things should keep him in that advantageous position with a chance to even score a stoppage.
Iasmin Lucindo vs Karolina Kowalkiewicz – Fight Goes to Decision (-175)
Iasmin Lucindo is coming off of a submission win, which just might be skewing this number. However, all three of her fights prior hit the judges score cards. On the other side of things, 16 of Kowalkiewicz’s 23 fights have hit the scorecards in her career. That includes each of the last three.
Drakkar Klose ML (-185) vs Joaquim Silva
I truly believe that Drakkar Klose is one of the most underrated lightweights in the world, and I’ll continue to beat that drum. He was inches away from finishing Beneil Dariush – a fight that would have made it seven straight otherwise. His wrestling is sharp and when he’s comfortable, he throws bombs. Silva has been KOed in two of his last three losses – which come in his last five fights. This one should be tailor-made for Klose.
Myktybek Orolbai – Wins Inside the Distance (+200)
Elves Brenner seems to be in trouble in just about every fight—right up until the moment he pulls it out. The difference here is that Myktybek Orolbai is the type of fighter who doesn’t let you off the hook. His wrestling and submission game is deadly, and he showed it on short notice against Uros Medic. Plus, we saw in his time in LFA that he also has the hands to put people away.
Vinc Pichel ML (+400) vs Ismael Bonfim
Pichel is being underrated here because he’s on the wrong side of 40, but he hasn’t fought like someone who is. He’s won three of his last four fights, largely by relying on his wrestling game. The only fight he had issues with was when an Olympic wrestler took control of that avenue of the fight. Now he faces Ismael Bonfim, who was utterly dominated in the wrestling last time out and has just a 28% takedown percentage. That is worth a roll of the dice at this number.
Muaricio Ruffy – Wins via (T)KO (+100)
The UFC newcomer from the Fighting Nerds gym has recorded every one of his nine professional wins by way of knockout. The UFC seems interested in finding him another as he faces Jamie Mullarkey. Mullarkey has been KOed five times in his career, including each of his last three losses.
If you’d like even more UFC 301: Pantoja vs Erceg Picks, be sure to check out the MMA Gambling Podcast. The guys are dropping weekly episodes to make you the smartest guy at the bar.
