UFC Des Moines: Sandhagen vs Figueiredo hits us from Iowa on Saturday. A pair of bantamweights look to get themselves back into the title picture in the main event. We’ll hit that fight and dig through the rest of the card to give you our UFC Des Moines best bets. Come check out these UFC Des Moines picks for Saturday.
Go here for more UFC picks!
UFC Des Moines: Sandhagen vs Figueiredo – Predictions & Best Bets
Sandhagen/Figueiredo – Fight Goes to Decision (-185)
It may not be the most exciting way to look at the main event, but it really does feel like this one is certain to go the length. Sandhagen has been to a decision in five of his last six fights – with the only outlier being a doctor stoppage. Figueiredo has been a decision machine as of late as well. He’s been to decision in three of his last four. Those runs aren’t likely to end against one another, so I like the cards in this one.
Marina Rodriguez ML (+240) vs. gillian robertson
Perhaps my favorite spot on this whole card is the moneyline on Rodriguez. She has looked so good on the feet, even in recent losses. She’s also shown excellent submission defense in her career – going five hard rounds with Mackenzie Dern and not losing a limb. Plus, we’ve seen Robertson struggle a bit to score a takedown in her career.
Nickal/de Ridder – Fight Goes to Decision (+140)
Bo Nickal and Reinier de Ridder both have the ability to finish a fight on the mats. However, we’ve also seen that Nickal is smart when it comes to fighting grapplers. When he faced Paul Craig, he refused to go to the ground and took a decision. If he didn’t want to go to the ground with Craig, I expect he’ll force a striking fight in this one at UFC Des Moines. And that should be reason enough to expect a decision.
Mason Jones – Wins via KO (+200)
Jeremy Stephens has been brought back to the UFC despite not fighting in MMA for nearly two and a half years. While the hometown boy is getting to fight in Iowa, that doesn’t mean he’s getting a good matchup here. Jones should be able to take him down and ground and pound him with ease – especially when you consider he’s just been boxing lately.
Ivana Petrovic ML (-230) vs Julianna Miller
Since the Ultimate Fighter Finale, Julianna Miller has stuggled with her grappling. She’s 0-5 in scoring takedowns and 0-4 in stuffing them. Now she’ll be returning after a long layoff and some injuries. That doesn’t sound like someone you want to back at UFC Des Moines.
Meanwhile, Petrovic has been good with her grappling and physicality in recent fights. She should dominate the positioning in this one and cruise to a win.
Thomas Peterson – Wins via KO (+400)
We always like to take a big swing at the end of these things, and I like the swing on Peterson. He’s won nine fights in his career and seven of them have been way of knockout. His opponent, Don’Tale Mayes, may not have lost many fights via KO, but he does have a history of struggling on the bottom of good wrestlers. This may be a great spot for another TKO via gound and pound at a big number.
If you’d like even more UFC Des Moines: Sandhagen vs Figueiredo bets, be sure to check out the MMA Gambling Podcast. The guys are dropping weekly episodes to make you the smartest guy at the bar.
