The Honda Center was supposed to host a PPV earlier this year in January but the card has been canceled, but the UFC has collected a big card on August 17 for UFC 241: Cormier vs Miocic II in Anaheim. The reigning heavyweight champion, Daniel”DC” Cormier, is a -150??preferred to remain the titleholder, although former champ Stipe Miocic comes??straight back at +120. I’ve got a breakdown and a pick for all of the fights on the primary card.
Cormier (-150) leaves his next title defense in a rematch above a year in the making. DC made the leap to the heavyweight division in July of last year at UFC 226 and made a first-round victory over then-champion Stipe Miocic to acquire against the ring. Cormier hasn’t lost since UFC 182 in 2015 when he fell by unanimous decision to Jon Jones.?? He also had a knockout defeat at the hands of Jones at 2017 but it had been overturned into some no-contest later Jones failed a drug test.
The Louisiana native has a great blend of boxing and wrestling. Cormier competed in wrestling in the 2004 Olympics and was team captain in 2008 however, was unable to compete that year because of a medical matter. At this time, he has much more power in his punches and despite his small height, he’s got a lot of strength for the division.
Miocic (+120) returns to the Octagon for the first time since he dropped the title at UFC 226 in July 2018. The 36-year-old was on a tear prior to that reduction, winning six consecutive conflicts, including setting a UFC admissions record with three title defenses. During that winning streak, Miocic’d five softball victories, four of which came from the first round.
The Ohio native does an fantastic job cutting the cage and getting in the face of his rival. He’s able to do this due to his own confidence in his striking as well as his wrestling. Miocic averages 2.38 takedowns per 15 minutes and although his cries don’t seem to be too dangerous, he’s serious power inside them, together with 14 of his 18 pro wins end by knockout.
These two had a spirited, albeit short??affair once they met just over one year ago. Miocic appeared strong early pressing Cormier contrary to the cage, made a takedown and had some success with his palms on. DC picked up as??the very first round progressed, allowing his hands fly at striking variety, essentially going shot for shot Miocic.
The end of the struggle came having a well-placed straight hook out of the clinch that put the former champ asleep. I believe DC was gaining in momentum and confidence as??the fight went on and we’ve noticed Stipe slow as battles have improved.?? I anticipate a similar outcome this time around.
For much more on this fight, have a look at my Opportunities Evaluation Page.
Pettis (-125) eyes victories??for the first time because he won five in a row in 2011 to 2014. “Showtime” has??dropped six of his last 10 fights and continues to be around a win-one, lose-one series over his last seven bouts. He’s coming from a second-round knockout win over Stephen Thompson at March in his UFC welterweight debut,??making his first knockout??because he overcome Donald Cerrone in 2013 in this fashion.
The Wisconsin native is an exciting fighter that has a lot of expertise along with a??well-rounded skill set. Pettis has unorthodox dramatic with lots of spinning attacks and flashy kicks, while having a strong jiu-jitsu game off his rear.
Showtime has a fantastic chin, together with his 2 knockout losses coming in the third round after a ton of damage, and he had a corner stoppage TKO reduction against Tony Ferguson in UFC 229 later he broke his hand. He eventually became the first fighter to knock out Stephen Thompson, showing new electricity at his greater weight class.
Diaz (-105) aims to knock off a ring rust as he steps inside the Octagon for the very first time because UFC 202 at August??2016. The California native had back-to-back high-profile conflicts with Conor McGregor in 2016, making a second-round entry win in the very first meeting??but dropping by a majority five-round decision the second time around.
The Stockton native contains fantastic cardio and an off-beat, all-out style of fighting. Diaz predominantly likes to become counter-striker and will challenge his competitors by slapping them, swearing at them or giving them the finger, so trusting they will participate in a brawl with him. He has a excellent chin, having just been pumped out once in his career despite being at a few wars.
That having been said, he only has five orgasmic wins to his name as he typically just keeps touching his opponents over and above, but not with a ton of power. His biggest strength is his ground game where he’s 11 submission wins, including the one over Conor McGregor.
These are two quite similar fighters who are extremely interesting with their solid chins, showy strikes and willingness to engage with their opponent. There is some bad blood between the two as well, dating back to if Pettis defended his lightweight belt against Diaz’s friend and teammate Gilbert Melendez. I think that Pettis will load up onto his strikes a little more, while Diaz enjoys to ditch his rivals and certainly will do so for a very long period of time. Pettis’ cries could be the deciding factor.
Romero (-165) is back in action for the first time since his narrow split-decision reduction to Robert Whittaker to the middleweight title in June of this past year. Since joining the UFC in 2013,”Soldier of God” was rather notable, sporting a record of 9-2 along with his only losses coming against the current champ, Robert Whittaker, both by decision. Meanwhile, of his nine victories in the Octagon, seven have been .
The Cuba native is also an extremely patient fighter that does not use a ton of extra energy by dancing round and finding angles. He typically stands just on the outside of his opponent’s stove and slowly rocks back and forth till he melts ahead using a flurry of punches along with a takedown attempt. He only averages 3.28 significant strikes per minute, but when he unloads, it’s generally awful news because of his opponent. Furthermore, his shield is tight, making his foes overlook 63 percent of the attempts.??
Costa (+135) sets his best record on the line as he is 4-0 at the Octagon and 12-0 general. “Borrachinha” was made short work of his opponents, having??only one fight in his career go farther than the halfway mark of the second round which was his final bout when he knocked out Uriah Hall in 2:38 of the next circular. Of his 12 specialist wins, 11 have been by knockout and one by entry.
The Brazil native is an aggressive fighter, marching forward from the outset of this bout seeking to unload his powerful strikes. Costa is extremely light on his toes and??has great head motion and feints. He’s got a ridiculous outcome of 8.83 significant strikes per minute and lands 59% of his own takedown attempts, while in addition stuffing 81 percent of takedown attempts . He does tend to drop his hands in exchanges, which leaves him exposed to counters.
What a possible war between two guys who seemed like they had been cut out of granite and also possess contrasting styles. Costa is all round aggression looking to put his opponents away in catastrophic style, while Romero is a whole lot more individual and more technically sound. Costa has an issue by absorbing 5.79 strikes every minute and also against a power puncher like Romero, he could be in some trouble. Finally, we have not seen Costa get hauled into deep waters and Romero has a very good gas tank.
Benitez (+255) is currently attempting to pick up his first three-fight winning series from the Octagon. This is actually the first time we’ve noticed”Moggly” since May of 2018 if he needed only 39 seconds to dispose of Humberto Bandenay. This victory was Benitez’s first knockout from the UFC and also his first since 2013, and that he did it in style with a bang.
The Mexico native is an aggressive fighter who storms forward from the outset of the struggle with a flurry of punches and kicks. He is quite gentle on his feet, floating round the Octagon and moving in and out of risk. His cries are extremely crisp and true, apparently finding his opponent’s chin??effortlessly, and he averages 4.23 strikes per minute.
Yusuff (-335) aims to remain undefeated at the UFC and pick up his fifth consecutive win total. “Super” earned a UFC contract along with his conclusion victory over Mike Davis at July 2018 in Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series. He has backed up that victory with back-to-back wins in the Octagon, most recently making a unanimous-decision victory over Sheymon Moraes in March.
The Nigeria native is a composed fighter who gets into the face of his rival, frequently standing only on the exterior of striking selection. He instances his strikes well, looking for his opportunity to throw mixes, and he averages 6.42 strikes per minute??but also absorbs 4.22 strikes weekly. Although he absorbs a high??rate of strikes, his shield is quite good with his hands high and he rolls with punches really nicely.
Benitez and Yusuff must put on a show within this bout. Moogly is a good deal lighter on his feet and always bounces around, but he does like to be the aggressor. Meanwhile, Super slowly inches forward and stands a little more flat-footed, sitting back on his attacks with much more power.
Brunson (+140) appears to get consecutive victories for the first time because he beat Daniel Kelly and Lyota Machida by knockout in 2017. Observing that short two-fight winning streak, the 35-year-old had back-to-back knockout losses to Jacare Souza and Israel Adesanya. His latest bout proved to be a unanimous-decision victory over Elias Theodorou in May.
The North Carolina native is an individual fighter that takes his time reading his competitor from a long distance whilst slowly inching forward until he rains ahead using a flurry of punches. His strikes have enormous power that have??led to 11 of his 19 victories finish in knockouts. Six of his 10 UFC wins have finished in that manner also. But, four of the five losses in the Octagon have been knockout,??largely because he’s slow to react to his opponent’s moves and he leaves his head in exactly the identical location.
Heinisch (-170) looks to extend his five-fight winning streak and stay perfect in the Octagon. “The Hurricane” got a UFC contract along with his first-round knockout victory over Justin Sumter at July of Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series. He has won both of his fights in the UFC because earning that contract, together with unanimous-decision wins over Cezar Ferreira along with Antonio Carlos Jr..
The 30-year-old includes a very awkward, somewhat herky-jerky design with stutter steps and lots of feints, looking for opportunities to capture his foe??dropping his palms on. He puts up a great deal of his cries with long kicks and because of his awkward style, he only absorbs 1.37 strikes per minute. That having been said, he will are inclined to dip his head down when he throws his attacks, which renders him??vulnerable to uppercuts and knees.
Brunson has an obvious power edge in this struggle because he tends to load up onto his strikes looking to put his enemies off in the very first round. On the other hand, The Hurricane is the mobile fighter but does have an issue stuffing takedowns as he was brought to the floor nine days in his initial two UFC struggles. Brunson averages 2.9 takedowns a 15 minutes, such as attracting Elias Theodorou??– a comparable fighter to Heinisch — into the floor four times in his final bout.
Here’s a look at the list of odds for UFC 241: Cormier vs Miocic II:
Curious as of August 12 at BetOnline
Curious as of August 12 at BetOnline
Odds at BetOnline as of August 12
Odds at August 12 in BetOnline
Curious at BetOnline as of August 12
Curious in BetOnline as of August 12
Odds at August 12
Curious as of August 12
Curious at BetOnline at August 12
Odds as of August 12 in BetOnline
Odds at August 12
Curious as of August 12 in BetOnline