The UFC heads to South Carolina for a Fight Night card this Saturday, after taking last weekend off. This is a solid card headlined by Renato Moicano vs Chan Sung Jung (The Korean Zombie) and including other solid fighters like John Lineker, Rob Font, Bryan Barbarena and Andrea Lee.
I have four plays on this card, including three big underdog plays. These plays are on the higher profile fights. Check them out below. I will be using the odds from any of our top rated betting sites for Canadians.
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Renato Moicano vs Chan Sung Jung
Moicano is coming off a loss to Jose Aldo, but I still think he is one of the top prospects in the featherweight division, and one that will get a title shot in time. People seem to underestimate Aldo ever since his two losses to Max Holloway, but he is still a top featherweight who is very dangerous.
The Korean Zombie has fought twice since his mandatory military leave, beating Dennis Bermudez by knockout in his first fight back, but losing by a last second KO to Yair Rodriguez at the end of last year. Sung Jung was winning that fight with Rodriguez before the crazy technique that Yair pulled out with just seconds to go.
Overall, I just think that Moicano has the better striking and the more well rounded game. That said, Sung Jung has the power to finish the fight at any point. I’m going to side with Moicano because he has more recent fights against high level opposition and he’s shown time and again he has the ability to be a top featherweight if he puts everything together and avoids finishes.
Play: Moicano 1.56
John Lineker vs Rob Font
Lineker and Font will rematch a fight they had from May of 2016, which Lineker won by decision. Lineker dominated that fight and overwhelmed Font, while keeping the fight standing.
I do think that Font has improved more than Lineker in the three years since that fight. He put together a solid performance against Sergio Pettis last December and I think he’s taken his fight IQ to another level, which should allow him to better use his skills to compete against top competition.
I think the book may be out on Lineker and if Font can fight similar to how Sandhagen did in his split decision victory over Lineker, I do think Font has a great chance to get this victory.
Play: Font 2.75
Bryan Barbarena vs Randy Brown
Barbarena is an interesting fighter because he’s not very athletic, but he’s very durable and he keeps coming at you. This strategy has worked for him against lower level opponents in his career (Northcutt, Proctor, Ellenberger), but every time he’s stepped up in competition he’s been beaten handily (Covington, Edwards, Luque).
The jury is still very much out on Randy Brown, but I do think he’s a better fighter than the ones that Barbarena has beaten in the past. He has the skills, he just has to put everything together and not make mistakes that can cost him fights. Brown’s wins in the UFC are against lower level competition than those that Barbarena has beaten, but I still think he easily has more talent and technique.
This is a huge test for Brown against a very resilient fighter in Barbarena, but I think he steps up and takes a huge step forward in his career with a dominant win.
Play: Brown 3.30
Andrea Lee vs Montana De La Rosa
I’m surprised this fight isn’t closer to a pick’em. Yes, Andrea Lee has looked good, but she’s still only 2-0 in the UFC and she’s beaten two fighters at the bottom of the UFC’s depth chart.
De La Rosa is now 3-0 in the UFC, winning all three fights by submission. She went 1-1 on her TUF season with the only loss coming via decision to eventual winner, Nicco Montano.
I think people are sleeping on De La Rosa. She’s probably at a small disadvantage on the feet, but on the mat I give her a big edge and we’ve seen in women’s fights in the past, that girls with strong submission skills can often pull out wins against solid strikers.
De La Rosa had big fights before the TUF season as well, losing to Mackenzie Dern and Cynthia Calvillo in two fights before heading into the TUF house. Those fights were losses, but they were against two girls who are now top level UFC fighters. Add in the fact that De La Rosa is only 24 years old and I think the future is very bright for her. This win over Lee should move her into some more high profile fights heading forward.
Play: De La Rosa 2.80