Violence in Canada? Did Tim Horton’s run out of timbits? I guess it is hard to say there is violence happening this evening when Belal Poohammad is the main event, but hopefully the rest of the card can stack up and give us some entertainment. I will probably rant several times about how much I hate Belal, but man do I fucking hate Belal. I may hate Leon even more for letting Belal take the belt than I even hate Belal. Not only does Belal suck, they give him an absolute layup for his first defense with JDM. At least the rest of the main card is ok with Queen Valentina defending her belt against Fiorot, Jose Aldo returning against Zahabi, Alexa Grasso looking to climb back to the top against Natalia Silva, and then a make a wish fight with BSD vs Some random Canadian guy they found on the street. With all that said and done, let’s move into these picks.
Main Card
Belal Muhammad vs. Jack Della Maddalena Welterweight Championship Bout
Why the fuck can’t this be Shavkat vs Belal? Belal is able to sit out for nearly a year just to wait for JDM? Jack Della Maddalena is a very fun fighter to watch, and I don’t want to shit on him too much because I do like him, but come on he has no business in a title fight right now. Guy nearly lost to a 100 year old Gilbert Burns, split decisions against Kevin Holland and Bassil Hafez before that, what are we doing here? Belal is salivating at the thought of being able to throw dogshit jabs until he gets close enough to hold Jack tightly and fall to the ground with him for 25 min. I am done hate betting against guys, so I am letting you know that Belal is going to win but also that I am not betting on him.
Belal “Forget the Name” Muhammad by Decision (Prop Line) -105 (not betting on this loser)
Valentina Shevchenko vs. Manon Fiorot Flyweight Championship Bout
Now back to my happy place, my favorite female fighter of all time is fighting against a very dangerous opponent in Manon Fiorot. Fiorot has been on an absolute tear since her debut 4 years ago, rattling off 7 straight UFC wins against the best of the best. She has looked nearly unbeatable, especially in her most recent win over Blanchfield. What she has going against her though is that Valentina is the greatest fighter of all time, and if it weren’t for 2 bad decisions, 1 against Nunes and one against Grasso, she would be considered the female GOAT. Valentina is just better everywhere against everyone. She is too smart, too strong, and too patient to lose again, can’t wait to see her keep that gold around her waist.
Valentina Shevchenko by Decision +110 2 units
José Aldo vs. Aiemann Zahabi Featherweight Bout
This one hurts a little bit. Jose Aldo has been one of my favorite fighters for like 15 years now and I just wish my man would retire. He has given so much to the sport, he is still competing at a very high level, but there is just no chance he is able to make it back to a title fight. With him missing weight this week and looking like it was a miserable cut, along with his last fight against Bautista, I just don’t see what he has left to do. He says he is going back up to featherweight after this fight, but it really should be his last. Zahabi has looked great in his last few fights and clearly wasn’t as affected by the weight cut as Aldo. If Aldo was a dog here maybe I would have taken him, just can’t do it with him as the favorite.
Aiemann Zahabi by Decision +160 1 unit
Alexa Grasso vs. Natália Silva Flyweight Bout
Alexa Grasso beating Valentina was one of the worst moments of my UFC fandom, and I had to watch it on my phone at a friend’s girlfriend’s stupid 30th birthday party with shitty cake and expensive drinks. Alexa Grasso getting that awful split draw call against Valentina in the 2nd bout was nearly as bad because she got to keep her belt. Fortunately, in the 3rd bout Valentina left nothing up to debate and dominated Alexa for the entire fight. I don’t think Alexa is anything special, her best quality is her striking and Silva is going to absolutely outclass her in that every step of the way. New York is annoying because of stupid gambling laws, but if I could I would add Silva’s over significant strikes in this one too.
Natalia Silva by Decision (In Rd 3 or Decision) -185 2 units
Benoît Saint Denis vs. Kyle Prepolec Lightweight Bout
What do I say here? We have a near title contender against a nobody from a small canadian promotion who has 8 losses. This will be a beat down for the most part. Having looked into Prepolec a bit he does seem like one tough son of a bitch with his only 2 losses by finish coming back in 2013. I have a feeling he can stick this out till at least the 2:30 mark of the 2nd round. Let’s cheer for some survival.
Over 1.5 Rds +150 1 unit
Prelims
Mike Malott vs. Charles Radtke Welterweight Bout
Mike Malott by 2nd Round Submission (Prop Finish Line) +110 1 unit
Jéssica Andrade vs. Jasmine Jasudavicius Flyweight Bout
Jasmine Jasudavicius by Decision (SGP o 1.5 Rds) -130 1 unit
Modestas Bukauskas vs. Ion Cuțelaba Light Heavyweight Bout
Modestas Bukauskas by 1st Round TKO +105 1 unit
Navajo Stirling vs. Ivan Erslan Light Heavyweight Bout
Navajo Stirling by 1st Round TKO -110 1 unit
Early Prelims
Marc-André Barriault vs. Bruno Silva Middleweight Bout
Marc-Andre Barriault by Decision -175 2 units
Daniel Santos vs. Jeong-Yeong Lee Featherweight Bout
Jeong-Yeong Lee by 2nd Round TKO -130 1 unit
Brad Katona vs. Bekzat Almakhan Bantamweight Bout
Beskat Almakhan by Decision -155 1 unit
DraftKings Lineup:
That is all I have for you on this mediocre night of fights. Pretty ecstatic I get the opportunity to pay $80 to watch Belal “insert he stinks joke” Muhammad headline, but hopefully once the ESPN deal is over we don’t have to deal with that anymore. I wish this card was on my wedding weekend because I wouldn’t even sweat not being able to watch it. Enough of my complaining. Remember to stick to your units and bet responsibly. Follow along on twitter in case I change any of my picks or parlay some stuff. As always, may luck be your lady tonight!