ANTONIO ROGERIO NOGUEIRA vs MAURICIO “SHOGUN” RUA BETTING TIP
When you look back at everything Mauricio “Shogun” Rua has achieved throughout his career, it’s crazy to think that he’s still only 33 years old. Shogun has had a rocky road since he joined the UFC and his performances have been very inconsistent having won just 6 out of his 14 fights under the Zuffa banner. The Shogun we have seen over the last few years has displayed glimpses of the fighter who won the PRIDE Middleweight Grand Prix back in 2005, but he doesn’t seem to have the same edge that he fought with all those years ago. Shogun has been involved in a lot of wars throughout his career, but he’s still very durable. At 33 years old, he still has plenty of life in him and he actually has a very good chin. Out of the 8 fights he has lost in the UFC, he’s only been finished with strikes in 3 of them and none of those losses were a result of a KO. There are certain relationships shared between fighters and coaches that seem to unlock a magical formula that brings out the best in a fighter. Would Ronda Rousey, George St-Pierre and Jon Jones be the same if they weren’t trained by Edmond Tarverdyan, Firas Zahabi and Greg Jackson? Certain coaches have a special ability to bring out the best in certain fighters and Shogun once had that kind of special relationship with Rafael Cordeiro of Kings MMA. Cordeiro coached Shogun when he first started competing in PRIDE and he helped Shogun win the PRIDE Middleweight Grand Prix. I am extremely excited about this fight because Shogun has chose to go and train with Rafael Cordeiro at Kings MMA. This is extremely exciting because Cordeiro is the coach who brought out the best in Shogun. He’s also the coach who transformed Fabricio Werdum from a one dimensional BJJ based fighter into a UFC Heavyweight Champion. His recent accomplishments also involve helping Rafael Dos Anjos win the UFC Lightweight title and transforming Beneil Dariush from a talented grappler to a dangerously well rounded fighter. Rafael Cordeiro seems to be able to help fighters make massive improvements in a very short space of time and I can’t wait to see how he has helped Shogun improve. Shogun is 6 years younger than Antonio Rogerio Nogueira which gives him a huge advantage in this fight. An age gap this big means Shogun will be faster, more durable and stronger. I’ve spent some time this week watching all of Nogueira’s recent fights and I honestly don’t give him much of a chance of beating Shogun. He’s slow, he’s tentative and his striking defence is very poor. Shogun should be able to score a knockout in this fight by landing big shots on Nogeira who has become a static target at 39 years old. I believe this fight could end up looking a lot like Nogueira’s last fight against Anthony Johnson. [adrotate group=”134″]MY BETTING TIP: 3.5 Units [3.5% of your bankroll] on Mauricio “Shogun” Rua to win at odds of 1.54 | -185 | 27/50
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ANTONIO “BIGFOOT” SILVA vs SOA PALELEI BETTING TIP
Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva has a medical condition called Acromegaly. Men who suffer from this condition produce naturally low levels of Testosterone. Testosterone is very important in combat sports, because it gives fighters the drive and desire to train hard. Training hard ensures fighters show up in good shape. Being in good shape maximises a fighter’s speed, durability and power. If a fighter has low levels of Testosterone, it’s hard for them to train hard, which means they’ll be less durable, less powerful and slower. Bigfoot used to be able to boost his Testosterone levels with TRT, but he’s looked a shadow of his former self since TRT was banned back in 2014. Bigfoot’s dependence on TRT is very different from the average fighter’s usage, because Bigfoot actually needed the drug for his medical condition. He wasn’t using it as a PED like most others. In Bigfoot’s last two fights he has looked a shadow of his former self. He’s been slow, sluggish and he hasn’t looked in very good physical shape. His striking defence is also wide open and he doesn’t have the reflexes to counter his opponent’s or move out of the way of their strikes. Bigfoot has shown all the signs of a fighter who is on a rapid decline. This decline is probably down to 3 key factors which are all present in his circumstances. The first circumstance is of course the fact that he is no longer able to take TRT to boost his Testosterone levels. The second circumstance is down to the fact that he has endured significant head trauma in the last 2 years. If you look at how Bigfoot’s last 4 fights have played out, they must have taken a toll on his body. He sufferent massive amounts of head trauma in his losses to Andrei Arlovski, Frank Mir and Cain Velasquez and he endured several huge strikes to the head in his 25 minute war against Mark Hunt. You also have to take into consideration the fact that Bigfoot is 35 years old with a Heavyweight career that spans 25 pro fights. Imagine how many huge blows to the head Bigfoot has taken over the years? Soa Palelei is not a good fighter, but he is durable and he is very powerful. I don’t believe Bigfoot has the speed or agility to evade Palelei’s strikes and I do not believe he can take one of Palelei’s powerful shots to the head. Palelei has shown throughout his career that he’s very tough and very powerful. He should be able to land an early strike on Bigfoot and knock him out. Soa’s weakness throughout his career has been his cardio, but he looked good in his last fight against Walt Harris and he’s recently been training with Mark Hunt at AKA Thailand. Training in the heat and humidity of Thailand should naturally improve his cardio and prepare him to fight in the Brazilian climate. I feel that Soa Palelei is a good bet here. [adrotate group=”95″]MY BETTING TIP: 2 Units [2% of your bankroll] on Soa Palelei to win at odds of 1.53 | -188 | 53/100
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IURI ALCANTARA vs LEANDRO ISSA BETTING TIP
Iuri Alcantara hasn’t looked good in his recent fights but he’s a nightmare match up for Leandro Issa. I believe the main difference in this fight will be Alcantara’s power and strength. Issa’s striking offence has improved a lot since he signed for the UFC, but his striking defence is still terrible. Issa has been rocked in almost all of his recent fights and Jumabieke Tuerxun almost knocked him out 3 times. Alcantara has knock out power, he’s very accurate and he fights out of the Southpaw stance. I believe Alcantara will win this fight by knockout. Both Issa and Alcantara are very skilled on the ground, but I give the edge to Alcantara because he’s bigger, stronger and he has better wrestling. Issa has very good Jiu Jitsu, but he lacks the strength to maintain dominant positions. If this fight goes to the ground, Alcantara should be able to use his Jiu Jitsu and wrestling to sweep Issa and end up on top. Leandro Issa has improved a lot in recent fights, but he’s still at a big disadvantage wherever this fight takes place. I believe Alcantara will win by landing the more significant strikes and by securing the more dominant positions on the ground. [adrotate group=”111″]MY BETTING TIP: 3 Units [3% of your bankroll] on Iuri Alcantara to win at odds of 1.43 | -241 | 43/100
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CLINT HESTER vs VITOR MIRANDA BETTING TIP
I haven’t seen anything from Vitor Miranda which makes me think he’s UFC level. He reached the Finale of The Ultimate Fighter Brazil by facing very weak opposition and then got outstruck and controlled on the ground by Antonio Carlos Junior. In his most recent fight he was losing to Jake Collier before landing a flash head kick knockout in the final second of the first round. Vitor Miranda is 36 years old and shows all the signs of a fighter who reached the highest level of MMA too late. He’s tentative, he lacks takedown defence and he doesn’t have a level of aggression which would leave a lasting impression on the judges score cards. Clint Hester is fast, powerful and currently fighting in his prime. At 28 years old, he’s 8 years younger than Miranda which gives him a significant advantage in this fight. Hester should be able to beat Miranda by being more aggressive and outworking him. Miranda doesn’t do enough to win rounds and Hester should be able to leave a lasting impression on the judges score cards by taking the centre of the Octagon and stealing rounds with takedowns and top control. [adrotate group=”74″]MY BETTING TIP: 2 Units [2% of your bankroll] on Clint Hester to win at odds of 1.65 | -155 | 13/20
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I don’t see the 5 fighters picked. I only see 4 and then you said you have 6 total picks. Wondering where the rest are
Hey man.
Hope you’re having a good day.
The 5 fighters I picked are Ronda Rousey, Shogun, Soa Palelei, Iuri Alcantara and Clint Hester. The 6 bets are those 5 fighters to win straight with the under 1.5 rounds on the Ronda Rousey vs Bethe Correia fight.
Hope this helps mate.
Let me know if you need anything else 🙂
Cool man thanks. Should’ve figured it was with the free picks combined lol. Surprised about Hester. Alcantara was really solid though. A lil iffy in the first with the grappling haha. But yeah man thanks again