UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs Burns Odds, Previews, Picks For Every Fight

The UFC finally returns to their home base – literally – this weekend for UFC Fight Night: Woodley vs Burns. It came down to the wire, but the Nevada State Athletic Commission gave combat sports the green light to return to the state during their meeting on Wednesday, meaning the UFC can host this Saturday’s fight card at their UFC Apex gym as well as UFC 250 scheduled for June 6th.

Unfortunately, it’s a bit of a ‘meh’ card this weekend, but does feature an intriguing main event pitting former long-time UFC Welterweight Champion Tyron Woodley against surging Gilbert Burns.

Last week my picks were a profitable 7-3. Let’s keep the good times going this Saturday.

All odds courtesy of MyBookie

Tyron Woodley (-195) vs Gilbert Burns

T-Wood’s three-year death grip on the UFC’s 170-pound belt went down in flames on March 2, 2019, as Kamaru Usman totally and completely dominated him for 25 minutes. Woodley looked completely lost and was not competitive at all in the fight. That is the last time we’ve seen him in action. However, I’m still picking him in this one. Assuming he isn’t totally shot (which isn’t out of the question considering he’s 38), he should have the wrestling to keep the grappling heavy Burns off him and the power to turn his lights out on the feet, if it comes to that.

Augusto Sakai (-120) vs Blagoy Ivanov

Two beefy heavyweight boys will battle it out in the co-main event of the night. This one is pretty much a pick ’em at the bookies, but I’m leaning towards Sakai, who will have a four-inch reach advantage and the knockout power to put Ivanov to bed.

Billy Quarantillo (-145) vs Spike Carlyle

It’s hard to bet against a guy nicknamed ‘Alpha Ginger’, but I think Quarantillo is the better fighter in this one. Both guys are super-active strikers, so this should be a fun battle.

Roosevelt Roberts (-340) vs Brok Weaver

Besides having a presidential name, Roosevelt Roberts has also looked real good in his UFC career, going 3-1 thus far. He’s the pick in this one, although -340 is a pretty high number.

Mackenzie Dern (-425) vs Hannah Cifers

This is a bit of a bounce back matchup for new mommy Mackenzie Dern, who dropped her last fight, her first since giving birth. Her unreal grappling chops should rule the day in this one – you might want to toss some money on her winning via submission.

Katlyn Chookagian (+115) vs Antonina Shevchenko

Here’s a rarity – after losing to champion Valentina Shevchenko, Katlyn Chookagian’s next fight will be against the champ’s big sister, Antonina. I like her as the dog in this one – she’s mostly a ‘point fighter’, winning fights via her striking volume rather than the damage she inflicts. She also is quite noisy, screaming every strike she throws, which very well could sway the judges in the empty arena, making it seem like she is dictating the action and dominating. Look for her to win via decision.

Daniel Rodriguez (-360) vs Gabriel Green

Rodriguez went from an underdog to a massive favorite over the course of a few hours. That’s because his previous opponent, Kevin Holland, pulled out of the fight earlier this week due to injury. A huge number (-360), but Rodriguez should be too much for Green on a few days notice (in the middle of a quarantine, no less).

Jamahal Hill (-132) vs Klidson Abreu

‘Sweet Dreams’ is the pick in this light heavyweight tilt, as Hill will have a five inch reach advantage and a perfect 7-0 record heading into his battle with Abreu, who is 1-2 in his UFC career.

Brandon Royval (+155) vs Tim Elliott

I’m going with an underdog newcomer in a rare UFC men’s flyweight fight. Elliott is known for his weird, unpredictable fighting style, but Royval might just outweird him in this one, as he’s also pretty unhinged in the cage. He’ll also have the size advantage when the cage door shuts on Saturday night, and the striking and grappling skills to get the W.

Casey Kenney (-285) vs Louis Smolka

Despite losing his last fight, Casey Kenney is still a nice looking bantamweight prospect, and should have the grappling chops to defeat the inconsistent Louis Smolka, who’s already been cut once from the UFC and used to fight at flyweight.