by Ben Burns
Wednesday, Mar 09, 2022After Covington beat up on Masvidal at the T-Mobile Arena last weekend, the MMA spotlight shifts to UFC Apex this Saturday. Same city. Different venue. While UFC Vegas 50 may not have the star power that last week's card did, there are still some interesting and potentially exciting fights. Here are a couple to keep an eye on.
Thiago Santos (22-9) vs. Magomed Ankalaev (16-1)
This may be the featured fight of the night but its unlikely to be the most competitive. Santos is off a win last time out. However, he's in over his head here. The odds reflect that. Ankalaev opened as roughly a 4:1 favorite and the line has climbed even higher. He's now laying in the -550 range. Santos has taken on some of the best in the business, as he fought the likes of Jon Jones and Glover Teixeira. So, he's not going to be intimidated. Still, he's 38 years old and he'll be taking on a determined and more well-rounded 29-year old. Santos hasn't been the same fighter since the Jones loss. While I wouldn't suggest laying the high price, expect the younger fighter to take this one.
Khalil Rountree (9-5) vs. Karl Roberson (9-4)
The odds suggest that this light heavyweight battle will be considerably closer than the main event. Rountree opened as a small favorite. However, Roberson is currently priced in the -125 to -135 range. In addition to the similar records, these guys have quite a few things in common. They're each southpaws. They're both 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, each with a 74-inch reach. They're both American and they're very close in age. Roberson is 31, Rountree is 32. Both fighters have power. Roberson is a former pro kick-boxer. Rountree, who got into MMA later in his life, trained in kick-boxing in Thailand.
Rountree had this to say: "I feel good. This camp has been tough. I purposely came into this camp and pushed myself as hard as I possibly could so I can get the result that I am looking for. And I'm happy with the growth that I've made from the last camp. Just ready to put it all together now." With all the similarities and with both fighters in need of a victory, this one could be interesting.
Another KO?
Last week, I successfully backed Spivak against Hardy. He was a little expensive but I was quite confident that Hardy was outclassed. Here's an excerpt of what I said, prior to that fight: "Hardy is in over his head. Again. He's lost b2b fights and this is not a good matchup for him. These two were supposed to fight at UFC 270. At the time, Hardy was orginally scheduled to face Olenyk. However, Olenyk backed out and it was then supposed to be Spivak vs. Hardy. That probably wouldn't have gone well for Hardy but at least Spivak would have been fighting with less prep time. Hardy remains an elite athlete and he's got bigtime power. He's not a good wrestler though and he's far from elite when exchanging strikes. Consider one of their common opponents in Tuivasa. Hardy hurt Tuivasa a bit early on but then got KO'd. Spivak, on the other hand, took Tuivasa down six times before choking him out with an arm triangle. I see Spivak getting Hardy off his feet and winning by either ground and pound or submission." Spivak came through for me, making short work of Hardy. This week, I've got my eyes on another fight which may not last long ...
Thiago Santos (22-9) vs. Magomed Ankalaev (16-1)
This may be the featured fight of the night but its unlikely to be the most competitive. Santos is off a win last time out. However, he's in over his head here. The odds reflect that. Ankalaev opened as roughly a 4:1 favorite and the line has climbed even higher. He's now laying in the -550 range. Santos has taken on some of the best in the business, as he fought the likes of Jon Jones and Glover Teixeira. So, he's not going to be intimidated. Still, he's 38 years old and he'll be taking on a determined and more well-rounded 29-year old. Santos hasn't been the same fighter since the Jones loss. While I wouldn't suggest laying the high price, expect the younger fighter to take this one.
Khalil Rountree (9-5) vs. Karl Roberson (9-4)
The odds suggest that this light heavyweight battle will be considerably closer than the main event. Rountree opened as a small favorite. However, Roberson is currently priced in the -125 to -135 range. In addition to the similar records, these guys have quite a few things in common. They're each southpaws. They're both 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, each with a 74-inch reach. They're both American and they're very close in age. Roberson is 31, Rountree is 32. Both fighters have power. Roberson is a former pro kick-boxer. Rountree, who got into MMA later in his life, trained in kick-boxing in Thailand.
Rountree had this to say: "I feel good. This camp has been tough. I purposely came into this camp and pushed myself as hard as I possibly could so I can get the result that I am looking for. And I'm happy with the growth that I've made from the last camp. Just ready to put it all together now." With all the similarities and with both fighters in need of a victory, this one could be interesting.
Another KO?
Last week, I successfully backed Spivak against Hardy. He was a little expensive but I was quite confident that Hardy was outclassed. Here's an excerpt of what I said, prior to that fight: "Hardy is in over his head. Again. He's lost b2b fights and this is not a good matchup for him. These two were supposed to fight at UFC 270. At the time, Hardy was orginally scheduled to face Olenyk. However, Olenyk backed out and it was then supposed to be Spivak vs. Hardy. That probably wouldn't have gone well for Hardy but at least Spivak would have been fighting with less prep time. Hardy remains an elite athlete and he's got bigtime power. He's not a good wrestler though and he's far from elite when exchanging strikes. Consider one of their common opponents in Tuivasa. Hardy hurt Tuivasa a bit early on but then got KO'd. Spivak, on the other hand, took Tuivasa down six times before choking him out with an arm triangle. I see Spivak getting Hardy off his feet and winning by either ground and pound or submission." Spivak came through for me, making short work of Hardy. This week, I've got my eyes on another fight which may not last long ...
