The UFC today announced a slew of new matchups for a number of upcoming fight cards. Perhaps the most important of the new batch of fights is a middleweight bout at UFC on FOX Sports 1 1 between Uriah Hall and Josh Samman, two TUF 17 cast members. Hall was originally set to fight Nick Ring in what looked like a mismatch, but now he’ll be taking on a very impressive prospect in Samman and it’s a fight Hall could very well lose. Yes, Hall will undoubtedly be the favorite against Samman, but not nearly to the extent he was against Kelvin Gastelum. If I had to guess, I’d peg Hall around -200 at the opener with the comeback on Samman being around +150. I’m actually pretty high on both fighters so I’m probably going to lay off this fight from a betting perspective, but if Samman is over +200 I would be forced to take a stab because I do believe he can win this fight. The next new fight also takes place at UFC on FOX Sports 1 1, and it’s a featherweight fight between Mike Brown and Steven Siler. Brown was originally set to fight Akira Corassani, who was forced to pull out of the bout, and now Brown will be taking on another striker in the form of Siler. This is a very interesting fight. Although Siler was outgrappled by Darren Elkins and Brown is a similar fighter, he’s also a lot older and hasn’t fought in a very long time. I’m pretty high on Siler myself, so I’ll consider making a play on him in this matchup if he opens up at +150 or higher which, in my opinion, isn’t totally out of the question, as I do see Brown opening up as a slight favorite. UFC on FOX Sports 1 2 also got a new fight, as Roger Bowling will take on Abel Trujilo in a lightweight matchup. This is another close fight and it should be an exciting bout for what it is, but I’m going to have to go with Trujilo, who has shown superior cardio in his UFC fights. Bowling is definitely a dangerous fighter but as he showed in his UFC debut against Anthony Njokuani, if you can get past the first round with him he tires out and his chin weakens. With the hype surrounding Trujilo, I’d expect him to be around -200 with the comeback on Bowling around +150. At 2-to-1, this will likely be a pass, but if I can get Trujilo at -150 or less I may consider making a play on him. And finally the UFC announced a heavyweight bout between Nandor Guelmino and Daniel Omielanczuk, which takes place at UFC 165. This is kind of a throwaway fight for me, but I’ll definitely be betting against Guelmino here as I believe he’s one of the worst fighters on the UFC roster and I believe Omielanczuk has some potential. Of course, my bet is contingent on a decent line, but provided he’s less than 2-to-1 Omielanczuk is my play.
