A number of new UFC matchups were announced in the past 24 hours, including a rematch between Vitor Belfort and Dan Henderson, which will take place at a yet-to-be-announced event in Brazil on Nov. 9. The weight class the fight will take place at is still being discussed. This is a huge matchup for both guys and although Henderson won their first fight back in Pride, I really favor Belfort this time around. I cap Belfort at -275 for this fight with the comeback on Hendo at +225 and I’ll likely be using Belfort in parlays. The next big matchup that was announced last night is a welterweight bout between Rory MacDonald and Robbie Lawler, a match that will likely serve as the co-main event of the upcoming UFC 167 pay-per-view this November. This is a huge fight and it will draw plenty of interest from bettors this winter. I cap MacDonald as a -250 favorite with the comeback on Lawler at +200, and if this is how the line does really open I’ll have to consider placing a small bet on the dog. Then it was announced that middleweights Tom Watson and Alessio Sakara will meet at UFC Manchester this October. This is a bad matchup for Sakara and I believe it could be his last in the UFC as I see Watson knocking him out. I cap Watson at -220 for this fight with the comeback on Sakara at +160 and I will likely be using Watson in parlays. As well, it was reported on Tuesday’s edition of UFC Tonight that Jessica Eye vs. Sarah Kaufman is being targeted for UFC 166 this October. This is a great matchup and I hope it becomes official soon. As far as the line goes, Kaufman has to open as the favorite here, but personally I’m eyeing Eye here for a bet as I was really impressed with her in Bellator and believe she has the size and strength to give the Canadian problems. Additionally, the UFC yesterday announced that a flyweight matchup between Dustin Ortiz and Justin Scoggins would take place at next week’s UFC Fight Night 27 card, but after further consideration the UFC pulled the fight from the card and it’s likely to be re-booked at a later date. I thought it was very strange the UFC would attempt to book this fight on a week’s notice and I guess Sean Shelby had second thoughts about it as well and wants to give both fighters a full camp before their first UFC fight. Either way, it’s nice to see the UFC signing more flyweights to the roster. And finally, speaking of the flyweights, a 125-pound bout between Iliarde Santos and Chris Cariaso was added to UFC Fight Night 29. This should be an exciting matchup and could be a dark horse FOTN contender at the event. As far as a line goes, I’d cap Cariaso at around -175 with the comeback on Santos at about +125, although personally I don’t have a strong enough lean to bet either side.
