With their sixth offering, it seems that the World Series of Fighting has struck a nice balance between promoting some of the recognizable names (like Jon Fitch and Josh Burkman) and building up some intriguing prospects (for example, Marlon Moraes and Justin Gaethje). In fact, this card seems far more intriguing to fight fans than watching Andrei Arlovski or Mike Kyle in another main event. This time around, the main event features the streaking Josh Burkman looking to extend his winning streak to six (and nine of his last ten) against Steve Carl, who is on his own six-fight streak. This will be the first event that WSOF crowns a divisional champion, and both Burkman and Carl would love to add the belt to their mantle. The co-main event is just as interesting, as fans get to continue to watch the development of Marlon Moraes, as he takes on a stiff wrestling challenge in the form of Carson Beebe (younger brother of former WEC bantamweight champ Chase). Beyond the top two fights there is still plenty of reason for fans to tune in, as Jon Fitch looks to get back on track following his devastating loss to Burkman last time out. He faces veteran Marcelo Alfaya, whose only loss in his last seven bouts has come to Jake Ellenberger. Finally, two young, impressive fighters round out the main card when Justin Gaethje attempts to extend his 9-0 record against the resurgent Dan Lauzon. Today, MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened the betting odds for WSOF 6 at Several Bookmakers. Check them out: ——————– MAIN CARD (NBC Sports Network, 9pm ET) WSOF Welterweight Title Josh Burkman -405 Steve Carl +285 Marlon Moraes -350 Carson Beebe +250 Jon Fitch -505 Marcelo Alfaya +335 Justin Gaethje -305 Dan Lauzon +225 ——————– PRELIMINARY CARD (MMAJunkie.com, 7pm ET) Miguel Torres -350 Pablo Alfonso +250 Jacob Volkmann -275 Luiz Firmino +195 Hans Stringer -305 Francisco France +225 Alexis Vila -230 Josh Rettinghouse +170 ——————– Brad’s Analysis: It’s hard not to like Josh Burkman in the main event when you look at his recent track record, especially his finishing ability. I do think that Carl presents a bit more of a challenge than most however, particularly in the grappling realm. Carl’s only losses have come to quality opponents who in my mind are UFC calibre, but I think that the rejuvenated Burkman we’ve seen lately definitely fits that mould. The biggest concern for anyone backing Carl has to be that even when Burkman had some fairly serious back problems towards the end of his UFC run he still had good takedown defense. That should be even better now that he’s healthy, and victories against Gerald Harris, Aaron Simpson and Jon Fitch show he’s had solid success against people looking to grapple with him. If you’re not confident enough in Burkman to throw him in a parlay, I’d pass this fight altogether, as I just don’t think Carl is quite ready to get it done. Marlon Moraes faces a similar challenge to Burkman in an opponent who wants to get him to the mat. I also see Moraes having similar success, as Carson Beebe doesn’t get a whole lot done even if he does get the takedowns. While Moraes has become known for his devastating striking in his WSOF run, he does have an effective guard that should be able to either sweep Beebe or create scrambles to get back to his feet if he is taken down. Moraes is a guy that WSOF is hoping to continue building, and putting him in with Beebe who struggled — and I felt, lost — in his last bout is a way to do that intelligently. Laying a big number on Jon Fitch is a scary proposition at this point in his career. He should beat Marcelo Alfaya, but he was supposed to beat Josh Burkman as well. With a style that almost always requires him to go 15 minutes, and fading durability, he’s not the type of fighter I want to trust with my money. He used to be in what I like to call the “Askren-class” of fighters, where you know that he’s going to go out and do what he needs to do, excitement be damned. At this point however, Fitch has been badly hurt in three of his past five fights and in danger in all five of those fights. Alfaya is a step down in competition, but he’s still a dangerous fighter. I’m either staying away completely or even putting a small flier on Alfaya here. Justin Gaethje and Dan Lauzon is a perfect fight to kick off a main card. Both guys favor the striking game, and have a good bit of aggression to their games. I see Gaethje as the more effective and dangerous striker, but it’s always interesting to see how a fighter who is used to being aggressive reacts when his opponent pushes him back, which is what Lauzon also likes to do. Coupled with the fact that Lauzon is the better grappler — despite Gaethje having the superior wrestling — and I can’t feel good about backing Gaethje here even though he should win. Here are some quick thoughts on the undercard:
- If you’re still willing to trust Miguel Torres with your money, you’re a braver man than I. Luckily, they’ve brought in Pablo Alfonso — who is primarily a grappler — to face him, so it should mitigate chin issues, and if there’s anything Torres can still do, it’s grapple like few others.
- Volkmann/Buscape is my sleeper pick as fight of the weekend, which seems weird to say about a Jacob Volkmann fight, but Buscape’s grappling chops could turn this into a fun ground battle. We’ve also seen Volkmann have questionable cardio and Buscape has gone 25 minutes recently, but in the end I do have to side with the fighter who will spend most of the time in top position, and that’s Dr. Feelgood. If there’s a stoppage here, it’ll be Buscape pulling off a submission though.
- Hans Stringer caught a raw deal last time he was supposed to fight for WSOF as he was stuck in the Lew Polley fiasco. It seems like the organization is trying to make it up to him with an opponent he should KO in Kiko France. As long as Stringer can avoid a few takedowns — which given him preparing for a wrestler in Polley he should be able to — he’s a far better striker in this one, and that should show early on.
- Josh Rettinghouse is a decent prospect and he has approximately a 70 year age advantage in this fight, so I’m picking him, right? Nope. Despite the fact that he’s close to being in a nursing home, Alexis Vila is the far superior wrestler here, packs some dynamite in his fists, and is surprisingly spry for a guy who is about ready for a hip replacement. I think he keeps this on the feet and batters Rettinghouse.