MMA on Super Bowl weekend has become a bit of a tradition, with the UFC running their annual card on Saturday before the big game. However, what would a Super Bowl weekend be if the biggest football state didn’t put on an MMA card of their own? Legacy FC must have thought the same thing as they have Legacy FC 27 scheduled to go Friday night on AXS TV to kick the weekend off in the right way. Legacy FC 27 is another interesting card from the Texas-based promotion, as UFC veteran Tim Means (19-5-1) continues his climb back up the ranks as he takes on a fellow tall, lanky striker in Artenas Young (10-6). Means’ fights are always dynamite when he’s afforded to opportunity to strike, and in my eyes, this is a perfectly made fight to produce some action. Olympic gold medallist and blue-chip MMA prospect Henry Cejudo (5-0) makes his latest appearance on this card as well, and Legacy FC continues to throw solid fighters at him, as Elias Garcia (4-0) is a decent flyweight prospect himself. A former coast guard veteran, Garcia has now transitioned to MMA full-time after defeating Matt Schnell in his last bout. Former Legacy FC middleweight title challenger Larry Crowe (7-3) looks to work his way back to another title shot, and he’ll have to go through Terrance Ferguson (2-1) in order to continue on that path. Ferguson hasn’t stepped in the cage since September 2012, but brings a decent submission game to the table, which will contrast nicely with Crowe’s striking arsenal. The card takes the air on AXS TV at 10pm ET on Friday, January 31st. Today, MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened the betting lines for Legacy FC 27 at Several Bookmakers. Take a look: ——————– Tim Means -380 Artenas Young +260 Henry Cejudo -585 Elias Garcia +385 Larry Crowe -350 Terrance Ferguson +250 ——————– Brad’s Analysis: Tim Means was a premature cut from the UFC in my opinion, and even though Artenas Young can be a fun fighter at times, he’s not the type who is going to trouble Means on his way back to the big show. Means is a nasty striker, and while it may take him a little while to navigate Young’s reach, he should start doing damage quickly after he’s figured it out. Elias Garcia is a solid fighter who had a decent run on the amateur scene before turning pro, but he’s a grinding type of fighter and has nowhere near the wrestling of Cejudo. That’s why this line is so long. Cejudo did miss weight for this fight (his second consecutive time doing so), which would be worrisome if he hadn’t done it before. Still, you have to expect that the olympic gold medallist should be able to get takedowns and ride out a decision at the very least here. My bigger concern is how committed to MMA Cejudo really is, but that shouldn’t pose an issue until he gets to the next level. Terrance Ferguson has been incredibly inactive in his MMA career, and he’s stepping in to face one of the better middleweights in Texas. Only competing once a year in 2010, 2011 and 2012 (and zero times in 2013) is a huge red flag. One worry on Crowe’s behalf is that he does like to throw a lot of kicks, which could lead to some takedowns, but as long as he brings those kicks back in quickly, he should be able to dominate on the feet here.
