UFC Fight Night 42 Date: June 7, 2014 Arena: Tingley Coliseum City: Albuquerque, NM Welterweight bout: “Vicious” Bobby Voelker (-120) vs Lance Benoist (+110) Fight Breakdown: The UFC Fight Night 42 televised preliminary card on FOX Sports 1 will be featuring a welterweight match-up in the form of “Vicious” Bobby Voelker vs Lance Benoist, with the 35-year old Voelker being a slight betting favorite at -120 ($120 to win $100) and the 25-year old Benoist being a small underdog at +110 ($100 to win $110) at Several Bookmakerss. “Vicious” Bobby Voelker (24-11 MMA, 0-3 UFC) is still in search for his first victory inside the Octagon, though many believe he was robbed of a decision victory against Patrick Cote in his promotional debut. Now, coming off a unanimous decision loss against William Macario, he is on a three fight skid and in desperate need of a win, as he surely has his back up against the wall. Voelker likes to stand and trade, and possesses knockout power, owning 15 of 24 professional Mixed Martial Arts career victories via T/KO. Despite having three knockout losses on his resume, he displays a solid chin and has only been knocked out once in the past six years. That knockout came via headkick against Robbie Lawler, which is nothing to be ashamed of. The Kansas City native prefers to strike, but he has a solid Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu game, as well; both offensively and defensively. He generally has decent cardio, so I think he’ll be able to go the distance against the faster, younger and more agile Benoist, should the fight hit the judges’ scorecards. Lance Benoist (6-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC) is coming off a 20-month long layoff and is currently on a two-fight skid, so he will likely be receiving a pink slip from the promotion with a loss in this match-up, unless he delivers a ‘Fight of the Night’ worthy performance in a losing effort. After defeating Matt Riddle in his Octagon debut, Benoist dropped a controversial split decision to Seth Baczynski. I personally scored that fight for Benoist, and I had personally bet on Baczynski in that match-up. He followed that up with a unanimous decision loss to Sean Pierson, in a fight Benoist did not show up in, whatsoever. He certainly did not fight to his potential, and did not look like his true self, at all. If he shows up the same way in this fight, after his 20-month layoff, then Voelker is going to run through him. However, if Benoist is mentally focused and motivated to win, I think he will run through Voelker and earn an impressive finish, if not a unanimous 30-27 decision victory on the judges’ scorecards. He does not have much cage experience, but when he is on, he is a very well-rounded Mixed Martial Artist who excels both on the feet and on the mat. He has incredible striking, as well as a solid ground game. Though, when he is not on, he can look like crap, which was the case in his last outing against Pierson. Benoist generally has great conditioning and I expect him to have enough in the tank for three rounds of action, though considering the lengthy layoff, that’s certainly no guarantee. Gabe’s Thoughts: Assuming Benoist is not on a decline with one foot out the door and is instead motivated to get his career back on track, I think he is going to defeat Voelker, and make it look quite easy. Gabe’s Call: Benoist by Submission (guillotine choke, 0:58, round 2) Gabe’s Recommended Play: Lance Benoist (+110) 3u to win 3.3u
