UFC Fight Night 61 Date: 02/22/15 Arena: Gigantinho Gymnasium City: Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to Brazil on Sunday, February 22nd with UFC Fight Night 61: Bigfoot vs Mir. The event will feature an entirety of 12-bouts, including a six-fight main card that will be live on FOX Sports 1 at 8pm ET. Preliminary action will precede it on FOX Sports 2 at 6pm ET with four fights, and two fights before it at 5pm ET on UFC Fight Pass. If interested in wagering on these plays, or any other plays for this fight card, you may do so at Several Bookmakerss. My live dogs for UFC Fight Night 61 in Brazil are: Welterweight bout: TJ Waldburger (+110) vs Wendell Oliveira (-130) Gabe’s Thoughts: I like Waldburger’s chances in this fight and especially like him at his current betting price of +110, as I think he should be a -280 betting favorite heading into this 170-pound match-up. He is far from being a top 15 welterweight, but I think he is the superior fighter (in the grappling/submission department, specifically) in this scrap and will find a way to get his hand raised, be it by submission, T/KO or decision. I favor him to score a submission, and I think it will come early. After some rough bumps on the road, I think this Sunday night Waldburger will finally return to the win column, likely with an impressive submission that gives the Brazilian fans no choice but to cheer for him. Gabe’s Call: Waldburger by Submission (triangle choke, 1:47 round 1) Gabe’s Recommended Play: TJ Waldburger (+110) 4u to win 4.4u Lightweight bout: Ivan Jorge (-240) vs Josh Shockley (+200) Gabe’s Thoughts: I’m not big on Shockley but I think this is a good spot for him to score an upset victory and return to the win column. He is the younger, bigger fighter, and as long as he doesn’t get finished, should have a good chance of winning the second and third rounds to defeat Jorge on the judges’ scorecards. At this point in his career, I don’t see Jorge as a huge threat to finish the fight. I would not generally want to bet on either of these lightweights, but I think Shockley should be the slight favorite here, so at 2-to-1 underdog odds, I’ll take him for a play. Gabe’s Call: Shockley by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Gabe’s Recommended Play: Josh Shockley (+200) 1.25u to win 2.5u
