Legacy FC has Friday night all to themselves this week, as they return to AXS TV as they return to the airwaves for the fourth time already in 2015 with Legacy FC 41. Former two-division champion Daniel Pineda has picked up right where he left off before leaving for the UFC, defeating Leonard Garcia and Thomas Webb with a pair of first round submissions over the past five months. He’ll continue his Legacy campaign at lightweight, taking on Johny Carson in the main event on Friday night. Carson last competed in April 2013, but has seen no less than five bouts fall through since then, including the originally scheduled Legacy 41 fight with Anthony Njokuani. Switching from Njokuani to Pineda will be a big test for Carson, as he was preparing for a pure striker, and now must step in with one of the most dangerous submission artists outside of the UFC. Pineda will likely come in with the same aggressive gameplan he usually has, aggressively pursuing the takedown and any submission opportunities. Against a fighter who has suffered all six of his career losses by submission, it almost seems too simple. Legacy FC 41’s co-main event features another pair of bantamweight prospects, something the organization seems to come across in spades (Henry Cejudo, Thomas Almeida, Ryan Benoit, and Matt Hobar all fought at 135 in Legacy), as Justin Rader and Ricardo Ramos put their undefeated records on the line. Rader is a no-gi world champion who won a bronze medal at the 2013 ADCC championships, but he’s not your average BJJ player, as he began his career from a wrestling base and doesn’t have the struggle many BJJ converts do getting the fight to the ground. Ramos has accumulated a 6-0 pro mark at just 19 years of age, using his solid BJJ game to notch four submissions while rounding out the rest of his skills. This will be his first time fighting in North America, and if he makes a good impression he could follow fellow Brazilians Almeida and Diego Ferreira to the UFC. MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened the betting lines for these two Legacy FC 41 bouts today at Several Bookmakers. Take a look: ——————– MAIN CARD (AXS TV, 10pm ET) Daniel Pineda -475 Johny Carson +325 Ricardo Ramos -135 Justin Rader -105 ——————– Brad’s Analysis: Not much to break down in the main event, Pineda will likely get a takedown, pass guard, and find a quick submission. I’d be pretty surprised if it went any other way. The price is steep, but for those looking to squeeze a bit of extra value out of some UFC bets, he could be a good add. Much of the public seems to favor Ramos in this fight. I think that he has a ton of potential, but I believe that the combination of coming to the US for the first time, fighting the first strong wrestler of his career, and facing someone who can outgrapple him is going to be too much. Ramos’ striking has improved and is likely better than Rader’s (although he is pretty stiff and leaves his chin up in the air), but his instincts still tell him to take the fight to the ground when he gets a chance. On the feet, Ramos also throws a lot of kicks, which should open up opportunities for Rader to score takedowns. I think he converts those takedowns into plenty of points, and may even find himself a submission here.
