UFC Fight Night 72 took place earlier today at the SSE Hydro in Glasgow, Scotland, and overall the card was very exciting featuring several quick stoppages as well a few entertaining decisions. Overall from a betting perspective, 10 favorites and two underdogs won based on the closing odds at Several Bookmakers. Here’s a quick recap for each fight. UFC Fight Night 72 Favorites That Won In the main event of the evening, Michael Bisping and Thales Leites competed in a very close five round battle that saw both men have their moments. Leites utilized a smart gameplan of constant forward pressure looking to corner Bisping along the fence while Bisping tried to land combinations from the outside. Leites landed the heavier shots but Bisping landed more and when it was all said and done, Bisping walked away with a very close split decision (49-46, 47-48, 48-47) as a -130 (Bet $130 to win $100) favorite while Leites lost as a underdog at +120 (Bet $100 to win $120). In a lightweight bout, Joseph Duffy obliterated Ivan Jorge via first round submission. Duffy landed stiff punches and knees early and latched on a tight triangle choke when Jorge closed the distance to try to take the fight to the ground which forced a tap. Duffy pulled off the submission at -900 while Jorge was put away as a+700 underdog. In a welterweight bout, Leon Edwards outworked Pawel Pawlak to earn a unanimous decision victory. Edwards didn’t have a ton of space to work, but managed to maintain the superior position both in the clinch and on the ground when he entered those spots. He also hammered Pawlak with a head kick but couldn’t put him away. Edwards won at -380 while Pawlak closed at +340. In the opening bout of the main card, Stevie Ray scored a first round TKO of Leonardo Mafra. The Scotsman Ray cracked Mafra with some tight boxing, eventually swarming the Brazilian and putting him away to rile up the Glasgow crowd. Ray held serve as a -215 favorite while Mafra lost as a +195 dog. In a flyweight bout, Paddy Holohan showcased several improvements with a unanimous decision victory over Vaughan Lee. Holohan was dangerous from both bottom and top position on the ground and was the more active fighter on the feet as Lee began to tire out down the stretch and simply looked to counter. Holohan won as a -140 betting favorite while Lee came up short at +130. In a light heavyweight bout, Ilir Latifi put a hurting on Hans Stringer, quickly closing the distance and finishing him in the first round after landing a heavy right counter to score the knockout. Latifi scored another quick finish as a -225 favorite while Stringer was smashed as a +205 underdog. In a featherweight contest, Robert Whiteford made the native Scottish fans very happy with a dominant performance, earning another first round TKO victory over Paul Redmond. Redmond had nothing for Whiteford and ate some big shots before succumbing to strikes. Whiteford was victorious at -150 while Redmond was finished as a +140 dog. In the bantamweight division, Jimmie Rivera made a very impressive UFC debut by scoring a first round TKO over Marcus Brimage. Brimage attempted to be game, but he had his chin tested once again and failed. Rivera made a splash as a -140 favorite while Brimage was finished at +130. In the opening bout of the evening, heavyweights Daniel Omielanczuk and Chris De La Rocha ended things very quickly. Omielanczuk landed some stiff strikes early to stagger De La Rocha and the UFC newcomer never fully recovered, eventually getting dropped after just over 40 seconds for a TKO. Omielanczuk was victorious at -130 and De La Rocha was finished quickly as a +120 underdog. UFC Fight Night 72 Underdogs that Won In the lightweight division, Evan Dunham utilized a very smart gameplan against Ross Pearson, forcing the Brit to fight his fight both on the ground and on the clinch en route to pulling off a unanimous decision upset. Pearson never had enough space to really get his powerful striking going and Dunham did more than enough to sway the judges. Dunham pulled off the upset as a +215 underdog while Pearson couldn’t get anything going as a -235 favorite. In a lightweight contest, Teemu Packalen started strong against Mickael Lebout but ran out of steam. Lebout showcased an improved ground game and some composed stand-up but it was his conditioning that really helped him pull out the win as Packalan faded down the stretch. Lebout scored the first upset of the evening as a +125 underdog while Packalan failed to win his UFC debut at -135.
