In an event that more than lived up to expectations, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) put on a very entertaining show in Melbourne, Australia, last night (Saturday, November 14, 2015) for UFC 193, which was headlined by a women’s bantamweight title bout between Ronda Rousey and Holly Holm. Overall, on the night, seven betting favorites were victorious while six underdogs picked up wins based on Several Bookmakers‘s closing odds. UFC 193 Favorites That Won In the co-main event of the evening, strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk withstood a stiff test from Valerie Letourneau. Letourneau won the first round with some top control and flustered the Polish prodigy with her size. But once Jedrzejczyk settled in, she managed to outwork Letourneau over the course of the remaining four rounds and was still light on her feet by the end of the fifth as the Canadian began to fade. In the end, Jedrzejczyk would win a unanimous decision closing as a -1300 favorite (Bet $1300 to win $100) while Letourneau couldn’t keep up the pace as a +1050 (Bet $100 to win $1050) underdog. In a heavyweight bout, Mark Hunt finished what he’d started nearly two years ago by putting away Antonio Silva with a first round TKO. Neither fighter engaged much early, but a grazing hook from Hunt caught Silva near the top of his head and he went down. Hunt landed a few more blows as Bigfoot turned away and that was all she wrote. Hunt came through as a -280 betting favorite while Silva was a +255 dog. In a lightweight fight, Jake Matthews survived an early scare against Akbarh Arreola and went on to batter his opponent into a stoppage victory. Arreola had Matthews hurt and was in a dominant position for much of the first round, but the young Aussie reversed the position and proceeded to unleash heavy ground and pound for the next five-plus minutes. Matthews lived up to his massive -900 favorite status while Arreola was +700. In a light heavyweight scrap, Gian Villante made quick work of Anthony Perosh, battering him before knocking him out cold with a right hand. Villante was a hefty -570 favorite while Perosh was a +480 underdog. In a welterweight bout, Patrick Walsh had his way with Steven Kennedy on the feet, but kept allowing Kennedy to get back into the fight with takedowns and ground attacks. The leg kicks Walsh landed early ended up doing some serious damage as Kennedy faded in the third round and wasn’t able to get anything going. Walsh was able to take a decision relatively one-sided decision. Walsh was victorious as a -400 favorite while Kennedy was +355. In a welterweight battle, James Moontasri handled an early scare from Anton Zafir to pick up a first round TKO. Zafir scored a takedown and kept Moontasri on his back for a majority of the first round, but once Moontasri worked back to his feet, he landed a huge spinning back kick to the body which hurt Zafir and then finished him with a spinning backfist and strikes on the ground. Skelly pulled it out as a -380 favorite while Souza lost as a +340 dog. In the opening bout of the evening in the flyweight division, Ben Nguyen made quick work of Ryan Benoit. Nguyen showcased exceptional striking early before quickly attacking with a rear naked choke on the ground which forced a tap at the midway point of the first frame. Nguyen came through as a -125 betting favorite while Benoit was overwhelmed as a +125 underdog. UFC 193 Underdogs that Won In the main event of the evening, Ronda Rousey’s hype train was massively derailed as she walked face first into the buzz saw that was Holly Holm. Rousey repeatedly pushed the action but spent way too much time trying to outstrike a world class kickboxer, eating a ton of strikes and eventually getting head kick KO’d early in the second round in one of the most shocking upsets in UFC history. Holm was crowned the new UFC women’s bantamweight champion after overcoming +570 underdog odds while Rousey was dethroned as a -705 favorite. In a middleweight war, Robert Whittaker took the fight to Uriah Hall, securing occasional top position and pressing the action while avoiding most of Hall’s diverse offense en route to taking a unanimous and entertaining decision victory. Whittaker was a +150 underdog while Hall was a -160 betting favorite. In a heavyweight contest, Jared Rosholt utilized his wrestling to control Stefan Struve for the first two rounds, getting outstruck, but not hurt enough. Struve likely needed a finish in the third and he couldn’t commit to heavy blows due to fear of the takedown as Rosholt walked away with a unanimous decision. Rosholt was a +145 underdog while Struve lost as a -155 favorite. In a weltereight bout, Kyle Noke pulled off a shocker by making quick work of Peter Sobotta. Noke landed a big body kick and Sobotta never recovered. Noke won as a +215 underdog while Sobotta was a -235 favorite. In a flyweight contest, Danny Martinez used his superior wrestling and aggression to outwork Richie Vaculik and earn a unanimous decision. Vaculik could never get anything going as Martinez utilized the takedown to great effect. Martinez earned the nod as a +120 dog while Vaculik was -130. In a middleweight scrap, Daniel Kelly used his superior judo skills to manhandle Steve Montgomery on the ground. Montgomery had his moments on the feet but closed the distance and that was his downfall as Kelly won the decision. Kelly was a +240 underdog while Montgomery lost as a -260 betting favorite.
