One of the prelims at UFC Fight Night 63 is a three-round middleweight bout between Justin Jones and Ron Stallings. According to the current betting lines available at Several Bookmakers, Jones is a -130 favorite (bet $130 to win $100) while Stallings is a +110 underdog (bet $100 to win $110). MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened up Jones at -170 and Stallings at +130, and most of the action has come in on the dog Stallings. I disagree with the money coming in on Stallings as I believe Jones will win this fight. Here’s why. Jones (3-1) is 0-1 in the UFC with a decision loss to Corey Anderson. The 27-year-old American took that fight with Anderson on short notice and while he did lose the fight, he held his own for 15 minutes and overall it’s hard to criticize him too much for his performance there as it was up a weight class. Dropping back down to 185lbs, I expect Jones to be better sized for his division and I expect his wrestling to be better. I also think his power will carry down well to middleweight. Jones is just a big, strong, aggressive fighter who throws bombs. He is still very raw in the sport, having only four pro fights, but he has some solid potential, and a win over Stallings would put him back on the right track. Stallings (12-7-1) is 0-1 in the UFC with a first-round TKO loss to Uriah Hall. The 32-year-old American took the fight with Hall on literally a week’s notice and looked pretty decent in the fight up until the point of him getting cut with a punch, which forced the doctor to stop the fight. In that bout Hall showed that he is an aggressive striker and that he is not scared of anyone. However, he also showed he has poor striking defence. This is a guy who has been knocked out three times in his career and overall he has lost his last two fights. He is a decent regional-level fighter, but he is not a UFC-caliber fighter. He still has a chance to win this fight against Jones, just because his opponent is so green, but overall he is the inferior fighter and is rightfully the underdog. This should be a pretty competitive fight but I think Jones’ size will be the difference. He’s dropping down to 185lbs and I feel like he’s just going to be a bit stronger and pack a bit more power than Stallings and I think it will help him out in this matchup. Stallings is game, no doubt about it, but I think Jones can use his girth to push his opponent up against the fence and possibly even land some takedowns. I also think he can land some heavy strikes on the feet. All in all, I like Jones to win the fight. However, it’s tough to bet him because there simply isn’t enough known about him and there isn’t enough tape to watch on him. The pick is Jones, but no bet.
