A couple new fights were added this weekend to upcoming UFC fight cards, and for today’s MMA odds and ends I’ll give my thoughts on them.
Glover Teixeira vs. Corey Anderson, UFC Fight Night 134
A light heavyweght bout between Glover Teixeira and Corey Anderson will take place at UFC Fight Night 134, which takes place Sunday, July 22 at Barclaycard Arena in Hamburg, Germany. Anderson is filling in on short notice for the injured Ilir Latifi. Teixeira (27-6) is 38-years-old now but he remains one of the top fighters at 205lbs in MMA. The Brazilian is coming off of a destructive TKO win over Misha Cirkunov and has won five of his last seven fights with the only losses in that stretch coming against top contender Alexander Gustafsson and former top contender Anthony “Rumble” Johnson. Overall, Teixeira is a solid 10-4 in the UFC with eight stoppage wins. Anderson (10-4) is only 28 so he’s one of the youngest fights in the light heavyweight division and he’s put together a solid 7-3 mark in the UFC. After suffering back-to-back KO losses, Anderson defeated Pat Cummins via decision in his last fight. This is a pretty solid replacement bout but I have a hard time going with Anderson. Yes, he’s the younger fighter and more mobile, but he’s also very chinny and he’s taking this fight on very short notice. I just don’t like this matchup for him, and I believe Teixeira should be a heavy favorite.
Devin Powell vs. Alvaro Herrera, UFC on FOX 30
A lightweight bout between Devin Powell and Alvaro Herrera will go down at UFC on FOX 30, which takes place Saturday, July 28 at Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The news was broken by MMA Brasil. Powell (8-3) has lost both of his UFC bouts and is danger of being cut with a third-straight loss. Herrera (9-5) has lost back-to-back fights and is just 1-2 in the UFC, so he’s also at risk of being released, especially if he gets finished again. This is one of those “loser goes home” type matchups unless it’s a “Fight of the Night” contender which I really doubt. I haven’t been impressed at all by either guy but I have to choose a winner and I would lean towards Powell in this one just because he has shown some better skills in the past. This definitely isn’t the kind of fight I would be looking to bet on, though, as both guys are just too inconsistent regardless of what the betting line looks like.
