A number of new UFC fights were announced this week, and for today’s MMA Odds and Ends I’ve decided to give my quick thoughts on all of them. Zach Makovsky vs. Scott Jorgensen, UFC on FOX 9 The first fight I should mention is a flyweight bout between UFC newcomer Zach Makovsky and Scott Jorgensen, which takes place next weekend at UFC on FOX 9. Makovsky, the former Bellator bantamweight champ, won the RFA flyweight title just two weeks ago and so takes this fight against Jorgensen on very short notice after John Dodson pulled out with an injury. Had he had a full camp, I would have given him a much better chance to win, but considering Jorgensen has had a full camp, he should be the favorite here. I’m guessing Jorgensen opens at around -200 or less for this fight, as the hype behind Makovsky is reaching new heights as of late. Although I think “Fun Size” is a great signing for the UFC, I think that Jorgensen is a bad matchup for him and I’m expecting “Young Gunz” to win this fight. Rafael dos Anjos vs. Rustam Khabilov, UFC 170 A lightweight bout between surging contenders Rafael dos Anjos and Rustam Khabilov has been added to UFC 170. It’s an absolutely phenomenal fight, and one that will shoot the winner way up there in the lightweight rankings. It’s tough to say what the betting line will look like, but honestly, I feel like Khabilov should be about a -140 favorite here, with the comeback of about +100 on dos Anjos. I know that dos Anjos is ranked higher at the moment and has a very nice win streak going, but Khabilov matches up well against him and I have a feeling Khabilov may come through with this win. Jon Jones vs. Glover Teixeira, UFC 171 Also, the UFC made official (finally) the light heavyweight title fight between Jon Jones and Glover Teixeira, which will take place at UFC 171 next March in Dallas, TX. There is already a betting line available for this fight, so bet accordingly. Although most will be parlaying Jones, I already know that I’m going to be putting a small wager on Teixeira should he be a +500 dog by fight day. Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Sean Soriano, UFC Fight Night 34 In a featherweight bout, Sean Soriano steps up on short notice to fill in for Hacran Dias against Tatsuya Kawajiri at UFC Fight Night 34. Soriano is a very good prospect but this is a very difficult matchup for him on short notice and I expect Kawajiri to come through with the win. I need to watch more footage on Soriano, but my initial thoughts are that Kawajiri is going to open up around -300 for this fight. Thiago Tavares vs. Zubair Tuhugov, UFC Fight Night 36 And finally, Thiago Tavares has decided to drop down to 145 and he’ll make his featherweight debut against Zubair Tuhugov at UFC Fight Night 36. I don’t know much about Tuhugov but he does have KO power and Tavares has a weak chin. So we’ll see if he’s able to take advantage of that next February when this fight goes down. But even still, expect Tavares to open as the favorite here.
