UFC on FOX 9 Date: December 14, 2013 Arena: Sleep Train Arena City: Sacramento, C.A. Lightweight bout: Pat “Bam-Bam” Healy (-145) vs Bobby “King” Green (+125) Fight Breakdown: The preliminary card for UFC on FOX 9 on FOX Sports 1 will feature a lightweight contest between a pair of Strikeforce imports, when Pat “Bam-Bam” Healy steps inside the Octagon against Bobby “King” Green. Healy is currently a slight favorite in this match-up at -145 ($145 to win $100), while Green is a slight underdog at +125 ($100 to win $125) at Several Bookmakerss. PAT “BAM-BAM” HEALY (31-16-1 MMA, 0-1-1 UFC) looks to get his first official win inside the Octagon, while rebounding from a lopsided unanimous decision loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov. He had a somewhat successful run at welterweight before dropping down a weight class, as he holds notable victories over the likes of Dan Hardy, Paul Daley, and Carlos Condit. That said, Healy realized he needed to make the drop if he was ever going to get serious about making a title run. Healy is a gritty wrestler who loves to close the distance and grind his opponents out with an aggressive, smothering attack. He likes to get takedowns, and put the pressure on. In his last bout against Nurmagomedov, he received a taste of his own medicine, in that regard. The Russian did to him what he usually likes to do to his opponents; get a hold of them, and grind ‘em out for 15 minutes, not giving them an opportunity to really do anything. Healy works his takedowns pretty well, especially up against the cage. He has decent striking skills that are still improving after 47 professional fights. Healy is a warrior with incredible heart, and a will that is near impossible to break. He is well-conditioned, and having had a full training camp for this bout, I am confident that he will be able to go hard for all 15 minutes of action without getting tired. BOBBY “KING” GREEN (21-5 MMA, 2-0 UFC) jumped into the mixed martial arts pool with both feet nearly six years ago. At 21 years old, he saw it as an avenue to support his baby son. He won his first fight via knockout in the third round, and never looked back. Now in his 27th professional career fight, Green is set to make his third trip to the UFC’s Octagon, following a controversial first round knockout of James Krause, and a come from behind rear naked choke submission victory over Jacob Volkmann. He currently enjoys a six fight win streak, and looks to make it seven in a row against the fellow veteran in Healy. “King” is a flat-footed in the stand-up, but has many tools in his striking arsenal, not to mention a good chin, and above average defense on the feet. While he leaves his hands down, he manages to easily get out of the way of punches. That could only work for so long, as was evident with Chris Weidman’s knockout of Anderson Silva, but Healy doesn’t have the hand speed to take full advantage. Green is very active on the feet and mixes things up quite well, as he likes to dish out a heavy volume of strong kicks, and punches from all angles. He is a fast athlete who likes to move quickly and put the pressure on his opponents, as he is confident in his gas tank. Fight Prediction: Healy is going to look to do what he usually does; get in close, work against the cage, get a takedown, do some ground and pound, rinse, and repeat. The ground game is where he will have the advantage. Green is going to try and keep this fight on the feet, where he holds the advantage. He moves quickly, but being flat-footed is certainly not going to benefit him against a talented wrestler like Healy. Both guys have a lot of heart, and incredible cardio. Another thing they have in common is that they are both tough to finish. This is not an easy fight to predict, but I think more often than not, as long as Healy has his head together, he should be able to grind out two out of three rounds. Gabe’s Pick: Pat “Bam-Bam” Healy by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Gabe’s Recommended Play: Healy/Green over 2.5 rounds (-205) 2.87u to win 1.4u
