UFC Fight Night 49 Date: August 23, 2014 Arena: BOK Center City: Tulsa, Oklahoma Bantamweight bout: Aaron “The Model” Phillips (+188) vs Matt “The Crowbar” Hobar (-205) Fight Breakdown: The UFC Fight Night 49 preliminary card on FOX Sports 2 will be featuring a bantamweight bout between Aaron Phillips and Matt “The Crowbar” Hobar, with Phillips being the underdog at +188 ($100 to win $188) and Hobar being the betting favorite at -205 ($205 to win $100) at Several Bookmakerss. Aaron “The Model” Phillips (7-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) suffered his first taste of defeat as a professional mixed martial artist when he took on Sam Sicilia at UFC 173 on short notice just three months ago, replacing an injured Doo Ho Choi. He made his Octagon debut in the featherweight division but will now be dropping back down to his natural weight class of 135 pounds for this bout and hopes to immediately return to his winning ways. The 29-year old is a talented Muay Thai striker who has solid boxing and owns a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. He has decent wrestling skills but prefers to keep things on the feet. When taken down, he is good at getting back to his feet, but if he stays on the canvas, he remains active off his back. I don’t expect Phillips’ conditioning to be an issue, but it is something I’m going to be keeping an eye on. He began to fade against Sicilia, but that was on short notice. I’m interested to see how his cardio will hold up under the big lights, in the bantamweight division, should the fight reach the second half. Matt “The Crowbar” Hobar (8-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) gave up his Legacy FC bantamweight title when he got the call from Sean Shelby and made his Octagon debut on short notice while riding a three-fight winning streak. Unfortunately things not go his way on that night in Brazil three months ago, as his opponent Pedro Munhoz stopped him via strikes in the very first round of action. “The Crowbar” is a two-time high school wrestling champion who works excellent takedowns. He has great Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and is a threat when the fight hits the mat, owning 50% of his career wins by way of tapout. Hobar has great cardio and keeps a good pace. He is a talented mixed martial artist who is constantly improving. An extremely talented wrestler who took up jiu-jitsu and made it a big part of his game, “The Crowbar” has been working on his stand-up and adding tools to his striking arsenal. Gabe’s Thoughts: Simply put, I think Hobar’s superior wrestling is going to prove to be the difference in this one. I would not be surprised to see him earn a submission over Phillips, but I think more often than not he wins this bout via decision. I don’t see enough value in either the ITD or Decision props to make a play, however I do think he is worth a small straight play at the current betting odds of -205. Gabe’s Call: Hobar by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Gabe’s Recommended Play: Hobar (-205) 2.46u to win 1.2u
