One of the prelims at UFC on FOX 14 is a three-round lightweight bout between Mairbek Taisumov and Anthony Christodoulou. According to the current betting lines available at Several Bookmakers, Taisumov is a -650 favorite (bet $650 to win $100) while Christodoulou is a +475 underdog (bet $100 to win $475). MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas opened up Taisumov at -505 and Christodoulou at +335, and the betting public has come in on Taisumov as expected. I agree with Taisumov being a big favorite here and I’m picking him to win this fight. Here’s why. Taisumov (22-5) is so far 2-1 in the UFC with wins over Marcin Bendel and Tae Hyun Bang and a loss to Michel Prazeres. The 26-year-old Russian is extremely dangerous anywhere the fight goes and has secured 11 wins by T/KO and 10 wins by submission so far in his career. He has extremely heavy punches and kicks so opponents don’t want to stand and trade with him, but if they try to take him down he is adept at attacking both off his back and from on top. He doesn’t have great wrestling, but his takedown defence is overall pretty solid save for his fight against Prazeres where he kept grabbing the fence. Taisumov is a solid prospect at 155lbs and training at Tiger Muay Thai under the tutelage of Roger Huerta, he is constantly getting better and better and I expect him to shown his skills off in this fight against Christodoulou. Christodoulou (12-4) is a talented prospect who is making his UFC debut on short notice, filling in for an injured Yan Cabral to fight Taisumov. The 27-year-old Greek is currently riding a seven-fight win streak mainly fighting on the Greek regional circuit. He is actually 12-1 overall in his last 13 fights after beginning his career 0-3, with his only loss in the last five years coming to UFC lightweight Yosdenis Cedeno. Christodoulou, who trains his BJJ with Renzo Gracie, is mainly a grappling-based fighter. He looks to take his opponents down and get position on the ground and go for submissions or try to rain down punches for the win. He has eight career stoppage wins (four T/KOs and four submissions), with most of those stoppages coming on the ground. He does not have good striking although he does have a good chin which allows him to eat shots as he walks in before closing the distance and getting a takedown. Still, while that may have worked for him on the regional circuit, it’s hard to see that working in the UFC against a talented striker like Taisumov, and that’s why you see the line the way it is. Taisumov is a wicked striker with solid takedown defence and I expect him to dispatch of short-notice opponent Christodoulou fairly quickly in this bout. I think Christodoulou might turn into a pretty good fighter down the road, but this is just a tough matchup for him and I can’t see him winning. Look for Taisumov to light him up on the feet early with strikes and finish him in impressive fashion. Even with the high line, he’s still worth betting on in a parlay as he’s one of the most-likely winners at UFC on FOX 14.
