UFC Fight Night 85 Date: March 16, 2016 Arena: Brisbane Entertainment Centre City: Brisbane, Australia The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to Brisbane, Australia for the second time in promotional histry with UFC Fight Night 85: Hunt vs Mir. The action-packed card will feature 13 bouts in entirety, with the main card getting going at 10pm ET on FOX Sports 1 and preliminary action preceding it on the same channel at 8pm ET, with a trio of bouts before it on UFC Fight Pass at 6:30pm ET. If interested in wagering on any bouts for this fight card, all betting lines will be made available at Several Bookmakerss. My Fights to AVOID betting are: Women’s Strawweight bout: Bec Rawlings (+105) vs Seo Hee Ham (-125) Gabe’s Thoughts: I see this as being a closely contested bout in the UFC’s women’s strawweight division and slightly lean towars Ham at the moment due to her technical advantage on the feet. The main reason I am not confident in her is because of the size disadvantage she will have against Rawlings. It could prove to be worrisome, should this fight hit the canvas. On the feet, I think Ham is the smarter and more calculated striker. Should the fight play out on the feet for all 15 minutes, I would favor Ham to outpoint Rawlings for a unanimous nod from the judges’ at Octagon-side. However, I can see this fight playing out a number of ways, and feel it is one to leave untouched at the sportsbooks next weekend. Gabe’s Call: Ham by Split Decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28) Gabe’s Recommended Play: AVOID Women’s Bantamweight bout: Leslie Smith (-175) vs Rin Nakai (+155) Gabe’s Thoughts: This also appears to be a close fight to me, and at these odds, I think it is a “dog or pass” situation. For me, it is going to have to be a pass, as I don’t think there is quite enough value with Nakai at +155 to make it worth the squeeze. If she was +200, I would give her a shot, but at the current odds, I have to take a pass. I can see this women’s 135-pound contest playing out different ways and do think Nakai stands a decent chance of pulling out a decision or possibily securing a submission along the way. As for my official pick, at the moment, I slightly lean towards Smith to edge it out, however that could change following the weigh-ins on Friday. Bottom line, I think this is a fight to avoid betting at the sportsbooks on Saturday night. Gabe’s Call: Smith by Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) Gabe’s Recommended Play: AVOID
