June is about to be an incredible month for us UFC fans. Coming off one of the worst cards of the last several years, we are about to be treated to a stacked event on June 7th. Live from New Jersey, it’s UFC 316, headlined by two incredible title fights.
The first fight of the night I’m looking to make a play on is Khaos Williams vs Andreas Gustafsson. Gustafsson is stepping in a short notice, as WIlliams’ was originally slated to face Uros Medic who had to pull out a week ago due to medical reasons. This bout features two prominent strikers, with Gustafsson coming off of three straight KO victories. Williams, touted as one of the most powerful punchers in the welterweight division, is set as the -210 favorite coming into the event. I love the spot here for Williams. He has had a full camp and should be ready to avenge his submission defeat back in February. Williams stacks up as the better fighter on the feet statistically. Landing 5.36 Sig. Strikes/min compared to 4.56 by Gustafsson. I see both guys trying to end this thing early, with the edge to Williams in this one. I like Williams to win within the distance in this one.
The next fight, a clash of heavyweights (thank God it seems like Dana is finally making moves with Aspinall being the Undisputed champion) where Sergei Spivac squares off with Waldo Cortes Acosta. Listen, betting on big men not named Aspinall or Jones is always a wild ride…these fights can often be decided by one lucky punch. But that’s all you need here for the winning streak of Cortes Acosta to continue. He’s coming off a KO victory against Ryan Spann in March and I see him continue that in this one. Spivac was taken out early in his last bout, where he lost via TKO to Jailton Almeida. I thought Spivac looked unprepared and lethargic. It’s enough to concern me coming into this fight against a consistent Cortes Acosta. Gve me Cortes Acosta ML at +120 here, with a sprinkle on him to win by KO/TKO.
New women’s bantamweight champion??? Yes sir!! Kayla Harrison is coming into this fight as the HEAVY favorite at -650. I will pay that juice 7 ways until Sunday. I’m tying Harrison into every parlay that I can build this weekend as I just simply see her outclassing Julianna Pena en route to her inevitable first UFC gold. Where I can see Pena coming in and giving Harrison an issue is in the distance striking. If Pena can control the distance and keep it on the feet, this one will be close. However, I see Harrison playing to her strengths and making this a battle on the cage. Look for Harrison to win via decision, as Pena is an ever tough opponent who does not get finished often.
Live from the Prudential Center in Newark, this card is headlined by the defending bantamweight champion Merab Dvalishvili who seeks to claim another victory over the Suga show Sean O’malley. The current line sits has Merab as the -325 favorite while O’malley comes in as the +260 underdog. For those who don’t remember, Merab put on a show at the sphere where he claimed victory against the then champion Sean O’malley. His wrestling and cardio had outmatched the striking prowess of O’malley, in an impressive win by the then challenger. If you’re going off of previous fight history, it’s not hard to pick Merab to win here. However, I think the changes in O’malley’s preparation can be the difference here. O’malley had been the star of the division, and UFC, prior to his loss against Merab. What i’m looking at here is value. O’malley as the +260 underdog could possibly be the most we see him as a + money dog until his retirement fight….seriously. I think a healthy Sean O’malley is a dangerous one. From the reports, it seems he is coming in at full strength while Merab is dealing with a broken pinky toe. Merab is playing it off as unserious, but if you give me a slower moving Dvalishvili against a sniper like O’malley….watch out. Look for fireworks in this one, with my best bet as an O’malley knockout in the first 3 rounds. Either way, this one should be a great show. Both guys are looking to get the finish and make some more headlines in their respective great careers.
JMDSportsTalk 
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