Cash was a bit of a struggle this past week but I was able to cling to life in a couple of them in the last cash spot. This was largely due to Bill Algeo and then Loopy in other entries. I probably should know better than to use Loopy, but she is just one of those fighters I can’t ignore when the time comes. We have one more week before UFC 300. Following UFC 300 this article will be on hiatus for a bit while I finish making some website changes. It will return after those changes have been made and I have the free time again.

This week we head into the quiet of The Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The main event is a rematch from quite a while ago between Brendan Allen and Chris Curtis. The remainder of the slate is filled with numerous prospects, which leaves tons of room for error generally. Hopefully we can avoid the land mines and manage to squeeze a winning week out right before the biggest slate of the year.

For anyone that hasn’t read this article before, The Chalk Board is a DraftKings Daily Fantasy Sports article where I attempt to navigate the $9000+ salary range by offering you insight into who I will be using, considering, or fading from my personal lineups. In turn, this can help navigate the lower salary range as well by design. If you choose to alter your lineups based on my statements in this article, please understand that I am not a professional gambler or DFS player, so that decision is yours. Live with the results YOU get from the decisions YOU make.

The article is written for cash games and single entry tournaments, however you may see a large field or MME reference from time to time. It is split into three very distinctive sections. The first is the “Lock Them In” section which features the fighters in the salary range that I think will make a perfect addition to cash and small-field single entry lineups. The second section of the article is “Roll The Dice” which provides information on fighters that could be great for your lineup but come with added risk that make them more comfortable for GPP lineups than cash lineups. The third and final section of the article is “Stay Away” and that is exactly what it sounds like, these fighters should be avoided at all cost for single entry tournaments and cash games. You may still want to use them for larger tournaments however, and potentially for mass multiple entry contests as well where complete fades are less frequent.

LOCK THEM IN

VALTER WALKER – $9400 (-225)

Valter Walker is the brother of UFC fight Johnny Walker. He fights nothing like him though, training in Russia and fighting like a typical Dagestani make him an outstanding DraftKings play assuming he wins. He is unproven, so there is a question mark there, but he is being set up to win without question. Walker’s opponent is Lukasz Brzeski who can be taken down by a stiff wind. That fact alone makes Walker my favorite cash play on the slate. I will be using for small field tournaments as well, but I would understand going under the field slightly on him in larger contests. 

IGNACIO BAHAMONDES – $9100 (-320)

Bahamondes is a bit counter productive in his fighting style for DraftKings sometimes, usually settling around 85-90 points in his wins. While that makes him a bit sketchy in my opinion for tournament contests, it feels really safe for cash in my opinion. I will be using him as a cash building block this week, but will promptly be ignoring him when it comes to tournament entries.

ROLL THE DICE

ALEX MORONO – $9200 (-290)

Alex Morono is fighting veteran Court McGhee this week at UFC Vegas 90. Morono is a very high level grappler, but for whatever reason he doesn’t love grappling in his fights. Morono is generally looking to strike in his fights, and that makes him a bit of a question mark at this price in my opinion. I would be more apt to look to play him in larger field contests, but likely will be ignoring him for small field tournaments. I would consider him as a substitute for Bahamondes in cash contests though if you aren’t really interested in Ignacio, as Morno should be able to make this the third knockout loss in a row for McGhee. My only concern is how quickly that happens as Morono doesn’t typically finish early, but he does have enough to make it a possibility.

CHARLIE CAMPBELL – $9000 (-175)

Charlie Campbell is fighting fan favorite Trevor Peek this week. There are plenty of people riding the train for Peek, and the inside the distance line on this fight is solid. Those two facts mean that this fight is going to be pretty heavily owned in whole. I really like the Campbell side however as his technical striking and pressure is going to be problematic for Peek in my opinion. I will definitely be staying away for cash contests, but Campbell is my favorite tournament play this week from the 9k range.

STAY AWAY

MELISSA MULLINS – $9300 (-330)

This is either the clear fade in the 9k range this week, or the tournament play of the century with Melissa Mullins. The rationale that I am using is that we would need an early first round finish or three rounds of active wrestling and grappling to make her worth this salary, and I just don’t think we get that. Mullins does have pretty decent grappling upside here, but when compared to the other fighters in this range, I just don’t trust her enough. If she scores over 100 I will just have to be wrong this week I guess.

FINAL THOUGHT

The last slate before UFC 300, and hopefully after 300 we can start getting back on the grind of having decent events again. Either way, this week isn’t terrible for DFS in my opinion, with plenty of wrestling and exciting striking to be had across the slate. I will be looking forward to a card that starts before 7pm est as well, so I am moderately excited for this event, even if it is not the best on paper.

Hopefully, this Chalk Board article has helped you at least reduce the number of options in the upper salary range, and in turn isolate a few dogs you feel good about. I would like to take this time to again remind you to make YOUR OWN decisions. Don’t buy into anything I say unless it makes sense to you as well.

Good luck this week! If you need any help with your DraftKings entries you can join the free Discord server which has loads of very capable DFS players and I am sure you will find an opinion that will give you the confirmation bias that most people seek. If you need additional help then reach out to @WeWantPicks on Twitter. Thanks for reading, see you guys next week.