We are heading into UFC 331 where we get the Van vs Pantoja rematch from when Van won the belt because Pantoja fell backwards and his elbow popped out, with a ton of other very interesting and fun fights to round out the card. They really did line up some bangers for this one, and Dana added a chaos bonus of $50,000 for this card so I expect this to more than likely go to Iwo or Alonzo but it brings another fun element to the card. We lost Moicano vs Ortega, which sucks because Moicano was going to be a click and move on type play for the card, but top to bottom this fight card will be fun for DFS purposes.
For anyone who hasn’t read this article before, this series will be released every week on Thursday and will cover the slate by isolating the fighters that I like within the various salary groups. Plays are subject to change as new information comes out and you can unlock access to the entire suite of DraftKings DFS tools and information with Premium Membership!
$9,000+ PRICE POINT
Gable Steveson
He is being fed another can here, and should be able to drag Sharaf to the mat and find a finish quickly. His stand up has plenty of work to improve, but he is a big strong wrestler who will dictate where this fight takes place and I think he gets a first round finish here via ground and pound and beats the living hell out of Sharaf.
Robelis Despaigne
The only way he loses is if Tai somehow shoots takedowns and lands one, because we saw Austen Lane lay on top of him en route to a win. Robelis will have a 5 inch height and 9 inch each advantage here, and Tuivasa is about to lose one again to the Cuban Monster who will look to use his crazy power to KO tai. He needs to outscore Gable at this price point and do it with a quick knockout, or by battering Tai and finding a finish with a knockdown or two, but he has the power to do it.
Ryan Gandra
Gandra is going to come out and try to take Diaz’s head off here, and although he is giving up some size to Ozzy I think we see him get inside and obliterate him with another TKO finish here. He does not have any wrestling upside, so he will need to either land a ton of significant strikes en route to an early finish, or get a KO finish with a knockdown in the first two rounds to pay off his salary.
$8,000 – $8,900 PRICE POINT
Doo Hoo Choi
Pitbull is not very good, and Choi should be able to win here as long as he does not allow Patricio to drag him to the mat and lay on him for 3 rounds. He averages double the significant strikes per minute, has a 4 inch height advantage and 3 inch reach advantage, and I think we see him piece up Patricio here.
Casey O’Neill
This fight will come down to Casey’s takedown defense, and as long as it holds up she is going to maul Moura on the feet. She averages almost 8 significant strikes per minute, will mix in wrestling if she has to but I don’t think that is how she wants to attack this fight. She has a slight reach advantage and should use that to pick Moura apart on the feet, and if she can find another finish she will more than pay off her salary.
Edmen Shahazyan
I think we see Edman KO Brunno here, as he has bricks in his hands. He is going to have a 4 inch height advantage, 2 inch reach advantage, and as long as he doesn’t get caught exchanging in the pocket I think we see Edmen get another finish here.
Under $8,000 PRICE POINT
Alexandre Pantoja
Van is the champ, the favorite, and most people who saw Taira struggle and get finished against Van will now lean on the same happening here. I think while Taira is a better pure wrestler, Pantoja is a better complete MMA fighter. There is going to be a lot of hatred here as we have seen from the press conference, and as good as Van is on the feet, I think we will see Pantoja find success in getting the fight to the mat. Club and sub finish is what I think we see here, but regardless you will want this fight in your lineup because Van can score a million with the significant strikes, but I lean Pantoja to reclaim his belt here and then the push for the trilogy and make Kape wait some more.
Alonzo Menifield
One of these guys will be entering the shadow realm Saturday night. Iwo is the young exciting brawler who keeps knocking everyone out, and Menifield is the vet who has crazy power himself but questionable fight IQ. I think this fight will be similar to the Aslan fight where both guys get rocked, and it will ultimately come down to whoever lands the last shot when they are both out on their fight to finish it wins. 100% this fight has the “chaos bonus” written all over it, and I think you need one of them in your lineup no matter what, but I want the savings because in a win I think Menifield scores 100+ with a first round KO and he lets you spend up on the Steveson or Despaigne types.
Mauricio Ruffy
This fight, as everyone knows, comes down to how the wrestling of Arman goes. Ruffy will be the taller, longer fighter who has amazing striking, and Arman is a wrestling machine who has elite top control. Ruffy changed camps and has been working with Volk nonstop to improve his takedown defense, and his path to victory is a KO win, and if you want to spend up on the expensive guys you need cheap plays, and I trust him to find a KO more than the other cheapies down here.
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