UFC events are becoming a weekly occurrence, and they never disappoint. Don’t miss this weekend’s explosive featherweight showdown at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas – it promises to be a thriller!
#11-ranked Sodiq Yusuff will be meeting the legendary #13-ranked Edson Barboza in a main event bout on Saturday night. Let’s take a deep dive into this matchup and learn how to bet on UFC, what to look for in this fight, and, of course, the official Yusuff vs Barboza picks to make on this weekend’s betting slate.
The process of making UFC predictions every weekend is the toughest in all of sports betting. We will need to dig deep into this matchup and break down why one of these guys is the best bet to make to win some serious money on Saturday night. Will the UFC veteran have what it takes at featherweight to get by one of the most impressive upcoming contenders?
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UFC: Sodiq Yusuff vs. Edson Barboza Betting Trends
- Sodiq Yusuff is 4-1 in his last five appearances in the UFC octagon.
- Edson Barboza is 3-2 in his last five UFC appearances.
- Yusuff has been the betting favorite in every single UFC bout he’s been in besides his bout against the tough Andre Fili. (+125 underdog)
- Barboza has been the betting underdog in four out of his last five UFC bouts heading into this main event.
- Yusuff has seven finishes (six TKO/KO and one SUB) in his professional MMA career. (15 fights)
- Barboza has 15 finishes (14 TKO/KO and one SUB) in his professional MMA career. (34 fights)
How to Bet on Sodiq Yusuff vs. Edson Barboza
Usually, the first thing to do when you want to bet is to look at the UFC odds for the fight you are going to make a play on. In this one, Yusuff is coming in as the -170 betting favorite over the +145 Barboza. Barboza has been looked at as the underdog in most of his recent fights due to his age and some of the losses he suffered in his prime.
The betting lines are very important because they control the payouts you can receive for a winning bet. If someone is a massive -500 favorite, it’s not worth betting on them because you will win only $100 if you make a huge $500 bet. This matchup is close enough where the moneylines are enough to bet on.
You can bet at UFC on Bovada or any other major sportsbooks that are available to you wherever you’re located around the world. Bovada has pretty much exactly the same lines as the other major sportsbooks for this featherweight main event bout.
Gathering Info for Your UFC Predictions
Next, you have to be able to understand the style of fighter each athlete is and what they might want to implement as a game plan on UFC fight night tonight against their new opponent. This information can be gathered by looking at statistics, records, and, most importantly, watching the film.
Yusuff’s fight footage reveals his dynamic athleticism and impressive featherweight power, making him a formidable competitor in the octagon. He has a very nice boxing technique with a sharp jab. He has also shown that he starts fast and then tends to slow down in round three–this will be an interesting thing to keep your eye on in Saturday’s fight.
Barboza is kind of tough to analyze because he’s been doing this for so long and has fought literally every elite fighter he possibly could.
Barboza’s age and late transition to featherweight raise questions about his performance, adding intrigue to this upcoming fight. Technically, Barboza has some of the fastest and most devastating kicks that the sport has ever seen. Barboza is effective against opponents who lack octagon mobility and stand stationary, often capitalizing with his swift and powerful kicks.
An interesting note to think about: Yusuff’s toughest moments in the UFC have been going up against a southpaw. When Fili switched to southpaw, he was landing cleanly on a tired Yusuff, and his loss to Allen showed his struggles against the left hand down the middle.
Sodiq Yusuff vs. Edson Barboza Betting Picks
The breakdown and analysis of this fight have been one of the more fun ones of the year so far. These two are always fun to watch and will put on a show for the fans on Saturday night–it’s too bad that it can’t be in front of an arena full of fans.
The best of our Yusuff vs Barboza picks for this main event bout is that Barboza will get his hand raised and secure yet another upset victory in this later stage of his career. This will most likely be a dominant decision win because Yusuff is tough, but if Yusuff gasses out later in the fight, look for Barboza to sense that and get him out of there.
The reasoning behind this prediction is that Barboza is longer and a master of managing distance in a fight. Yusuff uses his strength and explosiveness to crowd his opponents and does his most damage in boxing range.
Barboza is going to beat the hell out of Yusuff’s legs and throw kicks to the body to keep him at a comfortable range for Barboza. Low kicks opening opportunities for dangerous head kicks will be a recurring tactic as the fight unfolds.
When making your Yusuff vs Barboza picks, you can go with the moneyline of Barboza because it’s underdog odds, and this game is too unpredictable to try and bet on the method of victory over a fight like this. The initial leg kick from Barboza might lead to Yusuff’s drop foot and a rapid fight conclusion within seconds.
Top Sportsbooks Odds
BetOnline: Barboza +145
Bovada: Barboza +140
MyBookie: Barboza +133
BetUS: Barboza +140
BetNow: Barboza +140
Bonus! Other Fights Worth Placing a Bet On
This UFC event at the APEX this weekend has a bunch of interesting matchups to bet on. Look at the co-main event between Viviane Araujo and Jennifer Maia.
Maia has looked great in her last few, and her boxing is going to get the better of Araujo. This is a great -150 odds pick to make this weekend.
Lastly, a bonus pick to make is the underdog pick in Andre Petroski going up against Michel Pereira. Petroski’s wrestling and grappling are going to be very tough to handle over three rounds.
Pereira isn’t going to be massive anymore now that he moved up to middleweight, so the physicality of Petroski is a great reason to take him at +170.
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