Gian Villante jumps to heavyweight for June 27 fight with Maurice Green

Veteran slugger Gian Villante moves up to heavyweight for the first time since 2011 as he gets set to take on “The Crochet Boss.”

A popular light heavyweight slugger will test his mettle at 265 pounds next time he steps foot in the octagon.

Long Island’s [autotag]Gian Villante[/autotag] will take on up-and-comer [autotag]Maurice Green[/autotag] on the upcoming UFC June 27 card. MMA Junkie confirmed an initial report by MMA Fighting.

Villante (17-11 MMA, 7-8 UFC) has a habit of finding himself in exciting fights, win or lose, as attested by his three “Fight of the Night” bonuses in the UFC. He’s dropped two of his past three bouts, and will compete at heavyweight for the first time since an alternates fight in the legendary Strikeforce grand prix in 2011.

Greene (8-4 MMA, 3-2 UFC) meanwhile, entered the UFC via “The Ultimate Fighter 28.” The fighter nicknamed “The Crochet Boss” won his first three official UFC fights, but is now trying to snap a two-fight losing streak.

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The UFC is planning on holding the June 27 card at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, pending the resumption of combat sports in the state of Nevada.

The latest lineup for the UFC’s June 27 card includes:

  • Dustin Poirier vs. Dan Hooker
  • Viviane Araujo vs. Jennifer Maia
  • Alexa Grasso vs. Ji Yeon Kim
  • Gian Villante vs. Maurice Greene

UFC 246: Aleksei Oleinik vs. Maurice Greene odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Saturday’s UFC 246 lightweight bout between Aleksei Oleinik and Maurice Greene, with UFC betting odds, picks and best bets.

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Aleksei Oleinik and Maurice Greene will battle at UFC 246 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas Saturday night in a heavyweight bout on the pay-per-view card (To watch, sign up for ESPN+ now).

Oleinik (57-13-1) is battle tested with a lengthy history in mixed martial arts. He is 42 years old after all. Since joining the UFC June 28, 2014, he has fought some of the best in his division with mixed results. He owns wins over Anthony Hamilton, Mark Hunt and Jared Rosholt, while suffering losses to Curtis Blaydes, Walt Harris and Alistair Overeem. Oleinik’s last two bouts have ended up knockouts, including just 12 seconds against Harris at UFC Fight Night July 20. He is nicknamed ‘The Boa Constrictor’ – he wants to get fighters on the ground and win by submission. Five of his six wins in UFC have been by submission, and that’s how he has made a name for himself over the years.

Greene (8-4) heads into this one with a five-inch height advantage, a slight reach advantage and he lands many more significant strikes per minute. He’ll be trying to blast Oleinik and knock him out early, looking to avoid tiring out and becoming susceptible to the takedown and the alligator-jaw like legs of Oleinik. Greene isn’t much for the ground and pound, and he has just a 0.65 submission average and no takedown average or takedown accuracy to speak of. He’ll need to do whatever he can to avoid going to the mat, or Moe Greene will be out of the Tropicana … err, T-Mobile Arena. That’s for you, Irwin Fletcher!


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Per BetMGM, Greene (-134) is considered the favorite by an ever so slight margin over Oleinik (+100). The oddsmakers also show a heavy lean to the match not going the distance (three rounds), with odds there being set at -715 for no, while odds to go a full three rounds is at +400.

New to sports betting? A $10 wager on Greene is even money, returning a $10 profit if he wins. A $10 bet on Oleinik to win returns a profit of $7.46 with a victory.

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With the distance wager odds, you can tell Vegas fully expects that the judges will not be involved. This one is either ending in a knockout by Greene, or a submission win by Oleinik. But that’s where it gets tricky, and when will the victory occur? I like Greene to punch himself out early, trying to tire the 42-year-old Russian with an early flurry. If Oleinik can withstand those early blows, it will be good news for his backers. OLEINIK to win by SUBMISSION (+170) is a tremendous value, while Greene to win by KO/TKO or DQ is (+100) even money. My suggestion is taking the better value, going with Oleinik to win by submission, and taking him to win in ROUND 2 (+500), which will make for a tidy little payday. If Greene wins, it is going to be by punches and in Round 1, paying (+210). I can see either scenario, but for my money, I like OLEINIK to snap his two-bout skid and get a win.

If you want some action on this mixed martial arts bout, place your wagers at BetMGM now. For more sports betting picks and analysis, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Follow @JoeWilliamsVI and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

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