UFC 247 picks – Syndication Server

UFC 247: Derrick Lewis vs. Ilir Latifi odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Saturday’s UFC 247 heavyweight fight between Derrick Lewis and Ilir Latifi, with MMA betting odds, picks and best bets.

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Derrick Lewis and Ilir Latifi will go toe-to-toe at UFC 247 at Toyota Center in Houston in a three-round heavyweight battle on the pay-per-view card (to watch, sign up for ESPN+ now). Below, we breakdown the Lewis-Latifi fight, with UFC 247 betting odds and picks.

Lewis (22-7-0, 1NC) enters this one with two losses to Daniel Cormier and Junior Dos Santos in his past three outings, but he stopped the bleeding against Blagoy Ivanov last time out at UFC 244 with a split-decision victory. He is expected to successfully continue this climb back to the top with this battle. Lewis heads into this one with distinct size advantages, standing 6-foot-3 to the 5-foot-10 Latifi, weighing in at 260 to 205 pounds while also holding the reach advantage at 79″ to 73.5″. In addition, he holds the lead in the significant strikes category at 49.95 significant strike accuracy percentage with 2.63 significant strikes landed per minute. If there is one area Lewis could fail, it’s in the ground game.

Latifi is a compact piece of iron who can take a beating, but his strategy will likely be avoiding a toe-to-toe battle for any length of time, while trying to get Lewis to the canvas early and often. His only advantage in the stats comes in the takedown average (1.85 to 0.52) and takedown accuracy percentage (30.56 to 25.0) departments, while also leading in submission average (0.51 to 0.00). That’s where Latifi will want to fight this main card bout.

Lewis-Latifi odds

Want to place a bet on UFC 247? Place them at BetMGM. New customer offer: Risk free first bet! Visit BetMGM for terms and conditions. Bet now!

Per BetMGM Sportsbook, Lewis (-239) is a moderate favorite in his heavyweight bout over Latifi (+175). The oddsmakers also lean to the match not going the distance (three rounds), with odds there being set at a -334 for No – and the odds to go a full three rounds at Yes +220.

Are you new to sports betting? A $10 wager on Latifi to pull the upset returns $17.50 in profit. A $10 bet on Lewis at -239 returns a profit of $4.20 with a victory.

Also See:

Lewis is a solid favorite, and normally a wager at odds lower than -175 is not my cup of tea. However, you can maximize your profits with a series of other bets while putting down a little lettuce on the big favorite, too.

Lewis-Latifi betting guide

The odds are very good that this bout will not going the full three rounds (-334), but that’s a rather risky play. Instead, go with the fight to go Over 1.5 rounds (-118), which will give you a little room to play with, and make you feel better if it does unexpectedly go the distance.

I think Lewis wins this one in Round 2 (+450) or Round 3 (+800). If you don’t want to pinpoint it, bet both. Unless the fight is decided in Round 1 or it goes the distance, you win, and you can win a lot. In fact, if you were to just bet each of these two wagers exclusively, it could be a tidy little payday. In fact, if you were to bet Lewis to win on points (+500), too, it’s a super hedge, but the only way you lose money is if he wins in Round 1 or Latifi wins. It’s a super safe way to bet this bout, but it could be effective if you don’t feel like risking it.

If you want to watch UFC 247, sign up for ESPN+ and catch all of the action. Speaking of action, if you want to bet on UFC 247, place your wagers at BetMGM now. For more sports betting picks and analysis, visit SportsbookWire.com.

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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UFC 247: Valentina Shevchenko vs. Katlyn Chookagian odds, picks and best bets

Previewing UFC 247’s women’s flyweight title bout between Valentina Shevchenko and Katlyn Chookagian, with MMA betting odds and picks.

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Valentina Shevchenko and Katlyn Chookagian tangle Saturday at UFC 247 at Toyota Center in Houston. The women’s flyweight title bout is on the main card and on pay-per-view (to watch, sign up for ESPN+ now). Below, we breakdown the Shevchenko-Chookagian fight, with UFC 247 betting odds and picks.

Shevchenko (18-3) is an overwhelming favorite to keep her belt in the title bout against Chookagian (13-2). On paper, she might look like the underdog with a four-inch height disadvantage and a slight reach advantage for Chookagian at 68″ to 66.5″. However, the southpaw feels confident in her abilities to distance herself from the big shot and administer big hits of her own. The stats back that up, as she has an impressive 49.73 significant strike accuracy percentage to 32.98 percent for Chookagian. In addition, if she is able to take the bout to the mat, watch out. She has a 51.28 takedown accuracy percentage and 1.94 takedown average to Chookagian’s zeroes in both categories.

Chookagian will be trying to keep the bout in a toe-to-toe situation, using her advantage in significant strikes landed per minute (4.35 to 3.02). While she is the slightly bigger fighter, Shevchenko has a ton of confidence, experience and if she gets the fight to the canvas, it’s over. Chookagian, a.k.a. the ‘Blonde Fighter’, has won five of her past six bouts since her loss to Liz Carmouche at UFC 205 Nov. 12, 2016; however, she doesn’t do much to excite. Each of her eight bouts since her UFC debut have been decided by judges. While she hasn’t been knocked out or submitted, she hasn’t put anyone on the mat, either.

Shevchenko-Chookagian odds

Want to place a bet on UFC 247? Place them at BetMGM. New customer offer: Risk free first bet! Visit BetMGM for terms and conditions. Bet now!

Per BetMGM Sportsbook, Shevchenko (-1429) is a tremendous favorite in the flyweight title bout over Chookagian (+650). The oddsmakers also lean to the match going the distance (five rounds), with odds there being set at a -167 for Yes – and the odds to not go a full five rounds at +120.

New to sports betting? A $10 wager on Chookagian to pull the upset returns $65 in profit. A $10 bet on Shevchenko at -1429 returns a profit of $0.70 with a victory.

Also See:

Shevchenko is expected to win, and win rather handily, and betting the 2-way line is not only risky, but not terribly profitable. So let’s look into some alternative wagers to maximize profits.

Shevchenko-Chookagian betting guide

I actually like the odds on the fight not going the full five rounds (+120). If Shevchenko is able to get Chookagian to the mat the American will have no answers. Of course, Chookagian hasn’t had a bout ended by submission or KO/TKO in her UFC career yet, but this is easily her most difficult opponent.

In addition, Shevchenko to win by submission (+350) is worth a roll of the dice. Both of Chookagian’s losses in her career have come via split-decision, and she hasn’t been submitted; however, Shevchenko’s ground game is strong and there is a first time for everything.

I am going to roll the dice, but I am looking for value here. I think Shevchenko has the goods to eventually tire out Chookagian, too. While I am not looking for a quick finish, there is a lot of value in betting Shevchenko to win in Round 4 (+1200). I don’t think it ends earlier than that, and if it gets to five rounds it will go to the judges. Round 4 just seems right. It’s a gut call.

If you also want to toss in a bet on the Total number of rounds – Over/Under going Under 4.5 (+125), there is a lot of value there, too. I mean, there isn’t a lot of wiggle room if you bet the Over (-176), but you have a ton of chance for a quick bout to put you in plus-money.

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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UFC 247: Jon Jones vs. Dominick Reyes odds, picks and best bets

Analyzing the big UFC 247 matchup between Jon ‘Bones’ Jones and Dominick Reyes for the title, with predictions and betting odds

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Jon ‘Bones’ Jones and Dominick Reyes square off Saturday at UFC 247 at Toyota Center in Houston, Tex. The light heavyweight bout is the main event on the pay-per-view card (to watch, sign up for ESPN+ now). Below, we breakdown the Jones-Reyes fight, with UFC 247 betting odds and picks.

Bones is back (24-1) defending his strap in Houston, and the 32-year-old is a heavy favorite to do just that. He topped Mauricio Rua back at UFC 128 for the title, and he has held the championship ever since. Of course, it hasn’t come without plenty of drama, with positive drugs tests and out-of-the-octagon issues. After a no-contest for a positive drug test after his win over Daniel Cormier at UFC 214 on July 29, 2017, he was away from the sport until Dec. 29, 2018. He returned with an absolute dismantling of Alexander Gustafsson, and he picked up a unanimous decision win over Anthony Smith at UFC 235 and a split-decision win over Thiago Santos at UFC 239.

Reyes (12-0) puts his unbeaten record on the line, and the southpaw is looking to do the unthinkable and sink one of the best of all-time in MMA, if not the greatest. The southpaw made his UFC debut June 25, 2017 against Joachim Christensen, winning in a KO/TKO, and four of his six UFC bouts have been won in Round 1, with a unanimous decision win at UFC 229 over Ovince Saint Preux and a split-decision win over Volkan Oezdemir at UFC Fight Night on March 16, 2019. He is coming off a knockout of Chris Weidman last time out on Oct. 18, 2019, but this will easily be his biggest test.

Jones-Reyes odds

Want to place a bet on UFC 247? Place them at BetMGM. New customer offer: Risk free first bet! Visit BetMGM for terms and conditions. Bet now!

Per BetMGM Sportsbook, Jones (-556) is a heavy favorite over Reyes (+350). The oddsmakers also lean to the match not going the distance (five rounds), with odds there being set at a whopping -250 for No – and the odds to go a full five rounds at Yes +175.

Are you new to sports betting? A $10 wager on Reyes to pull the upset returns $35 in profit. A bet on Jones at -556 returns a profit of $1.80 with a victory.

Also See:

Jones is expected to win, and it will be one of the biggest upsets in recent memory if he is unable to do so. The thing to figure out is the manner in which he’ll win, and how to maximize profits.

Jones-Reyes betting guide

I like the total number of rounds – Over/Under – to actually go OVER 2.5 (-154), and that’s the lean from the book. The Under (2.5, +110) would be a slight upset.

In addition, Jones to win by submission (+275) looks pretty tasty. He owns a 46.51 takedown accuracy percentage with a 1.90 takedown average. In addition, he owns the slight edge in submission average at 0.48-0.39.

If he doesn’t do it on the ground, the ‘striking’ difference between the two is in reach. Jones owns an overwhelming 84.5″-77″ reach advantage. They’re both strong in the striking game, but Reyes might not be able to get close to the champ.

Add in a bet on Jones (-556) winning outright on the 2-way line, and the fight not going the distance (-250), and you should be able to cobble together a nice profit despite the heavy chalk.

If you want some action on UFC 247, place your wagers at BetMGM now. For more sports betting picks and analysis, visit SportsbookWire.com.

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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