(Editor’s note: This story first published at SportsBookWire, part of the USA TODAY Network.)
[autotag]Holly Holm[/autotag] and [autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] will square off Saturday in the UFC 246 co-main event.
Holm (12-5 MMA, 5-5 UFC) is a southpaw with a 69 to 67.5-inch reach advantage. She might not go to the ground as often as her counterpart, but when she does, she is very effective with ground and pound, posting a 31.58 takedown-accuracy percentage. Holm, who became women’s bantamweight champion when she knocked out Ronda Rousey at UFC 193 in November 2015, has lost four straight title bouts since, but she remains relevant and a problem for anyone in her way. A first-round knockout at the hands of champ Amanda Nunes last July 6 at UFC 239 is certainly nothing to hang her head about.
Pennington (10-7 MMA, 7-4 UFC) is rather accurate in the significant-strike department. And “Rocky” is coming off a decision win over Irene Aldana last July 20, showing she is still a force despite a rather unimpressive record overall. Like Holm, she has losses to Germaine de Randamie and Nunes in the past two years. Holm and Pennington also battled at UFC 184, with Holm coming away with a split decision win on Feb. 28, 2015, so Pennington will have the revenge factor.
Per BetMGM, Holm (-143) is only a slight favorite in this one over Pennington (+110). The oddsmakers also show a heavy lean to the match going the distance (three rounds), with odds there being set at -455 for and the odds to not go a full three rounds at +320.
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Are you new to sports betting? A $10 wager on Holm to win returns $7 in profit. A $10 bet on Pennington returns a profit of $11 with a victory.
These two have a history, as mentioned, and they went the distance in that previous bout in 2015. You can expect a similar result, as Pennington likes to drag things out. Five of her past six bouts have gone to the cards, and she has been on the successful end of four of those five fights. The play here is Holm to win by decision/technical decision -106. The fight should also go the distance, but at -455, that’s just too expensive. You can also bet the total number of rounds (OVER 2.5, -556), but those odds are even worse. Avoid, and just bet the fight straight up.
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