We have an exciting weekend of fights in store, and it will be streaming on ESPN. The main even features the return of Colby Covington who is taking on a rising star in Joaquin Buckley. Besides that, the card features a ton of notable names and should offer a great night of action down in Tampa, FL.
Today, I will break down my 4 favorite bets for this weekend’s fight card. Let’s get into it!
This is the first fight of the night so make sure you tune in! This is a big test for the young fighter Ramon Taveras in a true prospect vs veteran matchup.
Davey Grant has been in the UFC since 2013, now 38 years old, he is a gatekeeper for the up-and-comers in the UFC. Taveras got his start in the UFC through Dana White’s Contender Series, where he went 1-1. However, his first real fight in the UFC was redemption, defeating Serhiy Sidey who took him out in the Contender Series.
I think this fight comes down to cardio. Davey Grant, through 20 professional fights, has never been KO’d. Taveras relies heavily on his power and has finished 5 of his 10 wins by KO.
Grant is aging, so Taveras may be able to catch him, but I think Grant will try and push the pace and use his grappling experience. However, I think Taveras will be able to withstand the pace and control this fight on the feet.
MY PICK: Ramon Taveras -105
This is easily one of my favorite fights on the card. We have Drakkar Klose, who is coming into this fight the winner of his last four, taking on Joel Alvarez, whose last loss was to title challenger Arman Tsarukyan.
This fight is going to be fireworks. Both of these guys have vicious KO power, and Alvarez has never won by decision in 24 fights. This fight is very interesting with the odds as they currently sit. Alvarez is –440, but Klose is as tough as they come.
However, I think the young Spaniard is going to show how elite he is. I think he can outclass Klose in every facet of the fight and the way these guys fight it will not be going the distance.
MY PICK: Joel Alvarez by KO/TKO/DW or Submission -140
We will now jump to the Co-Main event of the night. These two are legends of the game. Swanson has been fighting in the UFC since 2011, which is insane. He has 43 fights in his career and he always puts on a show.
Quarantillo has only been in the UFC since 2019 but has fought 10 times in those 5 years holding a UFC record of 6-4. Both of these guys are always down to scrap so I think we’re in store for a fun matchup.
Cub Swanson, impressively has only been KO’d 3 times in his 43-fight career, but 2 of them have come within his last 5 fights. Quarantillo has power and a ton of cardio, but he hasn’t been able to string together any wins recently, holding a 3-3 record through his last 6. I think this will be a fun scrap, but I don’t think either of these guys will be able to pull off a finish.
MY PICK: Billy Quarantillo by Decision +240
And now for the main event of the evening! Colby Covington, a perennial contender at welterweight over the last 10 years, will take on rising star Joaquin Buckley. This fight is very intriguing to me matching up completely different styles.
Covington tends to wear on fighters, using his legendary cardio and grappling to weaken his opponents throughout the fight. On the other hand, Buckley is explosive as they come. He has 14 wins by KO out of his 20 total and is coming off of a KO win over another legend Wonderboy Thompson.
I’m very interested to see how this fight plays out. The last time we saw Colby was just over a year ago and he looked terrible in a boring fight against Leon Edwards for the title. Now 36 years old, time is running out for Covington to ever hold the belt. Colby may have lost 3 of his last 5, but they have all come at the hands of UFC legends Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards.
Meanwhile, Buckley has slowly been climbing the ranks and is now on a 5-fight win streak where he has taken out some impressive names like Vincente Luque and Wonderboy Thompson. I think we are going to see two highly motivated fighters face-off this weekend with aspirations to fight for a title. However, I think Colby’s big fight experience and cardio will carry him.
MY PICK: Colby Covington by Decision +330