The UFC’s first trip to Croatia is literally turning into a big deal, with numerous heavyweight bouts throughout the card. At the top of UFC Fight Night 86 in Zagreb is a key clash between former champion Junior dos Santos and the division’s newest Cinderella man, Ben Rothwell. A number of heavyweight prospects are also scheduled to class, giving the night marked importance in a thinning division.
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Main Event, Heavyweights
Ben Rothwell -130
Junior dos Santos +100
Over/under 1.5 rounds, over -140, under +120
Rothwell might be one of the most unlikely heavyweight contenders on the roster, but his recent four-fight win streak speaks for itself. Knocking out a knockout artist in Alistair Overeem and submitting a submission in Josh Barnett is extremely impressive, especially for a guy that was an afterthought in the division.
Dos Santos is just 2-3 in his past five, and he really hasn’t looked the same since his first loss to Cain Velasquez. The two victories he’s earned of that time frame - against Mark Hunt and Stipe Miocic - were grueling, bloody affairs put a lot of miles on the Brazilian’s body. In his most recent outing, dos Santos was knocked out for just the second time in his career by Overeem.
UNDERCARD HEAVYWEIGHT BOUTS
Gabriel Gonzaga vs. Ruslan Magomedov
Francis Ngannou vs. Bojan Mihajlovic
Tomothy Johnson vs. Marcin Tybura
Cyril Asker vs. Jarod Cannonier
Dagestani prospect Ruslan Magomedov will look to stay perfect in the octagon against Gabriel Gonzaga. A victory over Gonzaga would be his most significant win yet and could signal that he’s ready for a top-15 opponent. At age 29, Magomedov is one of the younger fighters in an aging heavyweight division. Gonzaga is in the gatekeeper role of his career and just 1-3 in his past four fights.
France’s Francis Ngannou is coming off a second round KO victory in his UFC debut and certainly passes the eyeball test as a chiseled 6’5”, 250-pound fighter. He can build on his momentum against Serbia’s Bojan Mihajlovic, who will be making his UFC debut on the strength of a 10-fight winning streak in regional promotions.
Former M-1 heavyweight champion Marcin Tybura will also be making his UFC debut in a matchup against American Tim Johnson. 11 of Tybura’s 13 victories have come by way of stoppage, while all of Johnson’s nine wins have come before the bell. This one should be a crowd-pleaser.
Another French heavyweight, Cyril Asker, will make his promotional debut. The 30-year old is carries a five-fight win streak into the octagon to face Jared “The Killa Gorilla” Cannonier. Both men are relative unknowns right now but could make a statement on the prelims.
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Access live betting lines from your mobile device at BookMaker sportsbook! You can even wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker’s live betting platform. Money lines, totals, props and money line are all available now. UFC Fight Night 86 takes place on April 10, 2016 at the Zagreb Arena in Zagreb, Croatia. The card will be televised on Fox Sports 1 starting 2 p.m. ET
