This Saturday, for the first time in UFC history, women will star in both the headlining and co-main event of a fight card. We all know about Ronda Rousey, but sleeping on the women’s strawweight champion, Joanna Jedrzejczyk would be a huge mistake. The Polish champion will defend her belt against the rugged Valerie Letourneau, and the bout could very well steal the show.
Please note, the odds listed here may have changed, as BookMaker updates their lines on a daily basis.
UFC 193 odds at BookMaker.eu
JOANNA JEDRZEJCZYK -2000
VALERIE LETOURNEAU +1000
OVER/UNDER: 2.5 rounds, over +105, under -125
ODDS ANALYSIS
As dominant as Rousey is, J-Check is an even bigger favorite over Letourneau, by close to 400 points. Like Rousey, Jedrzejczyk is so far ahead of her division that we’ve reached a point where her opponents just seem like sacrificial lambs instead of legitimate threats to her title. Oddsmakers certainly seem to believe that’s the case here.
FIGHT BREAKDOWN
A former world champion kickboxer, Joanna is one of the best strikers in the UFC, period. While she doesn’t possess one punch knockout power, there is a snap to her punches and kicks that have the force to reverberate throughout a stadium. Her technique is flawless, allowing her to throw flurry after flurry without expending too much energy.
At 28 years old, J-Check is also a great athlete, as evidenced by a quick and strong sprawl. In her title match against Carla Esparza, one of the best wrestlers in the division, Joanna fended off shoots with catlike reflexes. When defending her title against Jessica Penne, J-Check stayed standing despite Penne’s great efforts to drag the fight to the ground from the clinch.
If there’s any weakness to Jedrzejczyk’s game, it may be on the ground. But it’s been so difficult for her opponents to put her on the mat that it’s impossible to know just how good she is there. From what we have seen, she’s got solid submission defense and is active in getting back to her feet.
Letourneau trains at one of the best fight camps in the world, American Top Team, and her growth has been apparent in her past few fights. She is mostly a striker by trade, starting with good footwork and lateral movement. The French-Canadian loves to work behind a crisp jab and low kick, but her money strike is a left kick to the body and head.
While her strikes are not particularly dangerous in singular blows, the volume at which she throws them accumulates steady damage. The rest of her game is solid - Letourneau is a good defensive wrestler and has shown a decent ability for trip and single-leg takedowns.
Although Letourneau is the best striker that the champion has ever faced in the octagon, Jedrzejczyk is on a different level when it comes to the standup game. If we could manifest their arsenals in a literal sense, Letourneau would be semi-automatic rifle, and J-Check would be a heavy duty machine gun. In that sense, it’s easy to say that the challenger will be completely outgunned on fight night.
THE SMART PLAYS
Jedrzejczyk to win is an obvious pick. But at -2000, it’s not going to win you much money. You’ll find a much better value betting on the round total. While it might be tempting to put your faith in J-Check’s murderous Muay Thai to finish the fight under 2.5 rounds, don’t count out Letourneau’s grit. She’s finished fights with her eyes completely swollen shut and her face looking like mince meat. The over on 2.5 rounds at +105 is a great value.
HOW TO BET
Access live betting lines from your mobile device at BookMaker Sportsbook! You can wager on sporting events as they unfold on television with BookMaker’s live betting platform. And with our simple payout system, collecting your winnings is quick, easy and painless. UFC 193 takes place this Saturday, November 14, 2015 at the Etihiad Stadium in Melbourne, Austrialia. The card will be televised on pay-per-view starting 10 p.m. ET, with the FOX Sports 1 prelims beginning at 8 p.m. ET.
