Belal Muhammad is heavily favored against Demian Maia at UFC 263: Adesanya vs. Vettori 2 on Saturday, June 12 in Glendale, Arizona. This event is one of five fights on the main pay-per-view card. Maia is 28-10 in his career, while Muhammad is 18-3 in his career. There are a total of five fights on the main pay-per-view card on UFC 263: Adesanya vs. Vettori 2, with the headliner a bout between Israel Adesanya and Marvin Vettori. There are also a total of nine fights on the preliminary card with four on ESPN/ESPN+ and five on ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass. Let’s look at the bout between Maia and Muhammad and UFC picks.
UFC 263: Adesanya vs. Vettori II Betting
Demian Maia (28-10, 22-10 UFC)
Maia came into the UFC with a record of 6-0 and he has 22 wins and 10 losses in the UFC. In his last six fights, he has three wins and three losses. He defeated Lyman Good by rear-naked choke submission, Anthony Rocco Martin by majority decision, and Ben Askren by technical submission; while losing to Colby Covington by unanimous decision, Kamaru Usman by unanimous decision, and Gilbert Burns by TKO. Maia has been a pro since 2001 and he has three wins by TKO/KO and 14 by submission. He has 12 first round finishes.
Belal Muhammad (18-3, 9-3 UFC)
Muhammad came into the UFC with a record of 9-0 and he has nine wins and three losses in the UFC. In his last six fights, he has five wins and one loss. He defeated Chance Rencountre by unanimous decision, Curtis Millender by unanimous decision, Takashi Sato by rear-naked choke submission, Lyman Good by unanimous decision, and Dhiego Lima by unanimous decision; while losing to Geoff Neal by unanimous decision. Muhammad has been a pro since 2012 and he has four wins by TKO/KO and one by submission. He has one first round finish.
Muhammad said this to mmajunkie.usatoday.com about his upcoming fight against Maia, “For his style, his jiu-jitsu style, you don’t need to be explosive. You don’t need to be the most athletic guy. He has that style that boa constrictor style of once he gets you down, he’s just going to keep holding, holding and holding until you make a mistake. I know I’m better than him on a whole other level on the feet, so I’m just going to keep it on the feet.”
Striking Stats
Strikes landed per minute: Maia 1.82/ Muhammad 4.75
Striking Accuracy: Maia 43% / Muhammad 43%
Strikes absorbed per minute: Maia 2.03/ Muhammad 4.02
Defense: Maia 63% / Muhammad 60%
Grappling Stats
Takedown average: Maia 2.55/ Muhammad 1.97
Takedown Accuracy: Maia 26% / Muhammad 28%
Takedowns defended: Maia 61% / Muhammad 85%
Submission average: Maia 1.0/ Muhammad 0.2
UFC Picks
There is really only one path to victory for Maia and that is if he gets Muhammad to the mat. I just don’t see it happening. Did you notice Muhammad’s takedown defense number of 85%? Muhammad should be able to keep this fight standing where he will dominate in striking. I will lay the price and look for Muhammad to get the win.
UFC 263: Adesanya vs. Vettori II Card & Odds
Middleweight: Marvin Vettori +201 vs. Israel Adesanya -260
Flyweight: Brandon Moreno +179 vs. Deiveson Figueiredo -230
Light Heavyweight: Paul Craig +221 vs. Jamahal Hill -290
Welterweight: Demian Maia +179 vs. Belal Muhammad -230
Welterweight: Nate Diaz +405 vs. Leon Edwards -600
Heavyweight: Jake Collier +139 vs. Carlos Felipe -175
Lightweight: Fares Ziam -145 vs. Luigi Vendramini +115
Featherweight: Hakeem Dawodu +186 vs. Movsar Evloev -240
Women's Flyweight: Joanne Calderwood -150 vs. Lauren Murphy +120
Lightweight: Frank Camacho +168 vs. Matt Frevola -215
Lightweight: Drew Dober -140 vs. Brad Riddell +110
Featherweight: Steven Peterson -120 vs. Chase Hooper -110
Light Heavyweight: Eryk Anders -145 vs. Darren Stewart +115
Women's Bantamweight: Alexis Davis +165 vs. Pannie Kianzad -210
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