Former heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum (23-7, 6 KOs, 11 SUBs) will meet former Bellator champ Alexander Volkov (29-6, 19 KOs, 3 SUBs) at UFC Fight Night 127 on Saturday, March 17, 2018 at the O2 Arena in London England. The entire card streams live on UFC Fight Pass. Bet on the latest UFC odds and get the latest betting tips, previews and predictions at BookMaker.eu now!
Let’s see if a former Bellator heavyweight champion can hang with a former UFC champ. This Saturday, Alexander Volkov will meet Fabricio Werdum in the main event of UFC Fight Night 127 in London. Russia’s Volkov has yet to lose inside the octagon, but he’ll make a huge leap in competition against Werdum, who has been one of the promotion’s best big men for the past five years.
On a warpath back to another title shot, Werdum has been clearing out midcard big men left and right. He comes into the matchup on a two-fight winning streak, taking out Walt Harris and Marcin Tybura since losing a majority decision to Alistair Overeem in 2017. It remains to be seen whether a win over Volkov will get him another challenge, but there really aren’t many guys in front of him.
So does Volkov have a shot at taking out the heavy favorite? What other bets should you consider in this matchup? Take a look at the UFC odds at BookMaker.eu and peep our betting tips below.
UFC Odds at BookMaker.eu
Alexander Volkov +159
Fabricio Werdum -198
Over/under 2.5 rounds, over -135, under +115
Matchup Preview
At 6’7”, Volkov fights a lot like you expect a tall guy to. He’s got a strong, long kicking game, is punishing in the cling, and flicks out a long jab to keep opponents at bay. Inside the UFC, his output has increased, landing 5.28 strikes per minute at an excellent 60% clip. Defensively, he absorbs a little over 2 strikes a minute but defends against 60% of them.
Still relatively unknown in the UFC, this could be Volkov’s coming out party. He’s a much better striker than we give him credit for, and he is legitimately agile and athletic for a guy his size. Where he struggles is against strong wrestlers and grapplers, as his debut against Timothy Johnson showed. An ancient Cheick Kongo was able to wrestlehump him to victory in Bellator, and it does not bode well that he was unable to beat a UFC castoff.
But styles make fights, and Werdum will likely test out his Muay Thai against Volkov. Since training with Rafael Cordeiro at King’s MMA for over five years now, Werdum has evolved from a one-trick submission specialist to a dangerous striker. Like many Cordeiro-trained fighters - Rafael dos Anjos comes to mind - Werdum will pressure opponents on the feet, suffocating them with a barrage of strikes. Sometimes it works, like when he overwhelmed Travis Browne. Other times, it hurt him, like when he chased Stipe Miocic only to run into a check hook that put him out.
Of course, we don’t need to go over his grappling accolades. Let’s just say that he’s the best heavyweight grappler of all time, and don’t at me about it. There’s nobody else that comes close when it comes to gi, no gi and MMA submission achievements. The trouble is that he’s never developed a dominating wrestling game to force the issue.
UFC Betting Tips
Can Volkov outstrike Werdum? Most certainly he can, especially if the Brazilian can’t figure out how to bang with a guy three inches taller than him. If we could be sure that this would stay a kickboxing match, we’d lean towards Drago at these odds. But at some point, Werdum is going to force him to clinch and wrestle, and that’s where Volkov is most vulnerable.
The rounds over also presents another nice opportunity. Werdum is a dangerous finisher, but taking out a bigger, younger fighter with good defense is a tough ask. If you’re not feeling Werdum’s money line, take the under.
UFC Odds Pick: Werdum to win at -198
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UFC Fight Night 127 takes place on Saturday, March 17, 2018 at the O2 Arena in London England. The entire card streams live on UFC Fight Pass.
