No. 2 bantamweight Cory Sandhagen (13-2, 5 KOs, 3 SUBs) will meet No. 4 Frankie Edgar (24-8, 7 KOs, 4 SUBs) at UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Volkov on Saturday, Feb 6 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The card airs live on ESPN+ starting 8pm ET. In the main event, heavyweight contenders Alistair Overeem (47-18, 25 KOs, 17 SUBs) and Alexander Volkov (32-8, 21 KOs, 3 SUBs) throw down in an important divisional battle. The UFC odds at BookMaker.eu opened with Sandhagen as a massive -410 favorite, with Edgar at +298 on the comeback. Let's take a deeper look at the Sandhagen-Edgar odds and break down your best online betting picks.
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The Stakes
Cory Sandhagen oh so close to getting a title shot - a fight over a former champ and future hall of famer like Edgar might get him there. Of course, beating Frankie doesn't mean what it used to, but considering the sportsbook is treating this like a stay-busy fight, Sandhagen essentially gets a bonus round to make more fans. Frankie is a legend, but right now he's basically a stepping stone with a high ranking. Pulling off a massive upset would be awesome, but we're not sure if anybody believes he could hang with guys like Yan or Sterling.
Cory Sandhagen (13-2, 5 KOs, 3 SUBs)
Signed to the UFC in 2018, the Elevation Fight Team product ripped off five straight impressive wins before getting choked out by Aljamain Sterling in a title eliminator. Even before getting signed to the fight, folks were putting the "special" tag on him. It's not hard to see why - he looks like a beast inside the cage: he's big, athletic, fast and strong. At just 28 years old, Sandhagen is already fighting elite dudes in a stacked weight class. You're gonna see this kid in a lot of big battles over the next few years.
He trains with TJ Dillashaw, and you can tell. On the feet, Sandhagen is constant movement, frustrating opponents by unleashing in range and sliding away from counters. It's been a privilege to watch him evolve inside the UFC, as he's found a way to be more disciplined while not losing any of his dynamic striking. Sterling did put the clamps on him, and it'll be interesting to see how Sandhagen fares against elite wrestlers in the future. But the bounceback win against Moraes was a message to the rest of the division: stand up with Sandhagen at your own risk.
Frankie Edgar (24-8, 7 KOs, 4 SUBs)
It would be almost impossible to find anybody that's not a fan of Frankie Edgar as a person and fighter. But it's clear that the sun is setting on his career. A move down to bantamweight probably came a few years to late, and it's questionable how competitive he'll be against the young studs in the top tier. A split decision win over Pedro Munhoz showed us that he's not completely done, but it did little to inspire confidence in Edgar winning a second title.
A prime Edgar would likely be favored here. We loved his crisp boxing, textbook footwork and opportunistic wrestling. But at 39 years old, Edgar's declining physical abilities are catching up to him. He was never a powerhouse to begin with, so losing his speed and quickness has made it much more difficult to win. Basically, we're left with a guy that has to rely on outpointing younger, faster guys.
Significant Striking Stats
Strikes landed per minute: Sandhagen 6.88 / Edgar 3.70
Striking accuracy: Sandhagen 48% / Edgar 39%
Strikes absorbed per minute: Sandhagen 3.89 / Edgar 2.70
Striking defense: Sandhagen 59% / Edgar 66%
Grappling Stats
Takedowns per 15 minutes: Sandhagen 1.07 / Edgar 2.28
Takedown accuracy: Sandhagen 50% / Edgar 31%
Takedown defense: Sandhagen 30% / Edgar 65%
Submissions per 15 minutes: Sandhagen 0.5 / Edgar 0.3
UFC Picks
Sandhagen straight up is just too expensive. While victory bets are generally risky, we just don't think that Edgar can handle this matchup - Sanhagen is just too big, strong and aggressive. Given Frankie's penchant of getting cracked a few times in every fight, his chin won't hold up for 15 minutes.
UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Volkov Card & Odds
Heavyweight - Alistair Overeem +158 vs. Alexander Volkov -191
Bantamweight - Frankie Edgar +332 vs. Cory Sandhagen -434
Lightweight - Beneil Dariush -102 vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira -122
Flyweight - Manel Kape +108 vs. Alexandre Pantoja -132
Women's Bantamweight - Marion Reneau +173 vs. Macy Chiasson -210
Women's Flyweight - Lara Procopio +134 vs. Molly McCann -162
Lightweight - Clay Guida +177 vs. Michael Johnson -215
Light Heavyweight - Danilo Marques +196 vs. Mike Rodríguez -240
Featherweight - Seung Woo Choi +203 vs. Youssef Zalal -250
Women's Bantamweight - Joselyne Edwards +200 vs. Karol Rosa -245
Lightweight - Justin Jaynes +228 vs. Devonte Smith -284
Featherweight - Martin Day +267 vs. Timur Valiev -337
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