Heavyweight knockout artists Francis Ngannou (14-3, 10 KOs, 4 SUBs) and Jairzinho Rozenstruik (10-0, 9 KOs) meet at UFC on ESPN 8 on Saturday, March 28 at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The main card airs live on ESPN starting 7pm ET.
Mark UFC on ESPN 8 on your calendars: the heavyweight division’s two most explosive knockout artists are gonna throw down.
While Stipe Miocic might be the heavyweight champion, it’s Francis Ngannou that’s held the title of the UFC’s scariest man the past few years. He doesn’t just look part at a ripped 6’4”, 265 pounds - the 33-year old is also the division’s best pure athlete that punches with the force of a Ford Focus (according to Dana White’s immortal words). In 17 pro MMA fights, the native Cameroonian has seen a third round just twice - fights simply don’t last long when he’s throwing his hammers.
Rozenstruik is the new KO kid on the block, but a shiny 10-0 record has vaulted Suriname native into a fight with the division’s No. 1 contender. In his last outing, he was outclassed by Alistair Overeem for the better part of five rounds, until he scored a stoppage with a punch so powerful that the veteran’s upper lip was grotesquely sliced into two separate pieces. Thus far, he’s knocked out all four of his UFC opponents.
While some may question why Rozenstruik is getting a shot at Ngannou so soon, this is one of those pairings that just make sense. It’s arguably the funnest matchup Dana White can make for the weight class - who doesn’t love to see two giant killers headhunting each other? More importantly, it’s likely that the winner fights for the title next.
The UFC odds at BookMaker.eu opened with Ngannou as a big -265 favorite, with Rozenstruik at +225 on the comeback. Prop bets and over/unders should release the week of the fight, but you can currently bet on these money lines in the online sportsbook.
Francis Ngannou -265
Jairzinho Rozenstruik +225
Fight goes/doesn’t go to decision: coming soon
Significant Striking Stats
Strikes landed per minute: Ngannou 2.15 / Rozenstruik 3.72
Striking accuracy: Ngannou 37% / Rozenstruik 46%
Strikes absorbed per minute: Ngannou 1.97 / Rozenstruik 3.05
Striking defense: Ngannou 48% / Rozenstruik 32%
Grappling Stats
Takedown average: Ngannou 0 / Rozenstruik 0
Takedown accuracy: Ngannou N/A / Rozenstruik N/A
Takedown defense: Ngannou 71% / Rozenstruik 75%
Submission average: Ngannou 0.5 / Rozenstruik 0.0
Bet this UFC odds online at BookMaker.eu
We’re interested to see if any action comes in on Rozenstruik: when two heavy hitters meet it really does seem like a 50/50 proposition. Of course, Ngannou is the taller, faster fighter, plus he’s far more experienced against better competition. The Predator has also never been knocked out, despite fighting exhausted against Miocic in a failed title bid.
Expect the over/under here to be 1.5 rounds - the lowest possible round total in the online sportsbook. We really suggest looking at the rounds over in this case, as there’s a solid chance that both men fight conservatively out of respect for each other’s power. Remember the Ngannou-Lewis disaster? The fight doesn’t go to decision prop figures to be super expensive as well, pretty much taking that bet out of the equation.
Also, if you’re betting on Rozenstruik, we’d really recommend waiting until his victory prop comes out. This is a case where it’s highly, highly unlikely that he wins a decision, so the best options would be to bet that he wins by TKO or inside the distance. Ngannou’s prop bets should be considered as well, especially since his money line is so expensive as well.
Live UFC betting at the online sportsbook
You can also wait until fight night to start betting - BookMaker.eu features live updates during the fight. Keep an eye on whether either fighter starts gassing, which happens often with such explosive heavyweights. If anyone start to gas, we’d hammer the fresher fighters live betting odds as soon as possible.
