A welterweight fight between Ben Saunders and Ramsey Nijem will headline XMMA2: Saunders vs. Nijem on Friday, July 30 at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. Saunders and Nijem are former UFC fighters who have struggled of late. Saunders is 22-13-2 in his career and has lost four of his last five fights, while Nijem is 10-8 and he has dropped four of his five bouts. There are a total of 12 fights on the XMMA2: Saunders vs. Nijem card that can be seen on Fight Network. Two other fights of note have Kyle Bochniak taking on Marcus Brimage and Justin Scoggins facing Keith Richardson. Let’s look at the bout between Saunders and Nijem and also glance at the fights between Bochniak and Brimage and Scoggins vs. Richardson and XMMA predictions.
XMMA 2: Saunders vs. Nijem takes place at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina on Friday, July 30 with 12 fights on the card. The action can be seen on Fight Network.
XMMA 2: Saunders vs. Nijem Betting
Ben Saunders (22-13, 11 KO’s, 6 Sub)
Saunders is 22-13 in his career with 11 knockouts and six submissions. He is 1-4 in his last five fights and has lost his last four. He has not fought since a knockout loss to Matt Brown in December of 2019. Saunders lost by TKO to Takashi Sato in April of 2019, lost by knockout to Lyman Good in November of 2018, lost by submission to Sergio Moraes in September of 2018 and won by TKO against Jake Ellenberger in June of 2018. Saunders has been a pro since 2004. He has 12 first round finishes.
Saunders has been working with UFC lightweight Tony Ferguson for this fight. “(Tony) is actually helping me a bit for this fight too. We’re doing some workouts (remotely) it’s good.” Saunders said to the media, “It’s been going great. His training’s starting to pick up again too. I’m pretty sure he’s trying to fight before the end of the year.”
Ramsey Nijem (10-8, 3 KO’s, 2 Sub)
Nijem is 10-8 in his career with three knockouts and two submissions. He is 1-4 in his last five fights. He has not fought since losing by submission to Natan Schulte in October of 2019.
Nijem won a unanimous decision against Yuki Kawana in October of 2018, lost by TKO against Brian Foster in June of 2018, lost a split decision to Andrew Holbrook in July of 2015 and lost by TKO to Carlos Diego Ferreira in August of 2014. Nijem has been a pro since 2008 and he has five first round finishes.
Striking Stats
Strikes landed per minute: Saunders 3.23 / Nijem 3.05
Striking Accuracy: Saunders 50% / Nijem 44%
Strikes absorbed per minute: Saunders 3.58 / Nijem 1.62
Defense: Saunders 51% / Nijem 62%
Grappling Stats
Takedown average: Saunders 0.20 / Nijem 5.32
Takedown Accuracy: Saunders 40% / Nijem 62%
Takedowns defended: Saunders 66% / Nijem 55%
Submission average: Saunders 1.3 / Nijem 1.1
XMMA Picks
The main event has Saunders listed as a slight favorite against Nijem. Neither of these fighters inspires much confidence, but at least Saunders has fought some decent competition in his career. Nijem hasn’t fought anyone of note in years and when he did, he lost. Saunders has better stats; has fought better competition and he looks to have more ways to win. I think the price is fair, as I think Saunders is the better fighter. I will lay the -140 and take Saunders in this fight.
The other two fights of note have two big favorites, with Bochniak favored against Brimage and Scoggins favored against Richardson. Both Bochniak and Scoggins should get the win in their respective fights, but I can’t lay the big prices attached to them. If we get some specific fight props then taking Bochniak to win inside the distance could be worth a shot, while taking Scoggins to win by KO or TKO could be worth considering.
XMMA 2: Saunders vs. Nijem Card & Odds
Ben Saunders -135 vs. Ramsey Nijem +160
Chris Curtis -425 vs. Kenny Robertson +307
Justin Scoggins -246 vs. Keith Richardson +191
Will Brooks -456 vs. Steven Siler +325
Kyle Bochniak -400 vs. Marcus Brimage +292
Joel Madak -330 vs. Matthew Coakley +248
Charleston Pou -150 vs. Kenny Porter II +120
John Sweeney -150 vs. Dre Miley +120
Brandon Bushaw +120 vs. Westin Wilson -150
Tanner Saraceno -151 vs. Austin Jones +121
Louis Sanoudakis +158 vs. Cody Gibson -200
Zach Juusola +158 vs. Jeremiah Scott -200
BookMaker offers play-by-play betting odds for live sporting events every day! The user-friendly wagering interface on your smartphone provides an easy way to place bets on the go. Mobile betting lines are updated by the minute, so click here to start gambling on thrilling live action at BookMaker Sportsbook!
