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UFC 226: Miocic vs. Cormier
UFC 226 takes place on Saturday, July 7, 2018 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic (18-2, 14 KOs) will defend his title against light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier (20-1, 9 KOs, 4 SUBs) in the main event. The card airs live on pay-per-view starting 10 p.m. ET following the FS1 prelims. Bet on UFC odds and get the latest previews, predictions and picks here.
Get ready for some major fireworks this 4th of July weekend. UFC 226 on July 7 is the most explosive (pardon the pun) we’ve seen all year, featuring some of the best damn matchups we can think of in MMA.
In the main event, we’ve got a champion vs. champion heavyweight title fight. Daniel Cormier moves up to his old weight class in a quest to become just the second man in UFC history to hold two belts at once. That’s instant legend status, but he’d have to beat the greatest heavyweight champion in the promotion’s history: Stipe Miocic.
That’s a superfight that you could surround with meh fights and it’d still sell. But the co-main features Max “Blessed” Holloway against Brian Ortega. Just when it looked like Holloway was pulling away from the rest of the division, T-City shows up with what looks like an unstoppable jiu-jitsu game. On top of that, he just became the first person to ever knock out HOFer Frankie Edgar, blasting him with an uppercut that would’ve made Francis Ngannou proud.
Speaking of Ngannou, the UFC’s scariest looking big man gets down with Derrick Lewis. If fights were won on physique alone, Ngannou would win this fight before it even started. But the huskier Lewis can crack with anyone, and he should find a willing slugger in the Frenchman. There’s just no way this fight goes the distance, and one of these headhunters is going down.
Who else we got? How about Gokhan Saki, one of the best K-1 kickboxers of the generation. We’ve also got human highlight reel Uriah Hall against undefeated bruiser Paulo Costa. If that wasn’t enough, Yancy Medeiros and Mike Perry are going to war.
Take a look at some of the fights below, and log into the sportsbook to see the lines for every fight on the card. Make sure to check in during fight week for in-depth betting previews. We’ve got UFC odds from BookMaker.eu if they’ve been released.
UFC 226 Lineup (Subject to Change)
Main Event, Heavyweight Championship - Stipe Miocic -184 vs. Daniel Cormier +144
Co-Main Event, Featherweight Championship - Max Holloway -190 vs. Brian Ortega +165
Heavyweight - Francis Ngannou vs. Derrick Lewis
Light Heavyweight - Gokhan Saki vs. Khalil Rountree Jr.
Middleweight - Uriah Hall vs. Paulo Costa
Bantamweight - Raphael Assuncao vs. Rob Font
Welterweight - Yancy Medeiros vs. Mike Perry
What to Watch For
DC might be undefeated at heavyweight, but he’s got his hands full with the bigger, athletic Miocic. While Cormier might have been able to take out guys like Josh Barnett and Bigfoot Silva, Miocic’s blend of boxing, wrestling and size could give him serious problems. There are few fighters as savvy as DC, but all his guile might not matter against a champion that’s been trucking through contenders.
Don’t be surprised if Holloway and Ortega meet again. They’re both young and already at the top of a loaded division. The style matchup is insanely compelling: Holloway’s pressure, volume and dynamic striking against Ortega’s power, size and grappling. T-City is capable of getting submissions just as quickly as anyone can knock somebody out, and it’s frankly kind of amazing to see him tap black belts in seconds.
When heavyweights can crack, we watch. Especially when they’ve got as much combined knockout power as Francis Ngannou and Derrick Lewis. Considering how both of them recognize their gas tanks aren’t the greatest, expect them to start slugging from the get go. This is not the fight to go get a snack.
If Paulo Costa knocks out Uriah Hall, the middleweight division needs to be put on notice. The 27-year old Brazilian has KO’d all three of his UFC opponents and currently boasts a 91% knockout rate. Uriah Hall is a high flying finisher himself, and while he’s not ranked, he’s certainly known.
Yancy Medeiros and Mike Perry? Yes, please. Perry might have been exposed by more technical strikers, but he’s still one of the hardest hitters at 170. Medeiros is the typical Hawaiian fighter that isn’t afraid to stand and trade.
Stay Tuned for Fight Odds and Updates
Make sure to check the fight odds at BookMaker.eu for all your available betting options. For pay-per-view cards, odds usually release early for the bigger fights. In fact, you can bet on some fight odds right now. Odds for the entire card are generally available on Monday of fight week.
And during fight week, keep an eye out for our in-depth betting guides that we post during that time as well! You’ll find detailed analyses for fights, common sense betting picks and underdog specials to help you win some cash before the night’s over.
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