UFC 202 Primer
As of Saturday afternoon, most spots had Conor McGregor listed as a -130 favorite for tonight’s rematch vs. Nate Diaz in the UFC 202 headliner at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Published on Saturday, 8/20/16, at 1:55 p.m. Eastern.
–It’s FIGHT NIGHT!!!
—MY PICKS:
5 UNITS on UNDER 1.5 rounds at +130 odds for Cody Garbrandt vs. Takeya Mizugaki.
2.5 UNITS on UNDER 1.5 rounds at -130 odds for Anthony Johnson vs. Glover Teixeira.
2 UNITS on Nate Diaz at +115 odds (5Dimes) to beat Conor McGregor.
1.5 UNITS on Neil Magny at -115 odds (5Dimes) to defeat Lorenz Larkin.
1 UNIT on UNDER 2.5 rounds with a +160 return for Cowboy Cerrone vs. Rick Story.
1 UNIT on Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone at -115 odds (5Dimes) to defeat Rick Story.
In the first meeting at UFC 196, Nate Diaz beat Conor McGregor by second-round submission as a +400 underdog.
—My picks and preview filed to VegasInsider.com yesterday. Quick FYI: Some of the odds have changed since yesterday, so a few of my picks/units above have different numbers from the ones used in VI preview. Also, I added the play on Cowboy Cerrone with the odds greatly reduced.
–From MMAJunkie.com: Fighters like Michael Bisping and Jose Aldo offer their Diaz-McGregor II picks.
—Here’s the entire video from Wednesday’s presser that McGregor was late for and ended with Diaz and McGregor’s teams hurling cans and bottles at each other. If you just want the dramatic end, check out this shorter clip from Jason Floyd’s website, The MMA Report.
—Episode 5 of UFC 202 Embedded captured McGregor on camera after the water-bottle fiasco.
–Matt Youmans of the Las Vegas Review Journal has this column on the handle for UFC 202. The public is backing ‘The Notorious’ to avenge his UFC 196 loss to Diaz. Also, my buddy GambLou, who is a super-sharp UFC ‘capper, is on McGregor.
–If you missed Bad Blood on Fox Sports 1 earlier this week, check it out here.
–Memo to Dominick Cruz and T.J. Dillashaw: You best be taking notes on Cody ‘No Love’ Garbrandt because he’s coming for both of you. And when he says Cruz is going to have to drink out of a straw after he takes his belt, I believe him. ‘No Love’ is a star and he’s going to destroy poor Mizugaki tonight.
–After 5Dimes opened Fabricio Werdum as a -270 favorite vs. Travis Browne earlier this week, it quickly adjusted the price down to -210. As of Saturday afternoon, the former heavyweight champ remained the -210 ‘chalk,’ while Browne is the +175 underdog. The total is 2.5 rounds (‘under’ -125, ‘over’ +105). This rematch is the UFC 203 co-main event. Werdum destroyed Browne by unanimous decision in Orlando two years ago.
