On September 9th in Edmonton, Alberta Canada, Rogers Place Arena will be absent of the Edmonton Oilers, but is going to be teeming with crazed fight fans. The UFC 215 card is stacked with veteran talent and no doubt, the arena should be packed!
Though the matchups throughout are going to be highly competitive, we are here to focus on the top three main card bouts: Magny-Dos Anjos, Nunes-Shevchenko, and Johnson-Borg.
Demetrious Johnson vs. Ray Borg
It’s Mighty Mouse vs. The Tazmexican Devil! These two fighters match up quite well physically against each-other. You have a slightly more powerful Borg facing off with a slightly faster and savvier Johnson. Separated by just an inch in height, Johnson holds a clear, three-inch reach advantage but Borg evens it up with two inches in leg reach advantage.
Borg is more well-rounded than Mighty Mouse’s recent opponents but this fight is history in the making for Demetrius Johnson. With one more consecutive title defense, Johnson will break Anderson Silva’s record of 11 straight and go down in the books as one of the greatest champions of all time.
The Tazmexican will put up a great couple of rounds, but Johnson’s unorthodox style and savvy creativity will eventually take over. Oddsmakers agree with me, as they have laid Demetrious Johnson as a (-900) favorite at most offshore shops –Bovada is a great place to start if you are looking to pace action on the fight. If you disagree with my assessment and think that Borg has a legitimate shot here, you can find him at a profitable (+550) which is a little better than 5 to 1 odds!
UFC 215 Prediction: Demetrious Johnson Wins in the 3rd Round (+625)
Amanda Nunes vs. Valentina Shevchenko
In many ways, this is the fight that I am most looking forward to! The women’s bantamweight belt is on the line and neither of the girls are f%*#ing around. This was the highly anticipated main attraction for UFC 213, but due to health issues, Nunes was advised to withdraw from the fight.
This may be the most competitive matchup of the night both of these women are killers in the Octagon. Each in the prime of their careers at 29 years-old, but Nunes comes in three inches taller at 5’8″ and has a two-inch reach advantage which may come in handy given her devastating striking ability.
Shevchenko’s striking skills are phenomenal as well, the Muay Thai expert can strike effectively from distance and is an absolute killer in the clinch. The Bullet wears her opponents down, though she doesn’t have that heavy caliber, one-punch stopping power that the Lioness does.
If you remember UFC 196, Amanda Nunes won by unanimous decision after three rounds, but got into serious trouble in the 3rd. Shevchenko had worn her down and was really starting to grind on Nunes. Had that fight gone another round, Nunes’ whole UFC timeline since then could have been very, very different. This time around Valentina will have two more rounds to wear out the Lioness and grind her into the mat in the later rounds.
Oddsmakers in Vegas have probably considered this and are giving a slight edge to Valentina Shevchenko, listing her at (-115), a slight favorite over Amanda Nunes at (-105).
UFC 215 Prediction: Shevchenko by decision or late round stoppage (+335) & (+1675)
Neil Magny vs. Rafael Dos Anjos
On to the welterweight fight … Dos Anjos is a seasoned vet with one of the most impressive resumes in the business. He has power that is often overlooked … just ask Benson Henderson about that!
Neil Magny has clawed his way up to the #6 ranking with victories over the likes of Johnny Hendricks and Hector Lombard. Honestly, this fight is a toss-up for me. I tend to lean towards the smaller Rafael Dos Anjos—as do the oddsmakers who’ve listed him as (-220) favorite— but Magny has worked his way into the top-10 for a reason.
One thing that we know for sure about both these fighters is that they tend to go the distance. Neither is particularly easy to knock out or tap out. Neil Magny and Rafael Dos Anjos take the fight to decision 50+% of the time. So, we’ll take the gimme. The fight goes OVER 2 ½ Rounds at (-200).
UFC 215 Prediction: OVER 2.5 Rounds (-200)