The UFC was scheduled for its first date in the great white north this weekend, but due to COVID-19, the event will not take place in Saskatoon, but at the UFC Apex for the fourth straight weekend.

The event will be headlined by two heavyweights who are looking to assert their position as a heavyweight title contender.

Curtis Blaydes has only lost to one man in his entire career, Francis Ngannou, who has defeated him twice during his otherwise extremely successful UFC tenure. He will face former Bellator heavyweight champion Alexander Volkov, whose lone UFC loss came with just 11 seconds remaining in a fight that he was clearly winning until he was knocked out by Derrick Lewis during a late flurry.

 

Top-heavy heavyweight division

Curtis Blaydes (-400) vs. Alexander Volkov (+325)

There is a chasm between the top four fighters in the heavyweight division and those ranked below them.

Champion Stipe Miocic will face Daniel Cormier in their third fight in as many years and while Cormier has made no secret that the bout will be his last, reports have surfaced that Miocic may consider calling it a day as well. That leaves Ngannou and Blaydes as the potential heirs to the heavyweight throne.

Blaydes has been a favourite in all 11 of his UFC bouts and is favoured again for this main event outing against Volkov.

One could argue that talent-wise, Volkov is a Top 5 heavyweight in the UFC and Blaydes is a 4-to-1 favourite, which accentuates the massive perceived drop off from the top four to those ranked below them.

Why?:

The fact is that Volkov just does not have that many paths to victory. In heavyweight, all it takes is one big strike, but Volkov is not known for having heavy hands and prefers to pick his opponents apart at range with his technical striking before going in for the kill.

Against Blaydes, unless Volkov is able to tire him out over five rounds, and that is not something that has been done prior since Blaydes has never fought into the championship rounds, it is unlikely that Volkov will be able to stave off the powerful wrestling of Blaydes.

On their feet, while Volkov has solid technical striking, the improvement Blaydes continues to show in the striking department is what makes him such a difficult opponent to solve.

 

The Most Significant Line Movement

Max Rohskopf (-185) vs. Austin Hubbard (+160)

Hubbard opened as a -140 favourite against Rohskopf, who replaced Joe Solecki, Hubbard’s original opponent, on short notice.

The action quickly came in on the underdog and he has become a -185 favourite.

Why?:

Those in the know are aware that Rohskopf is an under-the-radar, undefeated prospect with a Division-1 wrestling background that includes an ACC Championship earned while competing for North Carolina State.

Hubbard’s UFC losses have come against other high level grapplers like former wrestling Olympian Mark O. Madsen and ADCC grappling gold medalist Davi Ramos.

However, Hubbard is not to be slept on. Despite being a 3-to-1 underdog against Madsen, he gave him all that he could handle and had a lot of success. Against a short-notice opponent with lesser wrestling credentials, Hubbard might be undervalued in this spot.

 

Canadians hunting for first UFC Apex win

Marc-Andre Barriault (-110) vs. Oskar Piechota (-110)

Gillian Robertson (-115) vs. Cortney Casey (-105)

Canadians Felicia Spencer and Charles Jourdain fell short in their UFC Apex outings in recent weeks, but Barriault and Robertson are in closely-lined matchups and will look to break the spell.

Why?:

The former TKO two division champion Barriault has not had success in the UFC thus far, going 0-3 since signing with the promotion. He has been given what is likely a final opportunity to right the ship against Piechota, who is also on a three-fight losing streak after winning his first two UFC bouts.

Barriault has not been able to put it all together, but has fought in closely contested decisions since joining the promotion last year. This time around, he faces an opponent who is in a similar circumstance and both will likely be fighting to keep their roster spot.

Robertson had an opportunity to ascend in her previous bout against highly-touted prospect Maycee Barber, but fell short, suffering a TKO loss in the first round.

She’ll look to get back some momentum when she faces Casey, who made her flyweight debut last month and earned a first round submission victory.

If Casey attempts to go to the ground with Robertson, it could be a short night, as Robertson’s bread and butter is her grappling.

 

Odds and Ends:

  • Shane Burgos has been a favourite in all seven of his UFC bouts and went 6-1 in those fights.
  • Burgos’ opponent, Josh Emmett, is 4-1 as an underdog in the UFC.
  • Bobby Green, who faces Clay Guida, is a favourite for only the second time in his 11-fight UFC career. He is 1-0 as a favourite.
  • Roxanne Modafferi is a slight favourite over Lauren Murphy. It is the first time that she has been a favourite in her UFC career. She is 3-4 in the UFC.
  • Roosevelt Roberts is a favourite for his seventh straight fight. He is 5-1 in the fights where he was the favourite.

Odds courtesy: 5 Dimes