The pressure to win in the octagon is not for the meek and come Saturday night, there will be a fair amount of mental weight being put on the shoulders of a Long Island hometown hero. And in saying so, there may be some financial incentives for those who are brave enough to put some money down.
UFC Long Island will be headlined by one of their own, Chris Weidman (+150) who finds himself as the underdog vs. Kelvin Gastelum (-160), who will have his own pressure to deal with, like making weight (sarcasm intended) and then competing in hostile territory.
If you are looking for value in this bout, Weidman straight up will give it to you. Heck, don’t be surprised if he pulls off a finish here (+297). I personally don’t believe Gastelum can finish the former middleweight champ, but if you believe he can, you can get it at +133. I’m more partial to Kelvin via unanimous decision (+465), or get this … via split / majority decision for a whopping +1005.
In the co-main event, featherweight Dennis Bermudez (-210) will face off against what seems to be the unfinishable Darren Elkins (+175). I’m caught in the whole ‘you’re only as good as your last fight’ mindset here. Elkins straight up seems like really good value. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if he scores a finish here (+400).
Also on the card is a light heavyweight tilt between Patrick Cummins (+145) and Weidman teammate Gian Villante (-165). I’m leaning towards Villante in this one and if you’re brave enough, you could get him via any type of finish at +130.
Moving on to the bantamweight division, Jimmie Rivera (-185) will take on Thomas Almeida (+170). While the stats show that bouts in the lighter divisions have a penchant for going the distance, I believe somebody is going to sleep here.
When those fists start flying, you can take Rivera via TKO at +275 or who I’m leaning towards, Almeida, who should he win with his striking, will pay +304 on your money.
Looking at the rest of the card, here a few other fun bets to consider:
Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos via any finish (+456) over Lyman Good
Alex Oliveira via any finish (+418) over Ryan Laflare
Chase Sherman via T/KO (-109) over Damian Grabowski
Junior Albini via T/KO (+445) over Timothy Johnson.
Do you have any Fun Bets of your own for this UFC event in Long Island? Post your thoughts in the comments below or hit us up on social media: @FightfulMMA and @ShowdownJoe
