When it won’t be the biggest battle sports event of the summer, UFC 214 is the largest MMA event of the entire year. In addition to this Jon Jones-Daniel Cormier rematch, the card features two extra name bouts, contenders and entertaining battles throughout.
Brad Taschuk of MMAOddsBreaker.com, takes a look at where the gambling odds have proceeded for all 12 fights since launching lines (indicated in brackets) were released and he provides his ideas on each matchup. All traces are courtesy of 5Dimes Sportsbook.
Jon Jones (-280) vs. Daniel Cormier (+220)
Jones was a -170 favored first time these two scrapped and a few naively expected the lineup could be similar this time around. However, it seems that Jones’ legal issues, run-in with USADA and layoff has not had the impact expected on the line. It is hard to attribute bettors Cormier is now 38-years-old, has been through some tough battles since their first meeting, and Jones won each component of that first battle. Expect something like – if not more dominant – that time around.
Regardless of how badly he takes his preparation, Jones is the kind of fighter that rises to the occasion like others. He, this is the greatest occasion. Cormier is his main rival and he has the opportunity to recover the belt he never dropped against him. That combination will lead to a tremendous performance from Jones. Expect him to dispatch Cormier and re-assert his dominance at the division.
Tyron Woodley (-210) vs. Demian Maia (+160)
Similar to the main event, this line hasn’t seen much motion. Given the contrasting styles, that is not tough to believe. There’s a contingent of people who think that Woodley is going to starch Maia using the first punch he throws. They could very well be right. The other side of the coin is made up of people who think that Maia can shut the distance, latch onto Woodley like he has so many others and only predominate his grappling. They could be right as well. Woodley’s inclination to back himself against the cage and perform counter-puncher will be his demise here. Maia has gotten so good at entering the clinch when not under stress that he ought to have the ability to make Woodley miss once. Even against a high level wrestler the likes of Woodley, after Maia gets his hands on you, that is a huge trouble.
The Brazilian’s ability to commence Jiu-Jitsu exchanges without hitting traditional takedowns is second to none (he’s perfected the only leg to back take) and Woodley being the kind of man who likes to burst out of places will only hurt him once that happens. It is sort of astonishing that Maia by Sub pays an extra dollar (+275 as of Thursday morning), since Woodley won’t be able to endure 25 moments of Maia engaging in the sort of fight he wishes to. The other option is most likely a quick Woodley KO (+350 for the champ in Round 1, incidentally ).
Cristiane “Cyborg” Justino (-1200) vs. Tonya Evinger (+600)
This fight being bettable is dependent on which type of bettor you’re. In case you have no difficulty throwing a massive lineup in a parlay, the Cyborg moneyline (at nearly -1400), or Cyborg ITD (almost -700) are almost sure things. If that’s not really your style, neither will probably be laying nearly 2-to-1 on a prop such as Cyborg Round 1.
The only case I could make for a drama relies on Evinger’s resilience. She’s taken damage in many of her fights and persevered and she likely won’t return to conquer Cyborg in this one after a rough start, there’s an external shot she can survive five minutes. But even the costs for”Fight Begins Round two” and Cyborg Round 2 have dropped substantially (down to +150 and +450, respectively), which makes them less appealing even to somebody who is constantly on the search for some round robin legs.
Robbie Lawler (-175) vs. Donald Cerrone (+135)
It’s a shame this struggle is occurring after both guys have apparently passed their peak in terms of durability, since a war with Lawler and Cerrone at their best are something to behold. This fight will come down to space management and in-fight choices. Lawler wants to be indoors, Cerrone wants to be outside. The difficulty for Cerrone is that Lawler’s constant pressure will eventually see him get inside and at that point, expect Cerrone to be much too willing to oblige him the warfare he is searching for. While that will grant us the type of fight we want to see, do not expect it to finish well for Cerrone.
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