INITIAL UFC MIAMI CARD REVEALED

The UFC recently demonstrated the first lineup for UFC on ESPN 3, which takes place April 27 in BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida. The rumored primary event between middleweight sluggers Yoel Romero and Paulo Costa was not officially announced, but the UFC did confirm a previously-reported light heavyweight bout between Glover Teixeira and Ion Cutelaba, in addition to a bantamweight bout between John Lineker and Cory Sandhagen. You can locate my recently-posted thoughts on those bouts via the hyperlinks. As for my ideas about the other newly-announced bouts, you can read them below.
Carla Esparza vs. Livia Renato Souza, UFC on ESPN 3
The most notable of this new matchups declared is a women’s strawweight bout between Carla Esparza and Livia Renata Souza. Esparza (13-6) is 4-4 in the UFC and is a former winner, but she is coming off of a beatdown TKO loss to Tatiana Suarez. Souza (13-1) is 2-0 in the UFC and is a former Invicta winner himself, now riding a four-fight win series overall. This is a winnable struggle for Esparza but I don’t know how anyone can have faith in her at this stage. She might be a small favorite here, but each of the upside is with Souza.
Andrei Arlovski vs. Augusto Sakai, UFC on ESPN 3
Heavyweights Andrei Arlovski and Augusto Sakai will fulfill on this card. Arlovski (27-18, 1 NC) is 6-8 in his latest stint at the UFC and is now riding a three-fight losing skid with a decision loss to Walt Harris his last time out. Sakai (12-1-1) is coming off of a TKO win over Chase Sherman in his UFC debut and is on a three-fight win series in general. Arlovski is an easy fade at this stage and I expect Sakai to wager a good favorite here.
Jim Miller vs. Jason Gonzalez, UFC on ESPN 3
Lightweights Jim Miller and Jason Gonzalez are set to do battle. Miller (29-13, 1 NC) is currently 18-12, 1 NC all-time in the UFC but has fallen on hard times as of late with reductions in five of his last six bouts. Gonzalez (11-4) is only 1-2 in the UFC and has been finished in both his losses. Miller is going to be the favorite here based on name value but I do not know if you can trust him at this stage.
Dhiego Lima vs. Court McGee, UFC on ESPN 3
There’s also a welterweight bout between Dhiego Lima and Court McGee. Lima (13-7) is just 2-6 in the UFC but is coming from a brutal KO win over Chad Laprise at UFC 231. McGee (19-7) is 8-6 at the UFC and defeated Alex Garcia via conclusion in his final struggle. I could see this one going either way, either Lima checks McGee’s fading chin or McGee takes him down and smothers him. Start looking for a close betting line here, with maybe a small lean to McGee.
Jessica Penne vs. Jodie Esquibel, UFC on ESPN 3
And finally, women’s strawweights Jessica Penne and Jodie Esquibel happen to be re-booked for this occasion as their bout at UFC on ESPN 1 recently fell through following Penne hurt her ankle in warmups. Certainly, it wasn’t a super-serious injury as she will be battling just over a month afterwards. Penne was a tiny favored before the fight was pulled just hours before it was scheduled to happen, and I would presume the new line is going to be put right where it left off.
Disclaimer: This page includes affiliate links and MMA Odds Breaker will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on the links.

Read more: soccernewsonline.net