DraftKings MMA: UFC Halifax Preview

DraftKings MMA: UFC Halifax Preview

This article is part of our DraftKings MMA series.

The UFC is back in Canada for a rare Sunday event, where two heavyweights will collide in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

If you're hoping to turn the event into an opportunity to build your DFS bankroll, DraftKings.com has you covered with a full slate of contests. Players get a $50,000 budget to select five fighters, and the scoring is distributed as follows:

(Please note that DraftKings has altered their scoring system. The new point values are listed below and the rosters will now expand from 5 to 6 fighters).

Moves Scoring
Significant Strikes (SS): +0.5 PTS
Advance (ADVC): +3 PT
Takedown (TD): +5 PTS
Reversal/Sweep (REV): +5 PTS
Knockdown (KD): +10 PTS

Fight Conclusion Bonuses
1st Round Win (1rW+): +90 PTS
2nd Round Win (2rW+): +70 PTS
3rd Round Win (3rW+): +45 PTS
4th Round Win (4rW+): +40 PTS
5th Round Win (5rW+): +40 PTS
Decision Win (WBD+): +30 PTS

Scoring Notes
Significant Strikes are any Distance Strike or Clinch/Ground Strikes that are considered "Power Strikes" by official scorers.

Advances include: To Half Guard, To Side Control, To Mount, To Back Control

Now, on to the fights...

Main Event – Heavyweight

Travis Browne (18-5-1) v. Derrick Lewis (17-4-0, 1NC)
DraftKings Salaries: Browne ($8,100), Lewis ($8,100)
Vegas Odds: Browne (-110), Lewis (-110)
Odds to Finish: -485

The UFC rarely matches up a fighter who is coming off a win against a fighter who is coming off a loss, which makes this fight all the more intriguing. Browne hasn't won in over a year, while Lewis hasn't lost in more than a year and a half.

Our regular readers will know that I have never thought much of Browne, and he has clearly been going backwards over his last several fights. He made a name by scoring several highlight-reel knockouts, but the bottom line is that he's a below average mixed martial artist. His movements on the feet are often lazy, and he has a difficult time closing the distance, despite the fact he is 6-foot-7. But Browne's biggest issue, by far, is the fact he gets hit too much. He has no chance to implement any offensive skills he may have because he spends so much time on the defensive.

Lewis, who hits as hard as any man in the division, is currently riding a five-fight winning streak. He has been trying very hard to develop into more than just a knockout specialist, although I don't see it ever happening. Lewis' conditioning is poor (to be kind), which means he will have significant problems in a five-round fight, not to mention any opponent who can avoid his power shots stands a decent chance of beating him. The thing is, Lewis has so much power that he can just graze you and you're still going down. Plus, I don't expect this fight to last very long. I'm honestly surprised that he has run off the type of streak that he is. Lewis is the very definition of a one-dimensional fighter.

If Browne gets hit as much in this fight as he has in his past few fights, he's going to get knocked out. He has been finished by plenty of guys who have less power than Lewis. Lewis is going to lose sooner or later because an opponent is simply going to either wrestle or outwork him over the course of a fight, but I don't think Browne has the head speed to avoid the bombs that Lewis is going to throw at him. It's one of Browne's biggest weaknesses, and Lewis is literally the last guy on the UFC roster that you want landing strikes on you unimpeded.

THE PICK: Lewis

Co-Main Event – Middleweight

Johny Hendricks (17-5-0) v. Hector Lombard (34-6-1, 2NC)
DraftKings Salaries: Hendricks ($7,700), Lombard ($8,500)
Vegas Odds: Hendricks (+130), Lombard (-150)
Odds to Finish: -130

This is last call for Hendricks. Mired in a three-fight losing streak and sporting a 1-4 record in his last five fights overall, Hendricks is moving up to middleweight in a last ditch effort to salvage his career. Bigg Rigg missed weight in his last two fights, something that has become a constant problem for him throughout his career. He looks nothing like the guy who was a dominant UFC Welterweight Champion not all that long ago. Everything that Hendricks excelled at -- power punching, wrestling, wearing his opponents down -- has evaporated due to his conditioning issues. He should be in far better shape at 185 pounds, but he has looked so terrible of late that it's impossible to give him the benefit of the doubt.

Lombard will return to middleweight after several years of fighting at 170 pounds. Lombard is coming off back-to-back knockout losses at the hands of Dan Henderson and Neil Magny. Hendo can obviously finish anyone with his hands, but Magny isn't exactly known for his power. Lombard remains a freak athlete at age 38, but he is only a freak athlete for short stretches of time. If you can survive the first five minutes against Lombard, his output and pace drop dramatically. It's the only thing that keeps him from being mentioned as one of the very best fighters in the world.

I would probably avoid this fight if possible. Lombard hasn't competed at middleweight for years, and Hendricks has never fought in this division -- it's tough to know what to expect. If Hendricks shows up at the weigh-in in halfway decent shape, that should help his durability and as a result, he'll survive the first round and eventually win the fight. In the fight game, 15 pounds is a massive amount of extra weight to add your frame. If that isn't enough to help Hendricks arrive at his fight in shape and ready to roll, I think he is beyond help.

THE PICK: Hendricks

Middleweight

Elias Theodorou (12-1-0) v. Cezar Ferreira (12-5-0)
DraftKings Salaries: Theodorou ($8,000), Ferreira ($8,200)
Vegas Odds: Theodorou (+105), Ferreira (-125)
Odds to Finish: +110

Theodorou's successful UFC career (4-1 record and an Ultimate Fighter Title) is the result of his cardio, as opposed to any legitimate skills inside the octagon. He's competent in all areas, but he doesn't excel in any aspect of the game. In his one loss, to Thiago Santos, he mysteriously gassed out almost immediately and was dominated over the course of the fight. I'm willing to chalk that up to a fluke more than anything else, but I don't see much long-term potential here.

Ferreira has racked up three straight wins since suffering back-to-back first-round knockout loss at the hands of Jorge Masvidal and Sam Alvey in 2015. The quality of competition has dropped, and he hasn't been dominant in any of the wins, but the 31-year-old Brazilian needs wins any way he can get them.

I don't love either of these fighters, and while I think Theodorou deserves a boost for fighting in front of his fellow Canadians, I think Ferreira has more ways to win a fight. This may be a fight that is best to stay away from all together. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot separating the two men and neither has a clear, discernible skill to give them a leg up over the other.

THE PICK: Ferreira

Women's Strawweight

Carla Esparza (12-3-0) v. Randa Markos (6-5-0)
DraftKings Salaries: Esparza ($9,100), Markos ($7,100)
Vegas Odds: Esparza (-300), Markos (+250)
Odds to Finish: +225

Talk about a fight that doesn't make any sense. Esparza was the first UFC Women's Strawweight Champion and she is easily a top-five fighter. Markos has been arguably the biggest bust in the division over the past two-plus yes. Yet, here we are.

Other than her loss to Joanna Jedrzejczyk, in which she spent the entire fight backpedaling and getting pounded, Esparza has consistently used the takedown to control all her other UFC opponents. While not big for the division at 5-foot-1, Esparza has a unique ability to use her hips and shoulders to help get her opponent to the mat. A strong wrestling game is a necessity for her because she's a below-average striker.

There is nothing to like about Markos' game these days. She has alternated losses and wins over the course of her five UFC contests, but her performances on a whole have been dreadful. She gets hit far, far too much and she doesn't posses the offensive arsenal to make up for it. Markos entered the UFC with some potential, but she is nothing more than roster depth at this point. There is enough depth in the division now for the company to cut bait if she looks terrible once again, which is what I expect.

THE PICK: Esparza

Other Bouts

Featherweight

Sam Sicilia (15-7-0) v. Gavin Tucker (9-0-0)
DraftKings Salaries: Sicilia ($7,800), Tucker ($8,400)
Vegas Odds: Siclia (+140), Tucker (-160)
Odds to Finish: -145
THE PICK: Tucker

Women's Bantamweight

Sara McMann (10-3-0) v. Gina Mazany (4-0-0)
DraftKings Salaries: McMann ($9,300), Mazany ($6,900)
Vegas Odds: McMann (-550), Mazany (+425)
Odds to Finish: +125
THE PICK: McMann

Lightweight

Paul Felder (12-3-0) v. Mike Ricci (10-4-0)
DraftKings Salaries: Felder (9,500), Ricci ($6,700)
Vegas Odds:Felder (-400), Ricci (+325)
Odds to Finish: +180
THE PICK: Felder

Welterweight

Nordine Taleb (11-3-0) v. Santiago Ponzinibbio (24-3-0)
DraftKings Salaries: Taleb ($7,000), Ponzinibbio ($9,200)
Vegas Odds: Taleb (+325), Ponzinibbio (-420)
Odds to Finish: -130
THE PICK: Ponzinibbio

Bantamweight

Aiemann Zahabi (6-0-0) v. Reginaldo Vieira (14-4-0)
DraftKings Salaries: Zahabi ($8,800), Vieira ($7,400)
Vegas Odds: Zahabi (-230), Vieira (+190)
Odds to Finish: -115
THE PICK: Zahabi

Middleweight

Jack Marshman (21-5-0) v. Thiago Santos (13-5-0)
DraftKings Salaries: Marshman ($7,900), Santos ($8,300)
Vegas Odds: Marshman (+155), Santos (-175)
Odds to Finish: -375
THE PICK: Marshman

Middleweight

Gerald Meerschaert (25-8-0) v. Ryan Janes (9-1-0)
DraftKings Salaries: Meerschaert ($9,000), Janes ($7,200)
Vegas Odds: Meerschaert (-335), Janes (+275)
Odds to Finish: -165
THE PICK: Meerschaert

The author(s) of this article may play in daily fantasy contests including – but not limited to – games that they have provided recommendations or advice on in this article. In the course of playing in these games using their personal accounts, it's possible that they will use players in their lineups or other strategies that differ from the recommendations they have provided above. The recommendations in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of RotoWire. Jon Litterine plays in daily fantasy contests using the following accounts: DraftKings: JLitterine.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jon Litterine
Jon Litterine is RotoWire's lead MMA Writer and MMA Editor. He has covered numerous MMA events live. He's also RW's NHL Prospect Analyst. Jon has been writing for RotoWire since 2005. He is a graduate of U Mass-Lowell.
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