UFC Paris: Odds on 3 Must Watch Fights

UFC Paris: Gane vs Tuivasa

3 Must Watch Fights - Odds and Ends

            1. Top 10 welterweight Nassourdine Imavov takes on Joaquin 'please let me hurt you' Buckley. Holy hell, what a dynamic matchup. This is your old school ground and pounder vs. violent striker contest. Buckley showed resilient takedown defense in his last fight where he dominated heavy grappler Albert Duraev. There was a ton of crap talked by Duraev, how he was going to control his former sparring partner. He couldn't have been farther from the truth. He whiffed on 7 of 9 takedowns and Buckley landed paralyzing head shots in return. He brutally closed the eye of Duraev, forcing a doctor stoppage in between rounds. That type of showing bodes well for a fight against another heavy grappler. On the other hand, Imavov ground and pounded the hell out of his last two opponents, hype boys Ian Heinisch and Edmen Shahbazyan (Ronda Rousey's training partner). So we know these guys can bang bro. 

                Way too interesting to ignore: Nassourdine Imavov, known as the "Russian Sniper", hails from Dagestan. You know, the same beast breeding ground that gave us Khabib Nurmagomedov and Islam Makhachev. So thank you for that Dagestan, we owe you a debt we can not pay. Imavov started boxing at the sprite age of 10 and unofficially transitioned to MMA at 19 when he and his brother moved to France. They started training at Fernand Lopez's MMA Factory, the same guy who trained Heavyweight kingpin Francis Ngannou. He still trains top HW contender Ciryl Gane who just so happens to be headlining this card, so I guess it's a family affair.

                Odds: Most books have Buckley set as the underdog around +115. Where as Imavov, the favorite, is set anywhere between -250 and -278. 

                

            2. Fireworks! That's the first image that comes to mind when picturing the potential war between Charles Jourdain and Nathaniel Wood. These are some of the most exciting featherweights on the UFC roster. Jourdain shined in his last fight, a heroic battle with 'Hurricane' Shane Burgos. He loss the first 2 rounds scrambling for position, then dominated the last round with the fastest striking you could ever hope to see. This guy is the real sniper. His opponent, Nathaniel Wood, was on a 9 fight winning streak before snaking his last 4 wins and losses. He got right back on the horse though, and man was it scary to witness. This guy looked certifiably crazy (in the best way) as he kicked the ever living hell out of Charles Rosa's left leg. To the point where Rosa fell down in pain multiple times and the doctor expended every last ounce of patience he had to not stop the fight. Wood was screaming in victory, letting everyone in the arena know how happy he was to be back in the octagon, not having fought since 2020 before that. 

                Way too interesting to ignore: We might first think of Nathaniel Wood as a brilliant striker, but he has trained grappling for over 13 years. He won his UFC debut by D'Arce choke in the 2nd round and 7 of his 18 professional wins have come by submission. Charles Jourdain on the other hand, is supposedly engaged to an angel. You don't believe me? Go checkout his Instagram page. If she doesn't motivate him to succeed, maybe nothing will. Okay you caught me, these guys don't have the most cinematic worthy backgrounds, but this fight is way too damn good to ignore. 

                Odds: The favorite odds on Jourdain don’t have that much range, sticking around -150. I’ve seen the underdog, Nathaniel Wood, hovering between +112-130. 

        

            3. The old guard of Lightweight vs. the new breed. John 'The Bull' Makdessi takes on German born Nasrat Haqparast. What to make of this fight? Well Makdessi started his pro career around 2008, he was considered a very dangerous striking prospect. 7 years later Donald Cerrone broke his jaw with a perfectly timed head kick. He did receive successful surgery on the jaw, but that wasn't going to stop him from fighting. A year later he got spinning wheel kicked in the face by Lando Vannata, double ouch! Yeah, he's still fighting. This guy has won 4 of his last 5 and may have stumbled upon a veteran savvy way to stay alive while avoiding getting his whole face broke. His opponent, Nasrat Haqparast, started his UFC campaign on very short notice, just barely losing a thrilling fight in which either man could have received the nod. He then won 5 of his next 6 fights before dropping his last 2 to absolute killers Dan Hooker and Bobby Green. 

                 Way too interesting to ignore: Nasrat Haqparast trains under GSP's legendary head coach, Firas Zahabi. He is the son of two Afghan immigrants who fled to Germany for greener pastures, we have them to thank for his current presence in the UFC. He had many visa issues before luckily ending up in Canada to train with Firas and his elite stable of savage grapplers. Possibly the most interesting note is that this fight has been booked three times in the past 3 years. Maybe Saturday we can finally get a result. Maybe we will find out who is on their way out and who is here to stay. 

                Odds: I’ve seen underdog odds on Makdessi as low as + 172 and as high as +192. As for Nasrat, I’ve seen him as high a favorite as -250 and as low as -225.