5 months agoJohnny Walker suffered a first-round knockout loss to Volkan Oezdemir at UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday. Walker entered the fight as a slight favorite, but just over two minutes into the opening round, Walker was dropped with a big left hook. The Brazilian was able to get back to his feet, but just 20 seconds later, Walker was dropped with a right hand and put out cold by one shot on the ground. With the loss, the Brazilian is now 21-9 and one NC as a pro and 7-6 and one NC in the UFC, while being on a two-fight losing streak with both losses coming by knockout. Walker will likely need someone outside the top 10 next.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoVolkan Oezdemir extended his win streak to two with a first-round knockout win over Johnny Walker to open up the UFC Saudi Arabia main card. The two had a feeling-out process of sorts to begin, but just over two minutes into the opening round, Oezdemir landed a left hook that dropped Walker. Oezdemir continued to swarm Walker who was able to get back to his feet and just 20 seconds later landed a massive right hand that dropped Walker and Oezdemir put him out cold with one punch on the ground. With the win, Oezdemir is now 20-7 as a pro and 8-6 in the UFC. A top-10 opponent could be next for the Swiss native.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoAntonio Trocoli suffered a third-round knockout loss to Shara Magomedov on the main card of UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday. Trocoli took the fight on three days' notice, and in the opening rounds, the Brazilian had a wrestling-heavy game plan. However, Trocoli struggled to get Magomedov down as he went 0-for-7. The Brazilian then began to gas out in the third round and after taking a big punch, Magomedov swarmed him and got the knockout win in the third round as the ref stepped in after Trocoli was dropped. It was Trocoli's first fight since November 2021 and was his UFC debut.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoIkram Aliskerov suffered a first-round knockout loss to Robert Whittaker in the main event of UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday. Aliskerov was supposed to fight back on June 15, but just over a week out, Khamzat Chimaev fell ill and Aliskerov stepped up on short notice to face Whittaker. It was a massive step up in competition and not even two minutes in, Aliskerov got wobbled by a right hand. Whittaker then followed up with some shots and landed a perfectly-timed uppercut that dropped him. After Whittaker landed a couple more shots, the ref stepped in to stop it. With the loss, Aliskerov is now 15-2 as a pro and 2-1 in the UFC. Aliskerov will likely need to fight an unranked opponent next.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoRobert Whittaker scored a first-round knockout win over Ikram Aliskerov in the main event of UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday. Whittaker was supposed to fight Khamzat Chimaev, but a week out from the fight, the unranked Aliskerov stepped up on short notice. After a bit of a feeling-out process, Whittaker landed a big right hand that wobbled Aliskerov, and after missing a head kick, the former champ landed a perfectly-timed uppercut to drop Aliskerov. Whittaker then landed a couple more punches before the reft stepped in. With the win, Whittaker improved to 26-7 as a pro and is now 17-5 in the UFC. He could get a title shot next time out.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoAlexander Volkov (37-10) is scheduled to face off against Sergei Pavlovich in the UFC Saudi Arabia co-main event on Saturday. Since losing to Tom Aspinall, Volkov has picked up some serious momentum, defeating Jairzinho Rozenstruik, Alexander Romanov and Tai Tuivasa. DraftKings sees Volkov as the underdog with a salary of $7,500. Throughout his UFC career of 15 bouts, Volkov averages 77.0 fantasy points per contest.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoUFC heavyweight Sergei Pavlovich (18-2) is set to take on Alexander Volkov on Saturday in the co-main event of UFC Saudi Arabia. Pavlovich is seeking to prove he is still at the top of his game after losing his last fight to Tom Aspinall. DraftKings sees Pavlovich as the favorite with a salary of $8,700. Throughout his UFC career of eight bouts, Pavlovich averages 90.2 fantasy points per contest. The winner of this fight is going to be one step closer to a title shot.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoKelvin Gastelum (18-9) may be in dire need of a victory more than anyone else on Saturday's card when he faces off against Daniel Rodriguez. The UFC officially changed this fight from a welterweight bout to a middleweight bout on Thursday after Gastelum acknowledged his weight this week was an issue. Gastelum hasn't been in the best form, going 2-6 in his last eight. DraftKings sees Gastelum as the favorite with a salary of $8,900. Throughout his UFC career, (22 bouts) he averages 62.4 fantasy points per contest.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoDaniel Rodriguez (17-4) will be looking to get back in the win column when he returns to the Octagon to face off against former interim title challenger Kelvin Gastelum. In his last two fights, Rodriguez has lost to Neil Magny, and most recently, Ian Machado Garry. DraftKings sees Rodriguez as the underdog with a salary of $7,300. Throughout his UFC career (10 bouts), he averages 74.9 fantasy points per contest.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoShara Magomedov (12-0) is set to face off against UFC newcomer Antonio Troccoli on the main card of UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday. In his last fight, Magomedov made his promotional debut on UFC 294 and defeated Bruno Silva via unanimous decision. Magomedov is currently undefeated and has won 12 fights in a row. DraftKings sees Magomedov as the favorite with a salary of $8,800. Throughout his UFC career, (one bout) he averages 97.0 fantasy points per contest.
--Alen Kurbasic - RotoBallerSource: UFC
5 months agoJohnny Walker (21-8, one no-contest) is set to take on Volkan Oezdemir in the main-card opener of UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday. Walker is coming off a knockout loss to Magomed Ankalaev back in January. Despite Walker coming off the loss, the Brazilian enters the bout as the favorite, as DraftKings has Walker at a salary of $8,200. In the UFC, Walker is 7-5 with one no-contest, with six wins by stoppage. But in his five losses, three have come by knockout. If Walker can beat Oezdemir, he will likely get a top-10 opponent or possibly top-five opponent next time out.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoVolkan Oezdemir (19-7) is set to take on Johnny Walker on the main card opener of UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday. Oezdemir is coming off a first-round submission win over Bogdan Guskov back in September to return to the win column after a decision loss to Nikita Krylov. Oezdemir enters the fight against Walker as the slight underdog as DraftKings has him at a salary of $8,000. In the UFC, Oezdemir is 7-6 with four wins by stoppage, while he's been finished in three of his six losses. If Oezdemir can beat Walker, he would likely get a top-10 opponent next time out.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoAntonio Trocoli (12-3, one no-contest) is set to make his UFC debut at UFC Saudi Arabia on Saturday against Shara Magomedov. Trocoli was supposed to face Ikram Aliskerov last weekend, but the fight was canceled after Aliskerov stepped up to headline UFC Saudi Arabia against Robert Whittaker. Following Magomedov's opponent being pulled from their fight on Wednesday, Trocoli stepped up on three days of notice to take the fight. Trocoli hasn't fought since November of 2021 and will be a heavy underdog. In his career, Trocoli has won eight times by stoppage, while he's been finished just once.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoIkram Aliskerov (15-1) is getting a massive opportunity as he stepped up on short notice to headline UFC Saudi Arabia against Robert Whittaker. Aliskerov was supposed to fight last weekend against Antonio Trocoli but after Khamzat Chimaev was out of the bout, Aliskerov took the fight against Whittaker on short notice. Aliskerov is 2-0 in the UFC and enters the bout against Whittaker as the underdog as DraftKings has him at a salary of $7,800. Both of Aliskerov's wins in the UFC came by first-round knockout and if he can beat Whittaker, the Russian would be a win away from a title shot.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
5 months agoRobert Whittaker (25-7) is set to headline UFC Saudi Arabia against Ikram Aliskerov on Saturday. Whittaker was supposed to headline the card against Khamzat Chimaev but just over a week out from the card, Chimaev was out and Aliskerov stepped up on short notice. Following the change of opponent, Whittaker is now the favorite as DraftKings has him at a salary of $8,400. The former middleweight champion is coming off a decision win over Paulo Costa as the Aussie is 16-5 in the UFC and has won 11 times by decision, while he's been finished in three of his losses. A win over Aliskerov could get Whittaker a title shot next time out.
--Cole SheltonSource: UFC
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