Wakey, wakey ... kickies and punchies!
The dedicated mixed martial arts (MMA) fan will have to get up bright and early this Saturday (Jan. 4, 2014)because Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will make its debut in Singapore, bringing with it a clash of Welterweight standouts to Marina Bay Sands in Marina Bay, Singapore.
Final Strikeforce Welterweight champion, Tarec Saffiedine, will make his long-delayed Octagon debut, facing Korean prospect Hyun Gyu Lim. In addition, Pride FC veteran Tatsuya Kawajiri will finally enter the Octagon after almost 14 years in the sport, taking on Blackzillians standout Sean Soriano.
If you're high on new international talent, this is the card for you. It's also the card for you if you feel like making some dosh.
Follow me for the latest UFC Fight Night 34 betting odds / lines to see if we can make the "UFC Fight Pass"-streamed event pay for itself once the free trial is over, shall we?
UFC Fight Night 34 Odds For The Under Card:
Max Holloway (-215) vs. Will Chope (+170)
Katsunori Kikuno (-205) vs. Quinn Mulhern (+165)
David Galera (-185) vs. Royston Wee (+155)
Mairbek Taisumov (-290) vs. Tae Hyun Bang (+230)
Dustin Kimura (-270) vs. Jon delos Reyes (+210)
Leandro Issa (-135) vs. Russell Doane (+105)
Thoughts: We’re playing favorites today: Holloway and Kikuno.
Chope may be one of the few fighters at 145 pounds with a height and length advantage over Holloway, but he has no idea how to use it. He doesn’t have the wrestling to get Holloway down nor the striking defense to keep from getting lit up to the head and body. Finally, his strength of schedule has been -- to put it kindly -- garbage. Holloway at anything better than -250 is a bargain; hell, he’s pretty cheap on KM, too, so put him on your team there.
This will be a spanking.
Mulhern isn’t just making an additional 15-pound cut for the first time, he’s doing it out of desperation in an unfamiliar country. And he’s 6’3."
All this against a guy notorious for punishing the body. This may be Kikuno’s UFC debut, but everything points to him breaking Mulhern early.
Bank on it.
UFC Fight Night 34 Odds For The Main Card:
Tarec Saffiedine (-210) vs. Hyun Gyu Lim (+175)
Tatsuya Kawajiri (-185) vs. Sean Soriano (+160)
Luiz Dutra (-150) vs. Kiichi Kunimoto (+120)
Kyung Ho Kang (-270) vs. Shunichi Shimizu (+210)
Thoughts: Lim’s cardio is too suspect and Saffiedine had too much trouble with the brawling Tyler Stinson for me to bet on the main event. Let’s ignore that and focus on why the hell "The Crusher" is less than a 2-1 favorite against Soriano.
I get that Kawajiri is old and that his chin has deteriorated. That doesn’t change the fact that he’s one of the top wrestlers in the division, having dominated Josh Thomson on the ground with greater ease than Gilbert Melendez. He’s tremendously strong, only has to deal with a one-hour time difference, and isn’t taking this fight on short notice.
Hell, Soriano will only have one cornerman. I fail to see why Kawajiri is tied for third-smallest favorite on the card.
Bet appropriately.
UFC Fight Night 34 Best Bets:
- Parlay -- Max Holloway and Katsunori Kikuno: Bet $40 to make $47.60
- Parlay -- Max Holloway and Tatsuya Kawajiri: Bet $60 to make $75.60
It's early in the morning, but who needs sleep when there's violence to be watched?
See you Saturday, Maniacs, bright and early (6:30 a.m. ET!).
Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver live UFC Fight Night 34: "Saffiedine vs. Lim" results on fight morning RIGHT HERE, which is as good a place as any to talk about all the action inside the Octagon, as well as what you've got riding on the sportsbook.