Draftkings MMA Knockout Punch: UFC 230 Saturday November 3rd

Welcome to Draftkings MMA: Knockout Punch for UFC 230 on Saturday November 3rd from Madison Square Garden in NY! I will break down the best choices on this Saturdays card into three priced tiers; high, medium and value.

For those who haven’t played DraftKings MMA before  you are given $50K to build a 6 fighter lineup to earn points for such statistics as significant strikes,advances, takedowns,reversals/sweeps and, knockdowns. You also earn bonus points for wins based on the round the fight is finished in. There are multiple different strategies to utilize depending on the style of games ( Cash or GPP) I will highlight 2 of them.

First, if you are playing cash games one way to play is stacking the main event (or any other 5 round contests). In cash games you aren’t necessarily chasing wins, not that you don’t need fighters who win, but it’s more about racking up points with your fighters and the more rounds a fight goes the more secondary points they can get. In GPP’s you are looking for winners who win by KO or submission, you really don’t want contests that go to a decision because generally the point totals there will be less than say a 1st or 2nd round KO.

On Saturday there is a co-main even when Daniel Cormier defends his heavyweight title against “The Black Beast” Derrick Lewis. In the second main event Long Island own Chris Wideman takes on Jacare Souza.

DraftKings MMA: High Tier 

Daniel Cormier ($9.6K)

Vegas Odds: (-700)

 Cormier will be defending his UFC Heavyweight title against Derrick Lewis ($6.6K)on Saturday in what most see has a one-sided affair, though Lewis has had some big wins of late, as recent as at UFC 229. Cormier may be the most expensive fighter on the card but he is worthy of that distinction. This fight has the possibility of being over quick which could earn him a massive point total and almost makes him almost impossible to fade in cash games. Cormier hasn’t had a fight go passed the 3rd round in over 2 years and he has scored over 100 points in his last two fights with both ending in KO/TKO fashion as wins for Cormier.

David Branch ($9.3K) 

Vegas Odds: (-360)

Branch comes into this as a big favorite in a situation where he needs to win and win impressively. Branch was supposed to be fight Jacare Souza, but that fight was taken away from him and replaced with Jared Cannonier ($6.9), a fighter who is closer to being released from UFC then he is from a title fight. Branch is a big physical fighter who should be able to handle Cannonier easily and this fight should not go the distance. This is a pick that could be considered for GPP’s and cash, you have a pretty good shot at an early win, but Branch may go over looked on this card because his fight was changed at the last-minute.

Shane Burgos ($9K)

Vegas Odds: (-310)

Burgos is another New York native getting a “home” fight here on Saturday when he takes on Kurt Holobaugh ($7.2K) in a featherweight bout. Burgos is a good fighter who will look to get back on the winning side of the ledger this Saturday after losing a thrilling match with Calvin Kattar at UFC 220 that earned him Fight of the Night honors. There is a pretty good chance this fight ends in a knockout in favor of Burgos (Odds to finish -165). Before the loss to Kattar, Burgos had won 3 straight averaging 99 FPPG in those 3 fights.

DraftKings MMA : Mid Tier

Lando Vannata ($8.9K)

Vegas Odds: (-300)

Vannata has an over 70% chance to win this fight with a 50% chance of a TKO/KO victory, I like those odds. Over his last 3 fights Vannata has 2 loses and a draw but his opponent, Matt Frevola ($7.3K) has not fared much better in his one UFC fight. Frevola  was knocked out in the first round of his only UFC fight back in January of this year

 Jason Knight ($8.8K)

Vegas Odds: (-260)

Jason Knight has lost 3 straight fights, but I am hopeful he can end that streak on Saturday against Jodran Rinaldi ($7.4K). Before losing 3 straight, Knight has won 4 straight fights in a variety of ways (1 KO, 1 Sub, and 2 decisions) but he did score a minimum of 73 points and a max of 103, so if he can pull off the win, then we know what his floor/ceiling are.

Adam Wieczorek – ($8.6K)

Vegas Odds: (-220)

Wieczorek has 2 wins in his 2 UFC fights (one sub and one by decision). This fight has the second highest percentage to finis in the first round with a 32% chance to in round 1. Six of  Wieczorek 10 wins hav come by submission, which is why he’s quickly become one of the more deadly heavyweights on the ground.

DraftKings MMA : Value Tier

Derek Brunson – ( $7.1K)

Vegas Odds (+ 260)

Brunson has won 2 of his last 3 fights with both coming via the first round knockout. While Brunson is the underdog this week, but he has a great chance at pickup the victory. It’s easy to see why Israel Adesanya is favored.

His style of fighting is exceptionally unique and next to impossible to train for. Opponents simply can’t find sparring partners who can do the things inside the cage that Adesanya does. But, even so, I am taking Brunson against this odds this weekend.

 Roxanne Modafferi – ($6.8K)

Vegas Odds ( +380)

This pick is solely a GPP flyer with taking Roxanne Modafferi against the favorite Sijara Eubanks. Modafferi is coming off a TKO win over Barb Honchak back in July of this year and will head into this fight with a three-inch height advantage and a two-inch reach advantage over Eubanks.

Thanks for reading my first edition of MMA DraftKings: Knockout Punch! Good luck with your lineups on Saturday and make sure you check out FantasyCpr.com for all thing fantasy sports!