UFC 217 Preview, Betting Tips and Odds
The UFC will host its second card in New York City and it is another star-studded event with three titles on the line on November 4th.
The UFC 217 main event features the greatest welterweight of all time Georges St-Pierre who returns to the octagon after a four-year layoff to challenge Michael Bisping for the middleweight title. The intrigue about the size difference and effect of such a long layoff make this a much-discussed bet.
The co-main event is a much-anticipated showdown between former teammates and training partners Cody Garbrandt and title challenger T.J. Dillashaw for the bantamweight title.
The third belt on the line is a strawweight bout with the baddest woman on the planet Joanna Jedrzejczyk who will defend her title against Rose Namajunas.
Let’s take a closer look at 12 fights going down at Madison Square Garden.
UFC 217 Early Prelims
Aiemann Zahabi (7-0) Vs. Ricardo Ramos (10-1)
Zahabi is undefeated and secured a win over Reginaldo Vieira in his UFC debut in February. He’s best known for being Firas Zahabi’s brother, the legendary Tristar coach that will also be in the corner of GSP. The Brazilian Ramos is only 22 years old and will also look for his second consecutive UFC win after a successful debut.
Ovince St. Preux (21-10) Vs. Corey Anderson (9-3)
Lightheavyweights “OSP” and Anderson clash early on the card in a battle of top 10 fighters. St. Preux is on a two-fight win streak with back-to-back Von Flue choke submissions. The late replacement is back in action after a win in late September in Japan. Anderson was taken out with a first round knockout loss to Jimi Manuwa in March of 2017. The wrestler has one win and two losses in his last three, including a controversial split decision loss against Mauricio Shogun Rua. He’ll look to get back on track against St. Preux, where one fighter will be climbing the ranks toward title contention once again.
Aleksei Oleinik (55-10-1) Vs. Curtis Blaydes (7-1, 1 NC)
Blaydes is a knockout artist with 6 of 7 wins via TKO. The American heavweight’s only loss is to rising star Francis Ngannou in his first UFC fight in 2016. Oleinik is a true veteran of the game with a record of 52-10-1. He’s the first fighter to win via Ezekiel choke in the UFC. The clash of styles of the big men will result in a KO stoppage on the feet by Blaydes or a submission on the ground by Oleinik, so place your bets on a finish here one way or the other.
UFC 217 Prelims
Randy Brown (9-2) Vs. Mickey Gall (4-0)
Gall is best known for his win over CM Punk, and followed this fight up by beating poster boy Sage Northcutt in his third UFC outing. The well-rounded fighter is a jiu-jitsu specialist and will face Brown who has a background in boxing. “Rude Boy” had a two fight UFC winning streak stopped by Belal Muhammad at UFC 208. This will be a tough test for the prospect Gall.
Michal Oleksijczuk (12-2) Vs. Ion Cutelaba (13-3)
With a lack of young light heavyweights this matchup between 22-year-old Oleksijczuk and 23-year-old Cutelaba hopes to highlight a fighter that can climb the ranks. Cutelaba out of the Republic of Moldova is coming off a very impressive and scary knockout win over Henrique da Silva in June of 2017. Poland’s Oleksijczuk has been fighting on local cards in his home country and will look to shine under the bright lights at UFC 217 in his UFC debut.
Walt Harris (10-6) Vs. Mark Godbeer (12-3)
Another heavyweight fight goes down on the prelim card, and based on the track record of the two big men, someone will be stopped before the 15 minutes is over. Harris has all of his 10 wins by KO/TKO with Godbeer having 8 wins by KO/TKO. Harris took on Fabricio Werdum on literally a few hours notice, but was submitted quickly at UFC 216. Look for Harris to show his power and improved game in his quick return to the octagon.
James Vick (11-1) Vs. Joe Duffy (16-2)
A real nice fight will headline the prelim card. Vick’s only loss is a KO against Beneil Dariush at UFC 199. Since then, he’s won two in a row, his last was a TKO over Marco Polo Reyes. The tall lightweight will have a nice reach advantage over Joe Duffy. “Irish” is best known for submitting Conor McGregor via arm-triangle choke during a Cage Warriors bout in 2010. He’s on a 2-fight win streak in the UFC, his only UFC loss was a decision loss to Dustin Poirier. This should be another spirited stand-up battle.
UFC 217 Main Card
Johny Hendricks (18-7) Vs. Paulo Borrachinha (10-0)
The former welterweight champ Hendricks has fallen on hard times, and is just 1-4 in his last five fights. He debuted at middleweight after challenges making the welterweight limit two fights, however in his last bought he embarrassingly missed the 185 lbs. weight limit by two pounds against Tim Boetsch. At 34 and coming of an uninspired loss against the “Barbarian,” it is a real mystery what motivation is left in “Big Rig.” Borrachinha is a perfect 10-0. He’s 2-0 in the UFC so far, both wins via TKO. A big step up in competition for the Brazilian that won the Jungle Fight Belt back in 2016. A bet against the former champion would be the safer play here, and the odds have it this way, too.
Stephen Thompson (13-2-1) Vs. Jorge Masvidal (32-12)
Thompson is coming off two razor close fights against the champ Tyron Woodley, the first was a majority draw, the rematch was a majority decision loss. A win over Masvidal puts him right back into contention. Thompson is a decorated striker with incredible Karate credentials. Masvidal stopped Donald Cerrone’s momentum in the welterweight division with an impressive TKO victory in January. “Gamebred” then fought Demian Maia in a title eliminator bought where he lost via split decision. Masvidal has great boxing, which should lead to an awesome stand up war with strikes and counter-strikes. The betting favorite “Wonderboy’s” counter wrestling will allow Thompson to keep the fight on the feet where he wants it.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk (14-0) Vs. Rose Namajunas (6-3)
Jedrzejczyk is a perfect 14-0-0 and has defended the title five times. J-Champion’s last four fights were all unanimous decision wins. She has amazing Muay Thai striking and has proven to be one of the most dominant champions in the UFC. Challenger Namajunas is coming off an incredible submission win against the well-respected Michelle Waterson. She’s young and hungry, and is motivated to capture the title after winning four of her last five bouts.
The champion is a huge favorite here against the American. There have been few kinks in the armor of Jedrzejczyk . While some nice submissions are on “Thug’s” side, she doesn’t have the skills to stop the cardio, punching machine. The champ keeps here title here.
Cody Garbrandt (11-0) Vs. TJ Dillashaw (14-3)
Champion Garbrandt is coming off a decisive, impressive, and entertaining unanimous decision victory over the greatest bantamweight of all time Dominick Cruz to capture the strap. The undefeated fighter has a boxing and wrestling background. He’s a knockout artist with 9 wins via KO/TKO. There is bad blood in this one since Dillashaw used to be part of team Alpha Male, but he switched camps which has caused a lot of drama and trash talk.
Dillashaw is the former bantamweight champion who lost the belt in a very close split decision to Dominick Cruz at January of 2016. He has since won two straight bouts against tough Brazilians Raphael Assuncao and John Lineker.
Both fighters are well rounded with superb striking. Garbrandt has a better chance to get the fight to the ground with his explosive athleticism, which is why he comes in as a favorite. The only unknown here is the back of the champion, which caused him to pull out of their previous matchup. A healthy Garbrandt should get his hand raised.
Michael Bisping (30-7) Vs. Georges St-Pierre (25-2)
Bisping is on five fight win streak, which includes a comeback victory over Anderson Silva, a clean knockout of Luke Rockhold on short notice to win the title, and a unanimous decision title defense over Dan Henderson. The “Count” is a volume striker with amazing cardio and determination. The former light heavyweight will be meeting the former welterweight for the middleweight strap in a strange yet intriguing matchup.
St-Pierre is the greatest welterweight of all time, but this fight is at middleweight and after a four-year layoff. GSP is an incredible wrestler with a great jab, but his last 7 fights were all decision wins so we are likely looking at a 25-minute bout, unless he gets caught by Bisping who isn’t known for his power. The counter wrestling of the Brit will also cause challenges for the wrestling prone Canadian.
This is a close bout on odds, with a slight edge for GSP. The more known entity is Bisping with solid recent wins and size on his side. I’d look at a play on the champ to keep his title in the mild upset.
About Ryan O’Leary
Ryan O’Leary is a veteran mixed martial arts journalist and commentator. The Swedish-based writer is the founder and editor at MMAViking.com, which is the premier source for Nordic mixed martial arts news.
