UFC Vegas 56 is a Fight Night card once again originating at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. As far as UFC Vegas 56 is middle of the road as Fight Nights go. The card is not a throwaway and brings intrigue throughout. What it does lack is that one fight to really sell it at the top, but it makes up for it in volume of fights. UFC Vegas 56 also brings an early start time. The card will have the first fighter make the walk at 1:00 PM EST on Saturday June 4th, 2022. Nine of the fourteen fights have a betting line with the favorite costing less than 2:1.
With the return to the Apex, I like to give a reminder that the octagon used in that building is smaller than the normal octagon. The smaller octagon in the Apex tends to favor wrestlers, grapplers and fighters who otherwise want to constantly engage due there being less space.
UFC Vegas 56 Promo Code
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Quick Look Back
After our first and hopefully only slump of 2022 that lasted two weeks, we fully go back on track for UFC Vegas 55. Our three betting plays all came out perfect.
Our betting night started with a bang with Joseph Holmes in his fight with Alen Amedovski. It took Holmes just a tick over a minute to get the finish for our ITD bet returning a plus figure. Holmes stung Amedovski on the feet and followed him to the floor. Ultimately it was a rear naked choke finish, but Amedovski is just still not UFC caliber.
Our next bet came with a warning that it would not be the most exciting fight of the night. It also said Tabatha Ricci would land multiple takedowns on her way to an easy decision win against Polyana Viana. Ricci landed five takedowns and notched nearly 10 minutes of control time as she cruised to that easy decision win.
Our last bet of the night was another plus figure ITD wager. This one was on Chidi Njokuani against Dusko Todorovic. The worry for Njokuani was being taken down and losing on the floor to the superior grappler. That happened, and Todorovic notched two takedowns and three minutes of control in that first round. No matter. Njokuani ultimately returned to his feet and knocked Todorovic from his, scoring that KO inside the first round to secure the clean sweep of the card.
UFC Vegas 56 Fight Card
This middle of the road Fight Night card will bring us some extra fight time on the heels of a week off. The 14 scheduled fights and early start time will make for an MMA filled Saturday. The heavyweight main event is not overly intriguing to me. Perhaps I am not giving it a fair shake but I see one fighter in a bad spot on that side. What is intriguing is that we will have a bet to make on it. Much more on that later.
UFC Vegas 56 Co-Main Event
Movsar Evloev gets his first crack at higher profile placement on the card. He is matched up with Dan Ige in a co-main event featherweight bout. Ige was thrust into this role not too long ago, but if we are fair on his recent results, he has disappointed. The poor recent results seem to have moved Ige to something of a gatekeeper in this matchup.
Ige has clearly fought the better level of competition, particularly of late. That said, Ige has lost three of four fights. If we are fair, that should read lost four of five fights on account of the decision robbery against Edson Barboza. Ige is very well rounded, but I do not believe he presents a world of danger in the striking. He did score a KO of Gavin Tucker, but when that is put against all of Ige’s other performances, that outcome is very much an outlier. Ige generally finds more success as a wrestler, allowing him to put his strong top game to use. The BJJ black belt is at his best when he can work from the comfort of top position on the floor.
Evloev is not a fighter that is going to allow that comfort for Ige. He is getting a step up in competition, but has been a perfect five for five thus far in the UFC. Evloev is also not a finisher, as all five of his wins have come via decision in the UFC. Evloev’s true strength is in his wrestling. Taking it a step further, his ability to mat return and grind on his opponents is his greatest attribute. After seeing Ige controlled by the Korean Zombie, it would appear this fight will play out with Evloev doing a great deal of controlling and winning a decision. The -415 line on Evloev is far too wide to bet, it is simply not a fight where we can find action. Even Evloev via decision costs 2:1 and we are not going to pay that.
Remainder Of UFC Vegas 56 Fight Card
The rest of the fight card brings intrigue, even if not at the highest levels the promotion has to offer. We will see Alonzo Menifield bang it out with newcomer Askar Mozharev. Someone is going to sleep there. There will be a similar banger in the women’s flyweight division. Powerhouse Poliana Botelho will bang it out with newcomer Karine Silva. Joe Solecki and Damon Jackson are likely to pick up grappling heavy wins, and both narrowly missed the cut of being dedicated bets. There is also a super intriguing matchup between Johnny Munoz Jr and Tony Gravely. Everything in my gut says Gravely is going to get submitted but I cannot seem to pull the trigger on that outcome. Perhaps Saturday will push me back towards trusting that more.
UFC Vegas 56 Bet Sheet
Our UFC Vegas 56 bet sheet is a little thinner than I thought it was going to be when heading into the film sessions. We will only have three wagers, but they are three that I do feel quite good about. Additionally, two of the three are coming with plus figures of at least +180 attached. This will be a low risk high reward card with our three bets.
Click the links below for a full breakdown with recommended betting picks and analyses.
Alexander Volkov vs Jair Rozenstruick
Jeff Molina vs Zhalgas Zhumagulov
Erin Blanchfield vs JJ Aldrich
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Other Fight Predictions
Rinat Fakhretdinov via KO over Andreas Michilidis
Johnny Munoz Jr via submission over Tony Gravely (nearly a sub bet on Munoz)
Benoit Saint Denis via KO over Nicolas Stolze
Damon Jackson via submission over Daniel Arguetta (nearly a sub bet on Jackson)
Joe Solecki via decision over Alex Da Silva (nearly a bet on Solecki)
Felice Herrig via decision over Karolina Kowlkiewicz
Alonzo Menifield via KO over Askar Mozharov
Poliana Botelho via KO over Karine Silva
Mike Trizano via decision over Lucas Almeida
Movsar Evloev via decision over Dan Ige