Matthew Lowrimore
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UFC on ESPN 53 takes place on Saturday night at the UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. This card features a women’s flyweight fight between Amanda Ribas and Rose Namajunas as the Main Event. Here are my best bets for this UFC card, which will include 3 fights on the Main Card.
Be sure to also check out the rest of our UFC predictions for all of the UFC on ESPN 53 Main Card fights.
UFC on ESPN 53 Main Card Best Bets
Amanda Ribas ML over Rose Namajunas (+180)
The Main Event at UFC on ESPN 53 will see Amanda Ribas tangle with Rose Namajunas in the UFC Women’s Flyweight division. Ribas comes into this fight with an MMA record of 12-4 and she is 7-3 in the UFC. She is averaging 4.92 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 42%. Ribas is absorbing 3.33 strikes and has a striking defense of 63%. Her grappling is also very strong, averaging 1.99 takedowns per every 15 minutes. She has a takedown accuracy of 51% and a takedown defense of 87%.
Namajunas is a heavy favorite in this fight, but her inconsistency is a concern. She has lost back-to-back fights and while Ribas has been trading wins and losses, her striking and grappling is superior to that of Namajunas. As such, backing Ribas to pull the upset will be my best bet.
Payton Talbott ML over Cameron Saaiman (-148)
The third fight on the Main Card will see Payton Talbott take on Cameron Saaiman in the Bantamweight division. Talbott comes into this fight with an MMA record of 7-0 and he is 2-0 in the UFC. He is averaging 6.66 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 51%. Talbott is absorbing 3.12 strikes and has a striking defense of 51%. He has yet to show any grappling ability, but has a takedown defense of 88%.
Talbott is the medium-sized favorite in this fight, but looks to be the right side. He is not only undefeated in the UFC but also has much better striking compared to Saaiman, and has an elite takedown defense. Because of that, backing Talbott to win is the move.
Luis Pajuelo ML over Fernando Padilla (+142)
The first fight on the Main Card at UFC on ESPN 53 will see Fernando Padilla face Luis Pajuelo in the Featherweight division. Pajuelo comes into this fight with an MMA record of 8-1 and he is 1-0 in the UFC and will be making his official UFC debut in this fight. He is averaging 9.15 significant strikes per minute and has a striking accuracy of 61%. Pajuelo is absorbing 5.11 strikes and has a striking defense of 62%. He has not shown any grappling ability, but does have a takedown defense of 66%.
Padilla is the favorite in this fight and even though Pajuelo is making his UFC debut, he looks to be the right side. Pajuelo has the significant edge in striking, therefore backing him to pull the upset will be the play.
