Alex Oliveira is favored against Max Griffin at UFC 248 on Saturday, March 7 in Las Vegas, Nevada. This event is one of five fights on the main pay-per-view card. Oliveira is 19-8-1 in his career, while Griffin is 15-7 in his career. There are a total of five fights on the main pay-per-view card at UFC 248, with the headliner a bout between Israel Adesanya and Yoel Romero. There are also a total of seven fights on the preliminary card, with four on ESPN and three on ESPN+. Let’s look at the bout between Oliveira and Griffin and UFC picks.
Alex Oliveira (19-8-1, 9-6 UFC)
Oliveira came into the UFC with a record of 2011 and he has nine wins and six losses in the UFC. In his last five fights, he has two wins and three losses. He defeated Carlos Condit by guillotine choke submission and Carlo Pedersoli Jr. by TKO; while losing to Gunnar Nelson by rear-naked choke submission, Mike Perry by unanimous decision, and Nicolas Dalby by unanimous decision. Oliveira has been a pro since 2011 and he has 12 wins by TKO/KO and four by submission. He has 11 first round finishes.
Max Griffin (15-7, 3-5 UFC)
Griffin came into the UFC with a record of 12-2 and he has three wins and five losses in the UFC. He defeated Erick Montaño by TKO, Mike Perry by unanimous decision, and Zelim Imadaev by majority decision; while losing to Colby Covington by TKO, Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos by unanimous decision, Curtis Millender by unanimous decision, Thiago Alves by split decision, and Alex Morono by unanimous decision. Griffin has been a pro since 2009 and he has seven wins by TKO/KO and two by submission. He has six first round finishes.
Griffin said this to mmajunkie.usatoday.com about his upcoming fight against Oliveira, “A lot of guys, even if they’re fighters, they don’t fight. They’re not in there to fight, they’re just in there to kind of win, but Oliveira would die on his shield out there. He actually enjoys being out there, and I think that mixed with – you got a killer guy. I mean we’ve both been in ‘Fight of the Nights.’ He’s had many more than me, but he’s been around, he’s a legend, and I’m ready to make it happen. I’ve had some weird losses that – I looked back at my record that I could easily be way over .500 in the UFC. This fight is huge. I know that Oliveira is on a losing streak, but that means he’s hungry. He’s going to want to win. He doesn’t want to get cut, but he’s going back to Brazil, and that’s that. He’s pretty wild – I can’t let him get comfortable in there. So I’m going to put the pressure on him and not give him room to breathe. He doesn’t like that kind of fight, and that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to finish this man. Much respect for him, but it’s me or him, and it’s going to be him.”
Striking Stats
Strikes landed per minute: Oliveira 2.90 / Griffin 4.22
Striking Accuracy: Oliveira 50% / Griffin 49%
Strikes absorbed per minute: Oliveira 2.25/ Griffin 4.11
Defense: Oliveira 46% / Griffin 56%
Grappling Stats
Takedown average: Oliveira 2.86/ Griffin 1.89
Takedown Accuracy: Oliveira 39% / Griffin 54%
Takedowns defended: Oliveira 61% / Griffin 63%
Submission average: Oliveira 0.7 / Griffin 0.6
UFC Picks
Both Oliveira and Griffin have struggled lately, so it is hard to get too excited about taking either of them. I think the best option is just to play the rounds. These two have combined for 25 finishes, so I will go under the total.
UFC 248 takes place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on Saturday, March 7, with five fights on the main pay-per-view card, headlined by Israel Adesanya vs. Yoel Romero and seven preliminary bouts, with four on ESPN and three on ESPN+.
Main Card (Pay-Per-View)
Middleweight - Israel Adesanya -300 vs. Yoel Romero
Women's Strawweight - Zhang Weili -185 vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk
Lightweight - Beneil Dariush -170 vs. Drakkar Klose
Welterweight - Li Jingliang -171 vs. Neil Magny
Welterweight - Alex Oliveira -150 vs. Max Griffin
Preliminary Card (ESPN)
Bantamweight - Sean O'Malley -365 vs. José Alberto Quiñónez
Lightweight - Mark Madsen -215 vs. Austin Hubbard
Middleweight - Rodolfo Vieira -850 vs. Saparbek Safarov
Middleweight - Deron Winn -150 vs. Gerald Meerschaert
Early Preliminary Card (ESPN+)
Women's Strawweight - Emily Whitmire -120 vs. Polyana Viana
Bantamweight - Danaa Batgerel -148 vs. Guido Cannetti
Featherweight - Jamall Emmers -164 vs. Giga Chikadze
How to Bet
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