Beneil Dariush is favored against Drakkar Klose 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. Dariush is 17-4-1 in his career, while Klose is 11-1-1 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 Dariush and Klose and UFC predictions.
Beneil Dariush (17-4-1, 11-4-1 UFC)
Dariush came into the UFC with a record of 6-0 and he has 11 wins, four losses, and one draw in the UFC. In his last five fights, he has three wins, one loss, and one draw. He defeated Thiago Moisés by unanimous decision, Drew Dober by triangle armbar submission, and Frank Camacho by rear-naked choke submission; while losing to Alexander Hernandez by KO, and fighting to a draw against Evan Dunham. Dariush has been a pro since 2009 and he has three wins by TKO/KO and eight by submission. He has seven first round finishes.
Dariush said this to ufc.com about his upcoming fight against Klose, “I think people don’t give him enough credit and he’s had six fights in the UFC and he’s won five of those fights. There is a lot that goes into winning decisions in a three-round fight; it’s not just about being tough. You have to be calculating and I think he’s calculating; he knows how to fight well, fight to his strengths. People think he’s just an aggressive guy, but he’s more than that, and I have to go in there and take away his ability to dictate the pace. No one has really pushed him around, even in his loss and he hasn’t been pushed around, so I like this kind of fight. I like fighting guys who are calculating and aggressive, so I want to go out there and perform. I want to show this guy that ‘as good as you are; I’m better in all those situations.”
Drakkar Klose (11-1-1, 5-1 UFC)
Klose came into the UFC with a record of 6-0-1 and he has five wins and one loss in the UFC. He defeated Devin Powell by unanimous decision, Marc Diakiese by split decision, Lando Vannata by unanimous decision, Bobby Green by unanimous decision, and Christos Giagos by unanimous decision; while losing to David Teymur by unanimous decision. Klose has been a pro since 2014 and he has four wins by TKO/KO. He has two first round finishes.
Klose said this to mmanews.com about his upcoming fight against Dariush, “I think this is probably the biggest fight of my career. I need him in this fight to show up, you know. He’ll bring the best out of me because this is a huge test for me. It is either I’m ready for the top-15 or I still need to work on some things. Hopefully, he is well prepared so we can put on a good show for everyone.”
Striking Stats
Strikes landed per minute: Dariush 3.95 / Klose 3.98
Striking Accuracy: Dariush 49% / Klose 52%
Strikes absorbed per minute: Dariush 2.66/ Klose 3.74
Defense: Dariush 60% / Klose 54%
Grappling Stats
Takedown average: Dariush 1.77/ Klose 1.67
Takedown Accuracy: Dariush 34% / Klose 30%
Takedowns defended: Dariush 80% / Klose 68%
Submission average: Dariush 0.9 / Klose 0.0
UFC Predictions
Dariush will have the edge on the mat, and that could be the difference in this fight. I respect Klose, but Dariush has been fighting better competition. I will lay the price with Dariush and also play the rounds to go over.
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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