Home > MMA Betting > MMA News > UFC Fight Night 135: Gaethje vs. Vick
UFC Fight Night 135: Gaethje vs. Vick
UFC Fight Night 135 takes place on Saturday, August 25, 2018 at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska. The card airs live on FS1 starting 10 p.m. ET. Lightweight contender Justin Gaethje (18-2, 15 KOs, 1 SUB) will meet prospect James “The Texecutioner” Vick (13-1, 3 KOs, 5 SUBs) in the main event.
Any fight with Justin Gaethje is one you need to circle in red ink on your calendar. Or just tell Siri to remind you to set your DVR. Because this man is a blessing to all MMA - an old school fighter’s fighter, who cares about nothing other than bringing the pain at all costs. Though just recently signed to the UFC, he’s already 3-for-3 when it comes to putting on Fight of the Year Contenders, taking contenders like Eddie Alvarez and Dustin Poirier to their limits.
It might be time to dial back the competition a little. Because Gaethje won’t take the proper steps to preserve his health and prolong his fighting career, matchmaker Sean Shelby is smart to put him against up-and-comers who are less likely to take years off his life. And if he perhaps figures away to dance smarter and not make it part of his gameplan to block punches with his face, we might see the 29-year old back in title contention in the near future.
James Vick is the next man up for “The Highlight.” While he’s somewhat unknown to casuals, Vick is one of those dangerous, lower-ranked lightweights that established contenders tend to avoid. At 6’3”, he presents a unique challenge at 155 pounds, and he comes into the contest with four straight wins - three by way of stoppage.
The rest of the card is decent, but the dropoff from the main event is clear. Featherweight Michael Johnson is a guy with extremely fast hands and an exciting style, but he’s been inconsistent in picking up wins. Angela Hill is always good for a scrap, but the women’s strawweight can’t seem to turn the corner in a loaded division. Former NFL hopeful Eryk Anders is back, hoping to bounce back from his first career loss
Take a look at some of the fights below, and log into the sportsbook to see the lines for every fight on the card. Make sure to check in during fight week for in-depth betting previews. We’ve got UFC odds from BookMaker.eu if they’ve been released.
UFC Fight Night 135 Lineup (Subject to Change)
Main Event, Lightweight - Justin Gaethje vs. James Vick
Women’s Strawweight - Angela Hill vs. Cortney Casey
Featherweight - Michael Johnson vs. Andre Fili
Middleweight - Andrew Sanchez vs. Antonio Brago Neto
Middleweight - Eryk Anders vs. Tim Williams
Bantamweight - Cory Sandhagen vs. Iuri Alcantara
Flyweight - John Moraga vs. Deiveson Figueiredo
Bantamweight - Rani Yahya vs. Luke Sanders
Women’s Strawweight - JoJo Calderwood vs. Kalindra Faria
Lightweight - Drew Dober vs. Jon Tuck
Welterweight - Mickey Gall vs. George Sullivan
Welterweight - Jake Ellenberger vs. Bryan Barberena
What to Watch For
We’ll have detailed previews, along with expert analysis during fight week. But we’ve got a few initial reactions here before the odds are even released.
Betting against Gaethje is something you might want to make a habit of. He’s fun as hell to watch, but his reckless style is catching up to him. The downgrade in competition makes this interesting, but Vick is a dude that you cannot sleep on. He iced a boxer in James Duffy, submitted another striker in Abel Trujillo, and grinded out a decision win over an underrated Francisco Trinaldo.
His height already gives him a reach advantage, and Vick is already excellent at using his range. Gaethje is a guy that never stops coming forward, so you know he’s already gonna eat some shots right off the bat. Keep an eye on the lines.
Michael Johnson is quick AF, a plus athlete and has sick hand speed. But his heart has gotta be questioned. We’ve seen too many fights where he clearly had the physical advantage over an opponent, only to see him wilt when they wouldn’t go away. Fili isn’t a grinder, but he’s tough, explosive and efficiently wild with his strikes. There should be a ton of great exchanges here.
Former Cleveland Brown Eryk Anders was on the verge of a breakthrough, but a split decision loss to Lyoto Machida has pumped the brakes on the once-hot prospect. Now, he meets Tim Williams, who is pretty much a complete unknown coming off a loss in his UFC debut. This is a bounceback fight for Anders and should be bet accordingly.
Jake Ellenberger, please retire soon. “The Juggernaut” has provided plenty of entertainment for a really long time, but it’s harder and harder to watch him get shredded by worse and worse competition. Bryan Barberena is one of those UFC hangarounds that stick around the roster as mid-card filler, and if he beats Jake here, the book is pretty much closed on the one-time contender.
Stay Tuned for Fight Odds and Updates
Make sure to check the fight odds at BookMaker.eu for all your available betting options. For pay-per-view cards, odds usually release early for the bigger fights. In fact, you can bet on some fight odds right now. Odds for the entire card are generally available on Monday of fight week.
And during fight week, keep an eye out for our in-depth betting guides that we post during that time as well! You’ll find detailed analyses for fights, common sense betting picks and underdog specials to help you win some cash before the night’s over.
Log into BookMaker Sportsbook and get the best MMA Betting Odds, MMA Betting Articles and information about this and all other sports betting events!
