Aleksander Volkanovski thinks there is money to be made from ending Charles Oliveira at UFC 289.
Oliveira (33-9 MMA, 21-9 UFC) meets Neil Dariusz (22-4-1 MMA, 16-4-1 UFC) in the co-main event on Saturday at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The main card airs on pay-per-view following Prelims on ESPN and ESPN+.
Oliveira is the record holder for most finishes in UFC history, as well as most submissions. But if Oliveira scores a stop, Volkanovski sees it happen on his feet.
“Penil is very well rounded,” Volkanovski said of his counterpart. YouTube channel. His style, and Charles, will make this a fun fight. I think this is going to be a gunfight. Bennell is a favorite, and maybe he should be. We all know Charles can get the finish, submission, and TKO. I feel like Dariush’s submission is going to be tough. He’s so busy. He’s a durable man. He’s flexible.”
according to betMGM, Oliveira is a +125 underdog, while Dariush is a -150 favourite. While Volkanowski doesn’t necessarily disagree with those odds, he does see value in Oliveira’s TKO – even though he’s leaning towards a Dariusz win.
“If I had to pick, maybe best value, go with Charles, maybe go by TKO,” said Volkanowski. “I can see that happening. I can see Beniel Dariush winning too. Beniel can finish Charles as well. So you might look at the value there because it’s not like he finished a pile of fights, so maybe there’s value in Beniel getting the finish.
“My selection would be Charles Oliveira by TKO. Charles has something to prove. He wants that title back, and I think he’ll get out there and take a swing. He will really be looking for that ending. …fight so close, can’t wait. It’s even pretty. I’m almost 50-50 on that. I would probably lean towards Penil, but the 50-50 then betting odds would probably favor Charles. That’s why he’s probably leaning on him as a pick, and leaning on Pennell for the win.”
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