UFC Fight Night: Font vs. Aldo Full Card Betting Guide

Fifteen fights, including the headliner featuring bantamweights Jose Aldo and Rob Font, gives bettors plenty reason to get excited about UFC Vegas 44 on Saturday, Dec. 4, at the UFC Apex.

The massive fight card is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Check out Matt and Craig’s full analysis in our Full Card Preview, as well as Question Mark Kicks, which goes live on YouTube two hours before the prelims.

Best Bets

Alex Morono (-230) — “The Great White” has the potential to be a top-15 mainstay. Mickey Gall is well, Mickey Gall. He’s a submission artist with poor standup. How Gall gets this fight into a position where Morono falls into a submission is beyond me.

Manel Kape/Zhalgas Zhumagulov O2.5 rounds (-192) — Zhumagulov has finished just eight of his 14 victories, and we’ve seen in Kape’s UFC run, he can be a passive fighter at times. I think this turns into a chess match type of fight, where each fighter respects the other’s strengths.

Rafael Fiziev (-124) — “Ataman” is a killer. He’s rangy, had great kicks, fast hands and strikes in combination. The concern here is he fatigues as the fight progresses, but you have to wonder how much the hittable Brad Riddell has in the tank if Fiziev puts a number on him in the first round.

Jose Aldo (+121) — How a UFC legend like Aldo is underdog against Rob Font is beyond me? Aldo’s well-rounded game and experience in five-round main events makes him the favorite in my eyes against Font, whose biggest weapon might be his durability and cardio. This fight will probably go the distance, but at these odds, Aldo is a max bet for me.

Pop and Popcorn Fights

Jake Matthews (-180) vs. Jeremiah Wells (+149) — No matter how this one plays out, we know it will be fun. Matthews is a strong fighter who can mix in his grappling. Wells loves to blitz forward with wild shots. A performance bonus (or two) is coming out of this one.

Bryan Barberena (-129) vs. Darian Weeks (+105) — Short notice fight. UFC debutant. Aging veteran. Do you need any more variables as reason to not bet on this fight?

Clay Guida (+157) vs. Leonardo Santos (-191) — Haven’t I said before not to bet on two 40-year-olds fighting in an Octagon?

Underdogs to Consider

Jared Vanderaa (+176) — I don’t necessarily believe Vanderaa wins, but he is going to have a massive size advantage. If these odds stay the same after face-offs on Friday, the absurdity of the difference between these two men is going to make this underdog bet too appealing to pass on.

Jamahal Hill (+146) — We’re forgetting how highly touted Hill was entering his fight against Paul Craig. With both fighters coming off injuries in their previous fights, I’m more than willing to toss a few bucks at the talented underdog.

Intriguing Props

Louis Smolka inside the distance (+210) — The jiu-jitsu of Luis Smolka seems the perfect contrast to Vince Morales’ wrestling. Smolka has finished 15 of his 17 victories, and Morales has lost by finish in three of his five defeats.

William Knight by knockout (+252) — Alonzo Menifield is hittable. William Knight has brick hands. Why not throw some dough Knightmare’s way?

Maki Pitolo by knockout (+319) — Dusko Todorovic is not strong defensively. “Coconut Bombz” just needs one of his big looping shots — that will put him down on the scorecards early — to connect to get this done.

Parlay of the Night

Alex Morono (-230), Gruetzemacher-Puelles O2.5 (-187), Martin-Vlismas O2.5 (-280), Brendan Allen (-355) — +283

The bold bettors can add Jose Aldo (+121) to boost odds to +746.