UFC Fight Night: Gane vs. Volkov Full Card Betting Guide

After hitting the parlay last week, we’re excited to get back at it this week with UFC Vegas 30 on Saturday, June 26, at the UFC Apex. The 13-fight card, headlined by heavyweights Ciryl Gane and Alexander Volkov, is littered with intriguing fights and even more interesting bets.

Don’t forget to check out our Full Card Preview for more in-depth analysis and predictions! Without further ado, let’s get into it!

Best Bets

Warrley Alves (-234) — Alves is extremely talented on the ground and has bricks for hands. It’s a good recipe for success against Jeremiah Wells, who is making his UFC debut on short notice after a nearly two-year layoff. The odds are stacked against the debutant.

Raoni Barcelos (-225) — There’s a lot of ways Barcelos can have success against Timur Valiev. He’s extremely well-rounded with strong striking and a solid ground game. Valiev’s wrestling is good and he’s got some strikes that will threaten Barcelos. But unless “Lucky” lives up to his name, I can’t see where Barcelos loses this fight.

Alexander Volkov (+129) — Ciryl Gane has not faced the caliber and experience that Volkov brings into the Octagon on Saturday. Gane is a special talent and will be at the top of the heavyweight division for a long time. But Volkov has 41 professional fights to Gane’s eight. That is a canyon of experience. This fight is a toss-up, but Volkov has a better than 50 percent chance and you can get plus odds on it.

Pop and Popcorn Fights

Shavkhat Rakhmonov (-303) vs. Michel Prazeres (+240) — On paper, this should be a one-sided fight for the undefeated Khazakstan fighter. He’s much taller and longer with the better resume. But Prazeres is sneaky dangerous and coming off a two-year layoff, so we have no clue what he’s going to look like entering the Octagon.

Nicolas Dalby (+112) vs. Tim Means (-136) — This has the feeling of a fight that goes the distance in a wild back-and-forth “Fight of the Night” ordeal, after which all of Twitter moans about a split decision.

Andre Fili (-229) vs Daniel Pineda (+185) — If Fili can withstand Pineda’s early burst, he should cruise to a win. I just don’t feel comfortable betting on a fighter who has 27 finishes in 27 victories and nine stoppages in 14 defeats. That’s 36 of 41 fights that have ended early in Pineda’s career. At some point, you’re just guessing about the result.

Underdogs to Consider

Justin Jaynes (+143) — Who does Charles Rosa struggle with? Wrestlers who can strike a bit. What is Justin Jaynes? A wrestler who can strike a bit. Jaynes is being significantly undervalued here because of three straight losses — but it was to some seriously talented fighters.

Danilo Marques (+106) — Kennedy Nzechukwu is tough as they come — evidenced by his win over Carlos Ulberg. But he has a very stiff test in Marques, whose size and unorthodox grappling is going to ask a ton of questions I’m not sure Nzechukwu will have the answer to.

Ovince St. Preux (+145) — What worries me is Tanner Boser forcing this fight to play out like OSP’s split-decision loss to Ben Rothwell. If OSP is passive, Boser will take advantage of being the aggressor, using his footwork and volume to control the fight. But OSP is the far more dangerous fighter — both with his power and submission game.

Intriguing Props

Damir Hadzovic by knockout (+256) — Yancy Medeiros is very chinny — four knockout losses in his professional career — and Hadzovic has shown some pop in his hands before (seven wins by KO). If Hadzovic can stay in the pocket and catch Medeiros with a combo, there’s a decent possibility this ends in stoppage.

Julija Stoliarenko by submission (+641) — If the heavy underdog takes down Julia Avila, it’s probably coming by submission. The Lithuanian fighter has eight submission wins on her resume and is more than capable of catching an arm. Watch Stoliarenko on the scales before betting this one, though. If it’s another tough weight cut, stay away.

Ike Villanueva by knockout (+269) — Marcin Prachnio was rocked multiple times against the heavy-handed Khalil Rountree Jr. Sure, he won that fight, but Villanueva is very heavy-handed and can march forward in this bout. “Hurricane Ike” has 15 knockouts on his resume and these odds provide very good value on the stoppage.

Alexander Volkov by knockout (+322) — Volkov just keeps getting better. He’s coming off knockout wins over Alistair Overeem and Walt Harris and on track for a potential heavyweight title shot with a couple more wins. Cyril Gane is not the wrestler that Curtis Blaydes is — and that’s the best route to beat “Drago” — and he’s not yet the striker that Overeem has established himself as. If Volkov can press forward and force the action, it’s possible to see an early end to the main event.

Parlay of the Night

Raoni Barcelos (-225), Renato Moicano (-244), Danilo Marques (+106) — +319

Add Justin Jaynes (+143) if you’re bold to boost odds to +919. After hitting the bold parlay at +797 last week, excited to make it two in a row!