UFC Fight Night 141 Beijing Betting Preview

The Cadillac Arena in Beijing will host the first trip by UFC to Beijing, as UFC Fight Night 141 gets underway on Saturday. The main event features a rematch between Francis Ngannou, a former UFC heavyweight title contender, and Curtis Blaydes. The two fought back in April 2016, when Ngannou won via technical knockout at the end of the second round at UFC Fight Night 86. The co-main event features another heavyweight tilt, between Alistair Overeem and Sergey Pavlovich. The event is available to watch on UFC Fight Pass. Take a look at the full card and our UFC betting thoughts on several of the matchups.

UFC Fight Night 141 Beijing Betting Preview

#UFCBeijing pre-event facts: Is Curtis Blaydes the best wrestler in heavyweight history? (via @MikeBohnMMA) https://t.co/ME7d5LFma4

— MMAjunkie (@MMAjunkie) November 21, 2018

Main Card (UFC Fight Pass, 6:30am ET)

• Francis Ngannou vs Curtis Blaydes (main event, heavyweight)
• Alistair Overeem vs Sergey Pavlovich (co-main event, heavyweight)
• Song Yadong vs Vince Morales (bantamweight)
• Li Jingliang vs David Zawada (welterweight)

Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass, 3:15am ET)

• Kenan Song vs Alex Morono (welterweight)
• Wu Yanan vs Lauren Mueller (women’s flyweight)
• Hu Yaozong vs Rashad Coulter (light heavyweight)
• Zhang Weili vs Jessica Aguilar (women’s strawweight)
• Yan Xiaonan vs Syuri Kondo (women’s strawweight)
• Liu Pingyuan vs Martin Day (bantamweight)
• Kevin Holland vs John Philips (middleweight)
• Louis Smolka vs Sumudaerji Sumudaerji (bantamweight)

Francis Ngannou vs Curtis Blaydes gives us a rematch between two fighters who were not well known at the time, as Blaydes was making his UFC debut and Ngannou had not done much except deliver a knockout against Luis Henrique. Blaydes gave Ngannou his biggest trials before Ngannou got his title shot, but Ngannou delivered the TKO. Now, both of these fighters have become elite in the UFC heavyweight ranks, as Ngannou has mounted one challenge and Blaydes will get his shot soon. Blaydes is the #3 heavyweight in the world, with Ngannou sitting right behind him. Blaydes has beaten Mark Hunt and Alistair Overeem since the loss to Ngannou; the reason why Ngannou is ranked fourth has to do with a two-bout losing streak. However, a win here would resurrect his chances to contend again. While Blaydes is favored, and while Blaydes’ wrestling skills could make him a lock to wear down Ngannou and get the submission, Blaydes has not shown the ability to eat punches that the last two fighters to beat Ngannou have, and Ngannou delivers a great deal of punishment. It’s not clear that Blaydes can deliver big bombs that will slow Ngannou down, and it’s also not clear that Blaydes can avoid shots while going for the takedown in ways that Stipe Miocic did in his win over Ngannou. UFC Fight Night 141 Prediction: Ngannou wins via stoppage Alistair Overeem vs Sergey Pavlovich gives us the UFC debut of Pavlovich and an attempt at redemption from Overeem, who has lost to Ngannou and Blaydes in his last two bouts. He had been looking at a title rematch against Stipe Miocic before taking those two setbacks. Pavlovich will not be an easy win as he sits as 12-0 overall and has a Fight Nights Global heavyweight championship of his own. Many UFC bettors stay away from Overeem because of his diminishing consistency and inability to take punches. He can deliver solid blows but end up on the wrong side of a takedown all within one series within a round. He has the physical tools to beat Pavlovich, but his decisions over his last few bouts call into question whether he has the mental strength to put away the debutante. Pavlovich hasn’t faced any elite fighters, but he could take advantage of Overeem’s iffy defense and his tendency to stand and take big bombs at the wrong time. So while Overeem has his issues, this is the sort of fighter that he should be able to beat. UFC Fight Night 141 Prediction: Overeem wins via stoppage