UFC 249 Odds: Francis Ngannou vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik Prediction
When heavyweights Francis Ngannou and Jairzinho Rozenstruik square up on Saturday at UFC 249, don’t expect it go to the distance. Sports Interaction offers a unique prop for UFC 249: Which fight will finish in the shortest amount of time. To no surprise, this is the +110 favourite on the UFC odds board.
Ngannou (-310 favourite) is ranked as the No. 2 heavyweight behind champion Stipe Miocic and Daniel Cormier. Rozenstruik (+220) is fifth. This is essentially a heavyweight eliminator with the winner earning a shot at the title sooner rather than later.
Francis Ngannou vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik UFC 249 Odds
The 31-year-old Ngannou (14-3), nicknamed “the Predator,” was born in Cameroon and now lives in Las Vegas. His professional MMA debut came in November 2013 and his UFC debut in December 2015. He rose up the ranks very quickly with his devastating power. The 6-foot-4, 260-pound former kickboxer actually was favoured when he faced Miocic for the title in January 2018 but lost a unanimous decision war.
Ngannou lost again next time out by unanimous decision to Derrick Lewis but has beaten his past three opponents by first-round knockout or TKO – including former champions Cain Velasquez and Junior dos Santos. Ngannou was originally scheduled to face Rozenstruik on March 28 on a Fight Night card from Columbus, Ohio, but that was postponed due to the coronavirus. Ten of Ngannou’s 14 wins are by KO/TKO and his other four by submission. All three losses are by decision.
The 32-year-old Rozenstruik (6-foot-2, 250 pounds) is from Suriname and also a former pro kickboxer. “Bigi Boy” has the perfect record (10-0) but is still somewhat of an unknown with just four UFC fights under his belt and really only one quality win: Beating Alistair Overeem in December 2019 by fifth-round knockout (punch) with just five seconds remaining. Nine of Rozenstruik’s wins are by KO/TKO and one by decision. Prior to that Overeem bout, none of his fights in the UFC had even reached one full minute into the second round.
UFC 249 Predictions: Ngannou vs. Rozenstruik
Neither of these guys grapple much so it should be primarily a stand-up fight. Ngannou has a five-inch reach advantage. The over-under rounds is set for 1.5, with the Under a -120 favourite That it goes the distance (three rounds) is a +250 underdog. That it ends in Round 1 is -120.
The favoured method of victory is Ngannou by KO, TKO or disqualification at -140. It may not seem like you’re getting much value there, but this is a huge fight for Ngannou. With a win here, he could be looking at a heavyweight title fight soon.