UFC Fight Night: Glover Smith vs. Glover Teixeira Odds Preview
We’re a few days removed from the return of the UFC last Saturday night and what an event it was. By all accounts and for all purporses, UFC 249 was a roaring success, given the circumstances.
A stacked preliminary card was followed by a tremendous main card. The main card crowned Justin Gaethje the new interim UFC Lightweight champion after his TKO win over Tony Ferguson. The 5th-Round TKO capped off an unusual but entertaining night of much-needed sports.
With the cancellations of six UFC cards over the last two months due to the coronavirus pandemic, fight fans across the globe will see UFC events come thick and fast. The second event will be on Wednesday night with the Light Heavyweight clash between Glover Teixeira and Anthony Smith.
The fight was originally scheduled to headline UFC Fight Night: Smith v Teixeira on April 25th but will now take place on May 13th in Jacksonville, Florida.
UFC Fight Night Odds from Florida: Smith vs. Teixeira Odds
A win for Anthony ‘Lionheart’ Smith could position him for another crack at Jon Jones for the UFC Light Heavyweight belt. He’s ranked fourth in the official Light Heavyweight rankings and he’s won four of his last five fights. This includes finishes over former UFC champions Rashad Evans and Mauricio Rua as well as submission victories over Volkan Oezdemir and Alexander Gustafsson; the latter in his most recent fight.
Smith is just 31 years of age but is a seasoned vet with 47 professional fights under his game. The 14 losses on his record may tell a different story about Smith but his record in the UFC is more notable; while fighting in the biggest MMA promotion in the world, he stands at 8-3, an elite record. Smith, a submission artist, faces Teixeira who’s ranked eighth and is on a three-fight winning streak with one loss in his last five fights.
At 40 years of age, this may well be Teixeira’s last opportunity of getting a title shot. If he comes up with the W, and gets a title shot, it would be just the second time in his eight-year UFC career. Teixeira is a 2nd-degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and he could see some success on the ground against Smith.
Best Bets on Method of Finish for UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Teixeira
DraftKings Sportsbooks has Smith as winning the fight with odds of -182 while Teixeira comes in as the underdog with odds of +150. Smith’s odds of winning the fight by KO, TKO, or DQ opens at +100, while Teixeira’s odds come in at +700.
According to DraftKings, Teixeira’s best bet of winning the fight is by submission; two of his last three wins were by submission. His odds open at +400 to win by submission with Smith’s odds to win by submission stands at +1200.
Smith is called ‘Lionheart’ for a reason; he just refuses to give up. In his defeat to Jones, he had the opportunity to win by disqualification after Jones was docked two points for illegal knees, but no, he got up and continued to fight.
Although Teixeira will be a huge test for the Corpus Christi native, I believe Smith will be defeat Teixeira via TKO in the third round and take a major step forward to a rematch with Jon Jones.
