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Contender Series Week 2: Andreas Gustafsson vs. Pat Pytlik continues in the bantamweight division between Cortavious Romious and Michael Imperato. Romious was able to get back on track in his last fight with a 50-second submission victory meanwhile, Imperato impressed Dana White on the last episode of Dana White Looking For a Fight with a 52-second submission of his own as he comes into his Contender Series debut. With that said, check out our UFC odds series for our Romious-Imperato prediction and pick.
Cortavious Romious (8-2) got back on track in a big way with a 50-second armbar submission victory after suffering defeat in his first stint on the Contender Series where he lost to now UFC bantamweight Ramon Taveras. He hopes that he can finally get over that hump and impress Dana White and the matchmakers when he steps in the Octagon this Tuesday to take on Michael Imperato.
Michael Imperato (12-6) is one of the oldest competitors on this season of the Contender Series at 34 years old which doesn't bode well for him already coming into this matchup. That means Imperato is going to need to get an emphatic finish and that is what he intends on doing just that when he stakes his claim for a potential UFC contract when he takes on Cortavious Romious this Tuesday night.
Here are the Contender Series UFC Odds, courtesy of DraftKings.
UFC Contender Series Odds: Cortavious Romious-Michael Imperato Odds
Cortavious Romious: -360
Michael Imperato: +260
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Why Cortavious Romious Will Win
Cortavious Romious made his Contender Series debut last season but things didn't go as planned as he was knocked out in just 29 seconds against now-UFC bantamweight Ramon Taveras. However, a 50-second armbar submission in his next bout got him the call to fight again on the Contender Series. This time he will fight against Michael Imperato as he looks to make a good second impression when he steps inside the Octagon this Tuesday night.
Romious is big for the bantamweight division only fighting at 135 lbs three times in his professional career and most recently fighting at a catchweight of 160 lbs in his last victory. While the majority of his wins have come by submission, Romious has power on the feet and will be looking to use that to keep Imperato from just shooting for takedowns and taking the fight to the mat. Even if the fight hits the mat Romious is very comfortable off his back where he has amassed four armbar submissions in his career. Romious being a threat on the feet and on the canvas makes him a dangerous fight for Imperato where if he fights his fight he should come away with another finish and a UFC contract.
Why Michael Imperato Will Win
Michael Imperato was on the cusp of making his UFC debut 10 years ago when he was signed to the UFC but after some unfortunate remarks that he made he ultimately was relieved of his contract before even stepping foot inside the Octagon. Now, after fighting on the regional scene over the next 10 years he got the chance to show out in front of Dana White on the latest episode of Dana White Looking for a Fight where he submitted former Bellator standout Ricky Bandjeas he got the call to compete on this season of the Contender Series. Imperato will be looking to make up for some lost time when he faces off against Cortavious Romious this Tuesday night.
Imperato does his best work on the mat where he has amassed 9 wins by submission and he will do what he can to manage distance before taking this fight to the canvas and bringing Romious into his world. However, Imperato must be careful as Romious has a very dangerous guard and will be throwing up armbar attempts almost immediately when taken down. While Imperato certainly isn't a terrible striker, Romious will be the one to land the more impactful shots on the feet so he will need to navigate the power of Romious to get into the clinch to take Romious to the mat where he will be looking to extend his winning streak to two in a row and get back to the UFC.
Final Cortavious Romious-Michael Imperato Prediction & Pick
This should be a fun scrap between these two bantamweights as they face off looking to secure their spot on the UFC roster. Michael Imperato at age 34 years old will need to have a big finish if he wants to get a UFC contract meanwhile, Romious will need to put it together better this time around if he wants to get the UFC contract he's been longing for. Ultimately on the feet, Romious should be the one landing the power shots and while Imperato has some good grappling skills Romious should have him covered there as well and as long as Romious doesn't spend long periods of time on his back fishing for submissions he should be the one being the busier fighter eventually nothing his 6th submission victory and getting his shot in the UFC.
Final Cortavious Romious-Michael Imperato Prediction & Pick: Cortavious Romious (-360)
