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UFC 292: Aljamain Sterling vs. Sean O'Malley continues on the main card with a fight in the men's bantamweight division between Da'Mon Blackshear and Mario Bautista. Blackshear has now won two fights in a row picking up a win just last weekend meanwhile, Bautista has now won four in a row coming into his PPV main card slot. With that said, check out our UFC odds series for our Blackshear-Bautista prediction and pick.
Da'Mon Blackshear (14-5-1) has already made the UFC record books when he was able to submit Jose Johnson at UFC Vegas 78 with only the third twister submission in the history of the UFC. He will now look to become the first person to win two fights in just seven days when he steps in on extremely short notice for Cody Garbrandt against Mario Bautista at UFC 292.
Mario Bautista (12-2) is on the verge of a ranking next to his name when he takes on the surging Da'Mon Blackshear. Bautista was ready to face the former UFC bantamweight champion in what would be the biggest name on his record but unfortunately, Garbrandt had to pull out due to injury. He now gets to take on Da'Mon Blackshear a completely different style of fighter on just seven days' notice to make it five in a row at UFC 292.
Here are the UFC Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
UFC 292 Odds: Da'Mon Blackshear-Mario Bautista Odds
Da'Mon Blackshear: +180
Mario Bautista: -225
Over 2.5 Rounds: -112
Under 2.5 Rounds: -112
How to Watch Da'Mon Blackshear vs. Mario Bautista
TV: PPV
Stream: PPV
Time: 10:00 p.m. ET/ 7:00 p.m. PT (Main Card)
Article Continues Below
Why Da'Mon Blackshear Will Win
Da'Mon Blackshear made quick work of his short-notice opponent Jose Johnson when he submitted via twister, only the third in UFC history, in under four minutes of work. Being that the fight ended so quickly, Blackshear was able to come out of that fight unscathed and was able to keep his weight down to take this huge opportunity to steal the hype of Mario Bautista and catapult himself into the bantamweight rankings on a big UFC 292 PPV event.
Blackshear has the advantage in this fight that he's fought a very similar style of a fighter in Bautista not too long ago when he defeated Luan Lacerda. He also has the ability to bring to the table a different style of fighting that Bautista was getting ready for on such short notice. That could potentially be a big problem for Bautista but it's up to Blackshear to be able to implement a grapple-heavy gameplan while not having a cardio dump having to cut to 135 lbs twice in a week span. If his cardio is on point and is able to push hard for 15 minutes he can score a huge upset and get a ranking next to his name.
Why Mario Bautista Will Win
Mario Bautista has been a force to be reckoned with in the bantamweight division for the latter portion of the last year as he has rattled off four straight wins with three straight finishes in just 18 months' time. Bautista has shown a very well-rounded skillset during his time in the UFC. He is a powerful striker on the feet but is a great grappler as well. In his most recent win against Guido Cannetti, we saw Bautista win in the scrambles eventually choking out Cannetti midway through round one with just a dominating performance.
Bautista was getting ready to face a striker in Cody Garbrandt who was getting ready to try to outstrike him while utilizing a ton of good movement. Now, he has to face a tall and long, pressure fighter that is willing to be in a bit more of a dogfight to get this fight to the mat and dominate from there. As long as that doesn't throw Bautista off his game just having to prepare for this style of fighting in about five days he has the tools to arguably win this fight everywhere it goes.
Final Da'Mon Blackshear-Mario Bautista Prediction & Pick
This is going to be a great fight between two surging bantamweight contenders looking to get that one signature win to catapult them into the top 15 of the bantamweight rankings. Bautista has a ton of pressure coming into this fight as all eyes are on him to get this big signature on his first chance of being on a main card on a PPV.
Meanwhile, Blackshear is just taking the short notice opportunity with the notion that is just a win-win situation for him. If he wins this fight he is now a top 15 fighter in the division and will be the first ever to win two fights in seven days but if he loses this fight he shows the UFC brass that he is willing to fight anyone, anywhere, anytime, and they love that in fighters. That freedom that Blackshear along with the unpredictability that Bautista isn't ready for will have him ready to get the biggest win of his career and set yet another record.
Final Da'mon Blackshear-Mario Bautista & Pick: Da'Mon Blackshear (+180), Under 2.5 Rounds (-112)
