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UFC 296: Leon Edwards vs. Colby Covington continues on the prelims with a fight in the bantamweight division between Cody Garbrandt and Brian Kelleher. Garbrandt was able to get back into the win column in his last fight meanwhile, Kelleher comes into this fight losing back-to-back fights for the second time of his UFC career. With that said, check out our UFC odds series for our Garbrandt-Kelleher prediction and pick.
Cody Garbrandt (13-5) was going through some tough times in his UFC career losing five of his last six coming into his fight with Trevin Jones. He was able to pull out an early lead in that fight to survive the third round to get the victory. He now looks to get back on a winning streak for the first time since 2016 when he takes on Brian Kelleher this weekend at UFC 296.
Brian Kelleher (24-14) is winless in his last two fights which saw him get submitted in the first round in both fights against Umar Nurmagomedov and Mario Bautista. This is the first fight in nearly 18 months post-neck surgery when he steps into the octagon to take on Cody Garbrandt live at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada this Saturday night.
Here are the UFC Odds, courtesy of DraftKings.
UFC 296 Odds: Cody Garbrandt-Brian Kelleher Odds
Cody Garbrandt: -192
Brian Kelleher: +160
Over 2.5 rounds: -115
Under 2.5 rounds: -115
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Why Cody Garbrandt Will Win
Cody Garbrandt was on a really bad 1-5 skid coming into his last fight at UFC 285 against Trevin Jones. Luckily, Garbrandt was able to get back into the win column utilizing his wrestling which was pretty much nonexistent throughout his time in the UFC. He was able to neutralize the striking offense of Jones and stifle him in the first two rounds while just surviving and playing it safe in the third round to take the decision on the judge's scorecards.
He now gets to put on back-to-back wins for the first time since becoming the bantamweight champion back in 2016 when he takes on Brian Kelleher at UFC 296. Kelleher is a fighter that is also a tough out for anyone in the bantamweight division but he seems like he could be on his last legs and that's something Garbrandt could potentially capitalize on in this matchup to pick up two wins in a row this weekend.
Why Brian Kelleher Will Win
Much like Cody Garbrandt coming into his last fight, Brian Kelleher is on a rough skid losing each of his last two fights both by first-round rear-naked choke submissions. Kelleher also has been out of commission for almost the last 18 months due to a neck injury that required surgery. While Kelleher seems all healed up there is still the unknown of how he will perform in his first fight back post-surgery.
Nonetheless, if Kelleher is at his peak physical form he has the tools to beat the former bantamweight champion. He has the striking abilities to really push Garbrandt who doesn't seem well-equipped to go to war with anyone in the bantamweight division at this point of his career. If Kelleher can keep this fight standing and keep pressuring Garbrandt he could potentially land a fight-ending blow or just outstrike him for the entirety of the fight to get his hands raised in the end.
Final Cody Garbrandt-Brian Kelleher Prediction & Pick
Even though these two fighters seem to be at the last stage of their professional MMA careers, this should still be an absolute banger between these two bantamweight fighters. Garbrandt showed a wrinkle in his game that he should've implemented a long time ago but he fell in love with knockout power which had him negate the wrestling background that he possesses. As for Kelleher, his defensive grappling has been his downfall in each of his last three losses and could potentially be his bugaboo in this fight as well if he isn't able to keep this fight upright.
This fight is going to come down to who still has it at this stage of their career and from what it looks like it might be Garbrandt. Knowing that Kelleher is coming back from major neck surgery and is going to be put through the wringer against Garbrandt, it's looking like Garbrandt will be the one who will be getting the better of the exchanges and will be the one dictating where this fight takes place and he should get the nod on the judge's scorecards to make it two in a row at UFC 296.
Final Cody Garbrandt-Brian Kelleher Prediction & Pick: Cody Garbrandt (-192), Over 2.5 Rounds (-115)
