UFC Vegas 94: Amanda Lemos vs. Virna Jandiroba continues on the main card with the co-main event fight in the middleweight division between Brad Tavares and JunYong Park. Tavares is coming off a third-round knockout loss in his last fight meanwhile, Park is coming off a razor-close split-decision defeat to Andre Muniz in his last fight. With that said, check out our UFC odds series for our Tavares-Park prediction and pick.
Brad Tavares (20-9) is now just 1-3 in his last four fights and he’s coming off a third-round knockout loss to Gregory Rodrigues. Now, Tavares may be fighting for his career at age 36 when he faces off against JunYong Park this weekend at UFC Vegas 94.
JunYong Park (17-6) was on a roll winning four fights in a row until a razor-close split-decision loss to Andre Muniz halted his rise up the rankings. Park will now be looking to get back on track and potentially crack the top 15 when he takes on Brad Tavares this weekend at the UFC Apex.
Here are the UFC Vegas 94 Odds, courtesy of BetOnline.
UFC Vegas 94 Odds: Brad Tavares-JunYong Park Odds
Brad Tavares: +140
JunYong Park: -160
Over 2.5 rounds: -215
Under 2.5 rounds: +175
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Why Brad Tavares Will Win
Brad Tavares has been looking like he’s on his last legs in his most recent TKO defeat to Gregory Rodrigues. That has put him at just 1-3 in his last four fights and is desperately needing a win this weekend. The Tavares of old who’s been a gatekeeper at the top of the division will need to come back when he faces off with JunYong Park this weekend at the UFC Apex.
Tavares is at his best when he’s utilizing his lead calf kicks early on in his fights which helps him dictate the fight’s pace. From there Tavares has his range and he’s able to keep his movement on the feet flowing so that he can stick and move without getting countered. That should make Park fight off his backfoot, where he has had issues in the past.
If Tavares can get back to his calculated pressure and counters he will make this a tough fight in his backyard of Las Vegas and get back into the winning column.
Why JunYong Park Will Win
JunYong Park looked like he was going to get into the top 15 after coming into his fight with Andre Muniz riding a four-fight winning streak. Unfortunately, he dropped a close split decision to Muniz which has now set him back. However, a meeting with Tavares is the right matchup for Park to showcase his abilities for a chance to get a number next to his name this weekend at the UFC Apex.
Park is a very well-rounded that does everything well but not great. That’s not a knock on his abilities, he is a fighter who doesn’t excel in one thing and he’s been beaten by getting out grappled and outstruck on separate occasions showing that has areas of weakness. With that said, Park still is a very hard fight for anyone in the middleweight division.
He throws a ton of volume on the feet making it hard for a fighter like Tavares who wants to sit back and counter. That kind of approach can put Tavares behind on the scorecards from simply not doing enough. Then when Tavares does open up that’s when Park can level change and take the fight to the mat. It will be up to Park to be the busier fighter in there and mix it up if he wants to get back to his winning ways this weekend.
Final Brad Tavares-JunYong Park Prediction & Pick
This should be a great scrap in the co-main event of the evening. Brad Tavares the once longtime ranked middleweight contender will be needing a big win here this weekend meanwhile, Park wants to solidify that he deserves a ranking next to his name when he steps into the Octagon this weekend. As for how this matchup goes Park will need to overwhelm Tavares with his pace and volume while Tavares will need to systematically break Park down by landing the heavier strikes. Ultimately, the volume and the pace of Park will be too much for Tavares to overcome at this stage of his career as he will just outstrike Tavares throughout the course of this fight and get himself back into the win column and one fight closer to a top-ranked opponent.
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Final Brad Tavares-JunYong Park Prediction & Pick: JunYong Park (-160), Over 2.5 Rounds (-215)