UFC Contender Series Odds: Yuri Panferov vs. Torrez Finney prediction

Contender Series Week 10: Ramon Tavares vs. Cortavious Romious continues with a fight in the middleweight division between Yuri Panferov and Torrez Finney. Panferov is an undefeated prospect who has won all six of his professional bouts with all six coming inside the distance meanwhile, Finney is also an undefeated prospect winning all six of his professional bouts with five of those six coming by knockout or TKO. With that said, check out our UFC odds series for our Ruffy-Magomedaliev prediction and pick.

Yuri Panferov (6-0) was on the latest episode of Dana White Looking For A Fight where Dana White, Din Thomas, and Matt Serra were in Boston, Massachusetts at Combat Zone where they watched Yuri Panferov get his sixth victory and fifth submission of his career. Dana White later told him that he needed to cut down to middleweight for his chance to make it on the Contender Series and that’s what he will do as he takes on Torrez Finney in the biggest fight of his career in the last installment of this season of the Contender Series.

Torrez Finney (6-0) is a booming ball of power and strength standing in at just 5’7″ and weighing in at 185 lbs he would be one of the most built fighters on the UFC roster if he were to get signed. He uses that strength and power to overwhelm his opponents with his grappling and absolute vicious ground and pound. He will be putting his skills to the test when he takes on his stiffest competition against Yuri Panferov this Tuesday in the Contender Series.

Here are the Contender Series UFC Odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

UFC Contender Series Odds: Yuri Panferov-Torrez Finney Odds

Yuri Panferov: +172

Torrez Finney: -220

How to Watch Yuri Panferov vs. Torrez Finney

TV: ESPN+

Stream: ESPN+

Time: 8:00 p.m. ET/ 5:00 p.m. PT

*Watch sports LIVE with fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why Yuri Panferov Will Win

Yuri Panferov made his name known at Combat Zone 79 when he competed in front of Dana White on the last episode of Dana White Looking For A Fight. He faced some adversity early getting knocked down but he was able to quickly recover to takedown his opponent and sink in the kimura in the first round. Shortly after the fight, Dana White gave him a shot this season on the Contender Series but the one stipulation was that he needed to move down to middleweight as he was quite undersized for light heavyweight.

After weighing in on point for his new weight class, Panferov looks like he’s in great shape but now he has to show that his new physique isn’t all for show when he takes on an absolute powerhouse of a man called Torrez Finney. Finney is only 5’7″ but is a  hefty 185 lbs and built like a brick house. He is a powerful grappler who lands heavy ground and pound to finish his opponents which is works right into the wheelhouse of Panferov. While Finney utilizes his brute strength it’s Panferov who utilizes his technique to dominate his opponents on the mat. As long as Panferov can weather the early storm of Finney and lands in top position he could find yet another submission win and get his coveted UFC contract.

Why Torrez Finney Will Win

Torrez Finney is a freak athlete for just standing in at 5’7″ and weighing 185 lbs. He may be short in stature but he makes up for it with his brute strength and raw abilities. He will slam his opponents on their hands and rain down vicious ground and pound until he gets them out of there.

Like Finney, Panferov is also a grappler but he is someone that uses technique and his submission skills to get the submission win against his opposition. We have seen in the past that bigger and more athletic fighters have a chance against the Russian fighter. If Finney can implement his grappling and ground and pound on Panferov this could be another quick night at the office for Finney.

Final Yuri Panferov-Torrez Finney Prediction & Pick

This is going to be an absolute barnburner between these two middleweights. While both are known for their grappling, this could be a fight where they throw caution to the wind and test each other’s striking if that’s the case, Finney throws exceptionally harder than Panferov, and seeing as Panferov almost got knocked out in his last fight that doesn’t bode well for him here. Also, Finney should be the one having success early with the takedowns as well so it will boil down to whether or not Panferov has depleted himself making 185 lbs for the first time, and if he can defend the takedowns. Ultimately, Finney is coming out of the gate like a fire lit beneath him as he comes forward looking to land heavy shots on Panferov until he either knocks him out gets into the clinch slams him on his head then pounds him into the mat for yet another TKO finish and a UFC contract.

Final Yuri Panferov-Torrez Finney Prediction & Pick: Torrez Finney (-220)