Derrick Lewis v Junior Dos Santos Betting Tips & Predictions

Betting Online Team

Boxing Betting Tips

5 August, 2024

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UFC 146 takes place on Saturday 9 March with the main event expected to go ahead at around 5.00am the following morning GMT. That’s a tough one for British fans to plan for but the action on offer will ensure those who do stay up late to follow the card will see it as a worthwhile exercise. Armchair fans can follow live on BT Sport. Here are our top Derrick Lewis v Junior Dos Santos betting tips.

The Intrust Bank Arena provides the backdrop as Derrick Lewis and Junior Dos Santos face off in the main attraction in what will be the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s first visit to Kansas. The fighters involved will be hoping to make it a memorable occasion and there’s enough quality on the bill to ensure viewers will be in their seats early.

The main event is supported by Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos v Curtis Mullender and there’s also the chance to catch up on the progress of Tim Means, Niko Price, Blagoy Ivanov, Ben Rothwell, Beneil Dariush, Drew Dober, Tim Boetsch and Omari Akhmedov who make up the main card.

Watch each of the contests as an observer or ramp up your interest on the evening with a bet on the outcome of the bouts that catch your eye. Pick the winners and throw them together in an accumulator or aim for a bigger price in the specials, including the method of victory market. A trickier task, but the prices are well worth shooting for.

Let’s put the main fight under the microscope as we check up on how traders at major bookmakers expect this bout to go.

Winning Form

34-year-old Derrick Lewis fights out of Houston, Texas and is a warrior with a background competing in kickboxing, something that is evident in his mixed martial arts performances today. The Black Beast stands at 6ft 3inches tall and brings a professional record of 21 wins from 28 starts with one no contest. The spare on his record came back in 2012 when punches to the back of the head put an end to his bout with Jeremiah Constant in Colorado.

That was a disappointing return, but Lewis had no problem getting on with his career and put together a run of form that saw him win a place in the UFC and score some impressive victories under the banner. He has won three of his last four, including two by knockout. Marcin Tybura was stopped in three by punches and Alexander Volkov was dealt with in the same manner. The latter earned Lewis the performance of the night bonus on UFC 229 in good company and that would’ve boosted his confidence no end.

Lewis an Underdog

Derrick Lewis, despite his form, goes into this bout on the back of a painful defeat when beaten by Daniel Cormier in his most recent start, making this fight a chance to get him back to winning ways and back into contention for prizes. Lewis was beaten by Cormier via a reverse naked chokehold on UFC 230 in New York City back in November of last year with the battle coming to an end in only the second round when fighting for the UFC heavyweight championship. There’s no shame in that result, of course, but the defeat does mean he has arrived at a fork in the road.

Lose again here and Derrick will be forced to consider his future, having reached the heights of challenging for the crown, only to come up short. Many fighters struggle to make the step back down a level after tasting the glory that comes with challenging for a world championship belt. Will we see that from Lewis in this bout? Bookmakers believe so and have him priced as an outsider to get the desired result. That’ll surprise a few, especially those who have made money following Lewis in recent starts.