UFC Vegas 57: Chris Curtis vs. Rodolfo Vieira Prop Bet and Prediction

UFC Vegas 57: Chris Curtis vs. Rodolfo Vieira Prop Bet and Prediction

Chris Curtis and Rodolfo Vieira open the main card of UFC Vegas 57 in perhaps the biggest clash of styles on the card. Curtis (28-8) is 2-0 in the UFC and is looking to make it three in a row with a win tonight. Vieira (8-1) is 3-1 in the UFC and is looking to make it back-to-back wins after a submission win over Dustin Stoltzfus last time out. Which style will win tonight?

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Chris Curtis vs. Rodolfo Vieira Prediction

Chris Curtis is a striker fighting out of Xtreme Couture, and he had put his striking on full display over his first two UFC fights. Curtis first faced Phil Hawes, a promising wrestling prospect who we just saw knock out Deron Winn in the second round last week. Curtis made quick work of him, knocking him out in the first round.

Then, Curtis faced Brendan Allen, another promising wrestler, and knocked him out in the second round. These were not fights Curtis was expected to win, either. Curtis was a +260 underdog against Hawes and a +275 underdog against Allen. Could the linesmakers be that far off twice in a row? They surely learned from their mistakes, as Curtis is now a -130 favorite for this bout against Vieira.

Curtis has found his home at middleweight. Curtis started his professional career at welterweight, but after going 1-3 in four fights in the PFL, Curtis tried middleweight. Curtis is now undefeated at middleweight, knocking out all four of his opponents at middleweight. Curtis has now fought at middleweight in both of his UFC fights, and it appears he will stay there.

Vieira is the complete opposite of Curtis. Rodolfo Vieira is a predominant grappler fighting out of Team Nogueira and has an impressive record despite only having nine professional fights under his belt. Vieira has finished seven of his eight wins by submission, including all three of his UFC wins.

The one fighter he didn't submit, he knocked out. His lone loss also came by submission. Vieira is a grappler by nature and has averaged 5.77 takedowns per fight in the UFC. His only goal in the octagon is to take you down and submit you; he has no interest in striking. Unfortunately for Vieira, every round starts on the feet, so he will have to enter at least a few striking exchanges to get Curtis down.

Curtis and Vieira have both had impressive starts to their UFC careers. Curtis has found his by knocking his opponents out, while Vieira is comfortable solely on the mat. This clash of styles will be interesting to see, but I'm not sure I agree with the oddsmakers on this one. If Vieira can get Curtis down, the fight should be over quickly.

Curtis is not comfortable grappling, and he does not have the submission defense at this time to stop Vieira. Maybe Chris worked on submission defense in his camp leading up to this fight, but until I see it, I like Vieira as the underdog. Curtis could quickly put Vieira's lights out as he did to Hawes and Allen, but I like the odds on the grappler in this one. It will just take Vieira finding the entry into the grappling exchange before Curtis can put his lights out. At +180, I like those odds.

Chris Curtis vs. Rodolfo Vieira Picks

• Play: Rodolfo Vieira Wins by Submission @ +170 (Bet $100 to win $170)
• Prop Play: Vieira Wins by Submission in Round 1 @ +430 (Bet $100 to win $430)