When I was going 4-for-4 and 5-for-6 on my MMA betting picks for the better part of three months, my phone was ringing a lot even before my betting column was posted.
I had a lot of friends calling to get my picks as soon as they could.
These days, the phone isn't ringing nearly as much, as I've been in a bad three-week downward spiral.
But Bob Prince, the legendary former Pittsburgh Pirates play-by-play announcer, used to always say that the longer a team kept losing, the closer it was to finally winning.
Logic, right?
And that's how I feel about this week's UFC card. There are a number of attractive betting options, beginning with the new main event between Jack Hermansson and Marvin Vettori. Vettori was a late replacement for Kevin Holland, who had to withdraw from the fight because he tested positive for COVID-19.
Hermansson was better than a 2-1 favorite to beat Holland, but is a slight underdog against Vettori. Vettori, "The Italian Dream," is -145 on BetMGM, while Hermansson is +120.
© Provided by Yahoo! SportsMarvin Vettori of Italy poses on the scale during the UFC Fight Night weigh-in at UFC APEX on Dec. 4, 2020 in Las Vegas. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)
Hermansson has faced a lot of excellent opposition and is a tight defensive fighter. Vettori comes into the bout on a three-fight winning streak and brimming with confidence.
I like him to outwork Hermansson and use his accurate strikes to cruise to a decision victory. I'll lay two units on him at -145, so I'll risk $290 to win $200. I like yes on the proposition bet, "Will the fight go the distance?" particularly at +165. I'll lay two units on yes so I'll risk $320 to win $200.
UFC Vegas 16 best bets
. I'll lay -220 on Gabriel Benitez to win over Justin Jaynes.
. I will take Gian Villante at +250 to win by decision over Jake Collier.
. I will take Jimmy Flick at +105 to win by KO/TKO/Submission/DQ over Cody Durden.
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