Written by LineStar contributor, combat sports enthusiast, and practitioner, Chris Guy. Instagram: @therealsethgeko | Twitter: @DadHallOfFamer

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Main Card

Josh Emmett (+260) vs. Lerone Murphy (-320)

Emmett: DK: $6.9k | Murphy: DK:$9.3k

The last time we saw Josh Emmett he was being led out of the Octagon in an orange jumpsuit with his hands and ankles shackled and a Hannibal Lecter mask strapped to his face. The authorities treated Emmett like Steve Buscemi, aka Garland Green, in Con Air. They transported him across state lines in a max-security flying fortress. After such a violent outburst, the media labeled him insane – “One Flew Over the Octagon,” one prominent headline read. Emmett scoffed at such accusations. His response: “What if I told you insane was working fifty hours a week in some office for fifty years, at the end of which they tell you to piss off?” 

The lack of contrition didn’t bode well with the jury. As a result, Emmett spent the last fifteen months on twenty-three-hour lockdown. Actually, Emmett’s fate was sealed the moment they wheeled a TV into the courtroom like a substitute was presiding over the proceedings. The sickening thud of Emmett’s fist landing flush on Bryce Mitchell’s chin echoed throughout the courthouse. Most in attendance couldn’t confront the image of Mitchell lying on the mat in convulsions. The ones that did would be scarred forever. One anonymous juror was quoted, “He looked like a human Shake Weight.” Another, “He looked like Michael J. Fox taking a nap.”   

Fast forward: Present-day Josh Emmett is a man who has paid in full his debt to society. A KO like that should have catapulted Emmett into an immediate Fight Night headlining gig or a spot on a main card on a high-profile Pay Per View. Instead, he was sidelined for nearly a year and a half. Now a free man, Emmett is positioned to make up for lost time as he steps into the main event spot he so richly deserves against an undefeated up-and-comer who has been dodging Ls like a certain middleweight champion. Josh Emmet vs. Lerone Murphy is a certified banger. Murphy is about to take a stroll through hell. He better strap on his gasoline boots and throw a match on those Gasoline Dreams. Yo! Hit that Outkast! 

Bryce Mitchell made his Emmett family Thanksgiving dinner debut as the kids’ table this past November. Afterward, it took more than an hour to get the mac n’ cheese, cranberry sauce, and cornbread crumbs out of all the crevices. With a single right hand, Emmett left Bryce looking like a CEO. Looking like a Boeing whistleblower. Emmett turned Bryce into a Disney princess who needs a kiss from Prince Charming to wake up from a right-hand-induced coma. That right hand sounded like it touched brains. It was wet and disgusting. I vomited in my living room like my dog when she eats shit outta the trash. Bryce looked like Steven Seagal in Hard to Kill when Seagal woke up from a seven-year coma. Mitchell was sleeping for four score and seven years.   

But all that would qualify as old shit. And that new-new is what we’re about at the WKO. If Josh Emmett can replicate that performance against the undefeated Lerone Murphy... Fook it! Give him a title shot. IDGAF! - Smokey voice. Josh Emmett is the MMA version of Nomak from Blade II. Homie once fooked around and scored a 10-8 round against Wesley Snipes. Emmett is built like a little M1 Abrams tank with a howitzer for a right hand. He was the inspiration for the Master P No Limit tank. When Emmett landed that right hand on Bryce Mitchell, he made the crowd say “Uhh, nah, nah, nah, nah!” Josh isn’t the most diverse striker; he’s mostly a boxer with basic combinations. But he has life-changing power. He has more power than Davos. More power than the Bilderberg Group. My man has more power than the one percent of the one percent. There isn’t a hole deep enough that Emmett’s right hand can't dig him out of.   

“We have to dig our way out!” 

“No, dig up, stupid!” 

Josh Emmett has to keep his hands in the trunk when he drives. He uses his knees to steer like my pops on the freeway with the cruise control set.  

“That ain’t autopilot, homie.” 

“I ain’t your homie, son.” 

The key for Emmett against Lerone Murphy is making shit ugly. He has to go full Sergeant Hartman: Get in Murphy’s face and bully him – treat him like a new recruit. This will be a battle of range. Murphy will try to dominate the outside, and Emmett will try to get inside and unload bombs. I’ve always said Dan Ige is a True Value brand Josh Emmett. Ige did just that. He got inside and dropped Murphy in the first round with a right hand. The difference between Ige and Emmett is that Murphy won’t get up if Emmett lands that punch. Emmett wins this fight in the pocket and loses it if he gets stuck on the outside.   

Lerone Murphy went to Cranbrook. That’s a private school. And if you did a little digging, you might find out his real name is Clarence. Murphy is a Leon striker. A pristine striker who likes to keep his hands clean like they’re DJ Khaled’s Jordans. You have to draft his ass and send him to the front lines like poor kids. You have to march Murphy’s ass off to war. And I ain’t talking about Modern Warfare, point and click type-ish. I’m talking about All Quiet on the Western Front trench warfare. That World War 1 Mustard gas, bayonets, eye-gouging, face biting, and fistfuls of nether regions type-ish. That Survival of the Fittest type-ish. Yo! Hit that Mobb Deep! There’s a war going on outside no man is safe from. You could run, but you can’t hide forever, Lerone.   

Murphy wants to outsmart you from range. He’s a cerebral fighter. Murphy has that Krang fight IQ. No matter what happens, he sticks to the plot like funerals. He’s a franchise signal caller, reading the defense and calling audibles at the line. Even when shit hits the fan, he seems to call the correct play that gets him out of danger, usually a timely takedown. Murphy has underrated wrestling/grappling. His takedowns aren’t elite, but he has that Sooperman Luva top control. You already know. Hit that Redman! Murphy will take you down and hit you with some pillow talk. Whisper sweet nothings in your ear. Spit that brand-new Flava in ya ear on some Craig Mack type-ish. Murphy uses takedowns to steal/seal rounds. He has great takedown instincts, timing, and situational. 

The key for Murphy will be using his length and short combinations to keep Emmett at the end of his punches. When Emmett gets out of pocket and over-commits, Murphy will level change. Murphy averages over one and a half takedowns per fifteen minutes, while Emmett’s defense is a sorry forty-six percent. But Murphy’s isn’t much better, clocking in at forty-eight percent. Both fighters could resort to wrestling if the striking isn’t working in their favor. Murphy is 15-0 with seven TKO/KOs. And Emmett is 19-4 with seven TKO/KOs and two subs.   

Murphy will be the (-310) favorite, and Emmett will be the (+250) live-ass dog. Anyone with light switch power like Emmett is a live-ass dog. The odds are a bit disrespectful. But Emmett is in my wheelhouse at (+250), nearing the odds where you can turn Jacksons into Grants. The play for Emmett is a TKO/KO. There’s value in a decision, but I think he will need a finish to pull it off. The play for Murphy is a decision. Fantasy-wise, there’s a good chance of both fighters clearing the one-hundred-strikes mark, barring an early finish.   

We’re streaking again. The main event dub streak now sits at two after the MexiCan Brandon Moreno handled business last week. I once infamously picked Josh Emmett to beat Ilia Topuria. Of course, Emmett got dominated, but he went five full rounds. Combined, Max and Volkanovski didn’t spend twenty-five minutes in the cage with Ilia. Emmett is a savage. I’m sending this pick out to my man, Killa B. No doubt, indeed. Lerone Murphy via decision. Put it on wax.   

Props

Murphy: TKO/KO (+240) Sub (+1500) Dec (-110) 

Emmett: TKO/KO (+450) Sub (+4000) Dec (+650)

Winner: Lerone Murphy | Method: Decision

Pat Sabatini (+200) vs. Joanderson Brito (-240)

Sabatini: DK: $7.5k | Brito: DK: $8.7k

The Travelocity Roaming Gnome is back. R.L. Stine once wrote a book about Pat Sabatini called The Revenge of the Lawn Gnomes. One of the seven dwarfs said, “Fook you guys. I’m going home,” on some Cartman type-ish and struck his own path in life. Pat Sabatini is a turnstile’s worst nightmare. He doesn’t even have to offer a courtesy duck. Sabatini is built like San Diego legend Ed from 90 Day Fiancé. Pat Sabatini will play Chucky if they ever do a Broadway version of Child’s Play. Homie is pushing thirty-five and still can’t ride Splash Mountain. But don’t let Pat Sabatini’s short stature fool you. He’s a straight ass-kicker on the mat. On the feet? Not so much. Sabatini is a ground specialist, and this will be a classic grappler vs. striker matchup. It better be, or Sabatini will be reading the fine print on the canvas real quick. 

Pat Sabatini put all his eggs in the grappling basket. Sabatini’s striking isn’t much to look at. He’s a student driver on the feet. He has no control over his hands. They run over curbs and shit. His hands are automatic fails. They have to set up the bumper lanes for Sabatini’s hands like when kids bowl. When Sabatini loses, he wastes no time. There’s no beating on the bush. I mean, beating around the bush. Homie checks which way the wind is blowing and goes to sleep accordingly. Diego Lopes and Damon Jackson finished Sabatini in just over one minute. Lopes vaporized Sabatini with a flurry on the feet. The only thing left of Pat was his passport lying on top of the pile of rubble. Sabatini is a horizontal fighter. He can’t survive vertically like it’s an alien atmosphere.   

But that’s okay because Sabatini is a MF on the mat. And he has the takedowns to get it there. Sabatini has quick level changes, and he's freakishly strong in the clinch. This guy will grate you against the cage like parmesan cheese at Olive Garden.  

“Tell me when, Sir... Uh, Sir?”  

Sabatini is the MMA Napoleon. He has a little man’s complex and takes it out on you from the top position. He beats you like corporal punishment before submitting you. He hands out public ass-whoopins like dads in the 80s. Those in the middle of the Sears hardware section ass whoopins. Pat’s special move is the Sabatini Martini. The rear-naked choke is his WWE signature move. He kinks your neck like garden hoses. Sabatini is ground and pound and submission over position. His striking stats aren’t impressive, averaging under two SLpM. But he averages four takedowns and two submission attempts per fifteen minutes.   

Joanderson Brito is an undercover savage. He once went back-to-back like Mel Gibson and Danny Glover on Chepe Mariscal and Diego Lopes. He beat Chepe in LFA and Lopes on the Contender Series. Brito is a walking Korn track. Fighting Brito is like surviving the mosh pit during Korn’s Woodstock ‘99 performance. Yo! Hit that “Blind!” Fighting Brito is like being dropped into a one-hundred-foot Lizzo cannonball wave by a helicopter and riding the barrel. Go look at what Brito did to Jack Shore’s leg. I dare you. He had Shore’s leg looking like it had been riding in a motorcade in Dealey Plaza. They had to blur out the cage side doctor putting his finger in the hole in Shore’s shin bone. The city still hasn’t fixed the pothole in Shore’s shin. 

I get strong Deiveson Figueiredo vibes when I watch Brito fight. He’s mean and explosive. This guy is Radioactive, and I ain’t talking Imagine Dragons. I’m talking about unstable isotopes in his fists. Brito is a home run hitter. He won’t play small ball and manufacture runs. He relies on big plays downfield to score. Flying shit, spinning shit, and jumping Gillies. Now, back to the hole in Jack Shore’s shin. Brito was punching the hole while in the top position when the ref stepped in to bring in the doctor. That’s next-level violence. That’s 50/50 shit, and I ain’t talking about Ohtani. I’m talking padded rooms and Nurse Ratchet. That’s some shit you’d see in a Celebrity Deathmatch. Brito is 17-4 with eight TKO/KOs and seven subs. Dude is a finisher.   

Brito is the (-220) favorite, and Sabatini is the (+180) mangy dog. Not quite a mangy-ass dog. Just mangy. This is the exact type of guy that typically KOs Sabatini. Also, sound the alarms. There is a level five Gilly Alert in effect. Brito is a Gilly Monster. The Gilly will be live should Sabatini get caught slipping and not protecting his neck like the Wu-Tang Clan has been admonishing for decades. If Sabatini can force a wild scramble and get Brito’s back, he can finish him. But if he can’t immediately get Brito to the mat, he will be in serious trouble real. Brito has only been submitted once in his career, and that was in his pro debut in 2013. Although the Gilly will be live, I like playing Brito for a TKO/KO. If you’re feeling froggy, the play for Sabatini is a sub. Joanderson Brito via TKO, round two. On wax.   

Props

Sabatini: TKO/KO (+3500) Sub (+450) Dec (+500) 

Brito: TKO/KO (+110) Sub (+800) Dec (+390)

Winner: Joanderson Brito | Method: TKO Rd.2

Kennedy Nzechukwu (-350) vs. Martin Buday (+275)

Nzechukwu: DK: $9.2k | Buday: DK:$7k

There has been a lot of clamoring lately: “Release the Kennedy files!” And I’ve been sitting here like, “They’re already on Sherdog and Tapology.” Kennedy Nzechukwu is 14-5 with ten TKO/KOs and one sub, including 2-0 since moving up to heavyweight. There you go. And nothing is redacted. Kennedy Nzechukwu is breaking all the Kennedy stereotypes. Kennedy trains in Dallas and does his road work in Dealey Plaza, just wishing a muhf**ker would. Mercedes should partner with Nzechukwu; their new slogan: “Safe enough for a Kennedy, even in the back seat.” It sells itself. I want ten percent, Kennedy. This time around, Martin Buday will be the patsy standing across from Kennedy inside the Octagon. Buday will need a magic bullet if he plans on halting Kennedy’s two-fight dub streak.   

Kennedy Nzechukwu is an unassuming, long, dangerous striker. This guy will hit you from the book depository and have you thinking there were multiple strikers inside the cage. Nzechukwu has the longest, shortest hands in the game. His arms are longer than the long arm of the law. Speaking of the law, Kennedy has been the judge, jury, and executioner since moving up to heavyweight. Yo! Hit that Judge Dredd, “I am the law!” Kennedy’s attacks straight up the middle with punches oddly straight for a man of his size. He doesn’t have the best hand speed, but his hands travel the shortest path to the target, making them deceptively quick. And in the clinch, Kennedy is a smooth operator on some Sade type-ish. His elbows are longer than most fighters’ punches. Martin Buday is also a master at striking in the clinch. This could turn into a modern-day Don Frye vs. Yoshihiro Takayama. Google that shit.   

But Kennedy has a major, major malfunction. His fight IQ. He has that Mavs GM fight IQ. Trading away Luka for AD fight IQ. Sometimes, it looks like Kennedy is trying to lose like he’s been sabotaged by the Warren Commission. There are times when Kennedy clinches and tries to grapple when he should strike or when he just doesn’t throw enough and allows Nicolae Negumereanu to beat him. Careful, homies. Don’t go saying that name out loud too quickly. Kennedy lost that fight to Nicolae. He also lost via KO to Da Woon Jung. Who? That’s like losing to Glass Joe and Von Kaiser in Punch Out! The first two characters you face. Kennedy also has a recent L to OSP. But he has dubs over Ion Cutelaba and Carlos Ulberg. Make it make sense. The key for Kennedy against Buday will be maintaining his range and touching Buday from the outside. 

Martin “Lawrence” Buday, aka Mr. Skin of His Ass, likes to flirt with defeat but rarely commits. When Buday tries to lose a fight, the judges won’t let him. The judges drag him across the finish line kicking and screaming. This guy once got out struck one hundred eighteen to sixty-eight against Lukasz Brzeski and still got the judges’ nod. He also got out-struck seventy-four to fifty-four against Andre Arlovski and got the nod. And he didn’t score any knockdowns in either fight. Even when he loses, Martin Buday wins. But we don’t win-shame at the WKO and certainly never apologize for a dub.   

Buday has managed a 5-1 UFC record, including an offensive dub on the Contender Series. He pushed his opponent against the cage and destroyed him in the clinch. It looked like an 80s cop shakedown outside a bodega. Homie handed out a stop-and-frisk ass-whoopin' and likely violated his opponent’s civil rights. This guy’s style in the clinch is an ode to Randy Couture, the man who won multiple belts by using dirty boxing in the clinch. But when Buday can’t initiate the clinch, he struggles. He moves like Grimace on the feet. Yeah, that purple guy from McDonalds. Homie moves like black and white Bigfoot footage. Buday is basically the Sully from Monsters Inc. of the UFC. He looks scary and imposing, but he often fights with the temperament of a loveable, misunderstood, gentle giant. He’s a walking children’s book with a moral at the conclusion of each fight. Buday strikes like he’s in a slump; he can’t even make contact sometimes. You see him out there looking for walks. He just doesn’t let his hands go unless he is in the clinch. 

Fantasy-wise, Kennedy will be the higher output striker, averaging just under five and a half SLpM to Buday’s just over four and a half. This one has almost zero chance of going to the mat. Kennedy will be the (-310) heavy favorite, and Buday will be the (+255) live-ish dog. Buday isn’t a chump, but he lacks impressive physical attributes. There’s nothing he does exceptionally well. The play for this one is a decision. Kennedy is the finishing threat, but Buday has only been finished once. And that came to a heavy grappler in Shamil Gaziev. Stay away from Buday; he’s a walking Fantasy bust. If he can’t get inside on Kennedy. I don’t know how he’ll land strikes consistently. Kennedy Nzechukwu via decision. Put that ish on wax.   

Props

Nzechukwu: TKO/KO (+120) Sub (+800) Dec (+200) 

Buday: TKO/KO (+650) Sub (+2000) Dec (+700)

Winner: Kennedy Nzechukwu | Method: Decision

Brad Tavares (-225) vs. Gerald Meerscheart (+185)

Tavares: DK: $9.1k | GM3: DK: $7.1k

Three weeks ago, I had norovirus and Meerschaert myself. It wasn’t pretty, and I ruined my lucky pair of underoos that I wore the last time the Cowboys won the Super Bowl. Lucky? They haven’t won in thirty years. Anywho, the Sub Hoarder, Gerald Meerschaert is back like he never left. Meerschaert is one of the best all-around finishers in the game. Nobody finishes fights or gets finished more than Gerald Meerschaert. This guy has fifty-five career fights and has only been to a decision seven times. Homie avoids making decisions at all costs. He’s like asking a young lady what she wants to eat personified. But Meerschaert will have his work cut out against Brad Tavares because Tavares loves making decisions like a judge. Eighteen of his thirty career scraps went to a decision. This one will come down to who wants/doesn’t want a decision more.   

I was reading the Amber Heard court transcript the other day and came across this excerpt: 

Judge: “Miss Heard, did you shit in Johnny’s bed?” 

Amber: “No, your honor. It was only a Gerald Meerschaert.” 

I found it coincidental with a Gerald Meerschaert fight coming up. If you’ve been rocking with the WKO for a while, you already know Gerald. This guy is in dire need of an intervention. You can’t even get one foot inside his door because it's inundated with subs lying around. Old subs, new subs; he even has spots reserved for future subs. This guy has a storage unit full of subs. The season finale of Storage Wars should be an auction of Gerald’s unit. There would be a contentious bidding war for his subs of Makhmud Muradov and Edmen Shahbazyan.   

Live by the sub; die by the sub. Meerschaert has subs like when they’d wheel in the TV and VCR in middle school. Gerald doesn’t do it for the luv; he does it for the sub. Pop-up ads couldn’t keep Gerald Meerschaert from a finish. If he can’t get the sub, he wants to be submitted. Homie is sitting on career sub number thirty and said, “Matte!” like Chong Li noine times. That’s fifty percent of his eighteen career Ls. But as good as Meerschaert is on the mat, he has never been comfortable on the feet. 

Meerschaert has sneaky power on the feet, but his major malfunction is his hand speed. His hand speed is like city buses that stop on every corner. It’s like student drivers working a clutch. His hands need a cutoff man like a throw to the plate from the warning track. Gerald loses fights when he gets stranded on the feet. Sometimes, Gerald will inexplicably keep the fight standing. And that’s why Gerald’s Game is fooking up parlays. Nothing will make you feel more alive than betting on a Gerald Meerschaert fight. Somehow, he knows how you bet and does whatever he can to screw you over. The key for Meerschaert against Tavares will be committing to his wrestling. Tavares rocks an eighty percent takedown defense and has been fighting in the UFC since 2010. So, it won’t be easy for Meerschaert to relocate the fight.   

Brad Tavares has been a double O-G since your favorite fighter was taking Groupon beginners classes. Monsters of the Octagon; Monsters Inc. This guy has been on his Geralt of Rivia shit, fighting monsters and his own demons, for going on his second decade. During his career, Tavares fought four UFC champs and beat one of them. Go back and watch that DDP fight. Most recently, Tavares fought the Iron Turtle and Brazilian Deebo back-to-back. “Thou shall not pass!” Tavares is the Gandalf of gatekeepers. And that ain’t a diss. The term gatekeeper is a compliment of the highest regard. Longevity in the game is what every fighter is in search of outside of being a world champion. Throughout his career, The UFC has treated Tavares like the guy who tastes the King’s food and wine for poison. He’s been a sacramental lamb. But he’s still standing here, screaming fook the Free World! 

Brad Tavares has always been good enough to stick around. He’s the Josh Johnson (who played for fourteen NFL teams) of the UFC. But Tavares isn’t a journeyman; he’s a journey, man. That’s deep. This guy has survived multiple generations of the fight game by being consistently above average. He’s been fighting since the frontier days. He’s like your tío telling Nam stories. Yo! Hit that 2Pac “Trading War Stories!” Tavares has done more tours of duty than Rambo. All Tavares has to do to beat Gerald Meerschaert is keep the fight standing. It’s very hard (not impossible) to get submitted on the feet. His kickboxing is superior. Tavares has stood and traded with the best the division has had to offer for the last fifteen years. This is his fight to lose.   

Tavares is the (-250) favorite, and Meerschaert is the (+210) almost always live dog. If Gerald can’t get to the top position, this will be an L for him. If he can find a way to get Tavares down, there isn’t a fighter in the division he can’t finish. But Tavares has some of the best takedown defense in the game. Crazy stat: In twenty-five UFC bouts, Tavares has only eclipsed one hundred significant strikes once. And that came in 2013. His Fantasy value is moderate (50-70) strikes landed at best without a finish. Tavares hasn’t finished a fight since 2018. I’d take a chance on Meerschaert before taking one on Tavares, even in victory. Brad Tavares via decision. On wax.   

Props

Tavares: TKO/KO (+320) Sub (+2000) Dec (-110)  

Meerscheart: TKO/KO (+1200) Sub (+400) Dec (+600)

Winner: Brad Tavares | Method: Decision

Torrez Finney (-260) vs. Robert Valentin (+215)

Finney: DK: $9k | Valentin: DK: $7.2k

This one is a physical physique mismatch. Torrez Finney is making his UFC debut, fresh off the Contender Series, and is built like a 90s fullback. He’s out here looking like Lorenzo Neal. Or Moose Johnson because he’s built like a baby moose. And Robert Valentin is flimsy-looking. He’s built like plastic silverware. But you can never judge a fighter by his cover. I don’t know much about either fighter. This could turn into a tepid grappling match or a tepid kickboxing match if neither can exert their dominance on the mat. Either way, some tepidness is in order.   

I have to get this out of the way first: I get strong William Knight vibes when watching Torrez Finney fight. William Knight was notorious for being absolutely massive and doing absolutely nothing inside the cage. Knight must have averaged a half SLpM. Finney is built similarly and isn’t very polished on the feet, much like William Knight debuting off the Contender Series. Torrez Finney’s back crosses state lines. This MF traffics deltoids. His shoulders look like he has little people in headlocks. Finney is a wrestler-first fighter, and when he gets hold of you, it looks like Shark Week in that bish. Air Finney. He breaches the Octagon like Great White breach the water. Finney looks like Pride Rampage Jackson slamming people. His takedowns double as significant strikes. The problem is that he has no gas left after his slams to throw punches. He just lays on you, breathing like Shannon Sharpe on IG Live. He looks like he beat out a Beer League infield single by the third round. But his gas tank isn’t Finney’s major malfunction. That would be his striking.   

His little arms are too small to box with God. He’s the Mugsy Bogues of striking. He’s a 1:52 scale action figure compared to his opponents. His legs aren’t long enough to play Cruis’n World at Dave & Buster's. Homie has to jump and swing up to hit you in the knees. But he’s built like Muscle Man in Toy Story and can knock your block off Google Maps. He’s built like Cartman if he did push-ups after taking Weight Gain 4000. Finney is 10-0 with seven TKO/KOs and one sub. Three of his ten dubs came on the Contender Series. It took him three appearances to earn a contract. His path to victory will be gaining the top position and controlling it. That won’t be easy because Robert Valentin has solid grappling from either position. The key for Finney will be creating damage from the top. If he tries to lay n’ pray, he will get reversed. 

Robert Valentin was on the most recent Ultimate Fighter and lost the finale. That fight was one long grappling exchange. It was a Jack Twist and Ennis Del Mar affair on the mat from beginning to end. Valentin’s grappling is A Tale of Two Positions. His guard game is a complete one-eighty from his top game. He’s a killer from the top position. Five of his six career subs came via rear-naked choke. But he has an Only Fans bottom game. In the TUF finale, Valentin got caught in a crucifix and couldn’t escape like he was in a Mel Gibson movie. That’s probably the worst position in MMA. Go check out Gary Goodridge in the early UFCs. He had one of the most brutal KOs from the back-mounted crucifix.   

From what I’ve seen of Valentin’s stand-up, it’s more like sit-down. I’ve seen better stand-up in a Polio ward. He has stand-up like FDR. But that might be good enough against Torrez Finney. Of course, the WKO jinx is in full effect. A Rodzilla KO is live. Rodzilla is Valentin’s nickname. Homie never outgrew his third-grade nickname. I’m not sure who will have the advantage on the feet, but Rodzilla looks like the more technical grappler. But Torrez’s size and strength could be too much for Valentin, at least early. Valentin is 10-4 with three TKO/KOs and six subs. In his debut, Valentin landed only one strike in almost two full rounds. He averages less than a quarter of one SLpM. A WKO record low.   

Finney will be the (-235) favorite, and Valentin will be the (+195) live dog. If Finney gases, Valentin can reverse the fortunes on the mat. If the fight stays standing, I think it’s a coin toss. I have no real leaning either way on this one. I think the likely outcome is Finney riding out the top position for the first two rounds, surviving in the third, and limping across the finish line for the decision. I think a finish one way or the other is a long shot. Overall, this feels like a Fantasy point trap fight. Torrez Finney via decision. Wax on, wax off.  

Props

Finney: TKO/KO (+140) Sub (+450) Dec (+270)  

Valentin: TKO/KO (+900) Sub (+425) Dec (+1000)

Winner: Torrez Finney | Method: Decision

Prelims

$7k Value Menu

Davey Grant ($7.7k): “Wavey” Davey Grant is back. This guy is a dog’s dog. One of the WKO’s best-kept secrets in recent years. This guy’s style is awkward, like Thanksgiving dinner last November. This guy has been in the UFC since 2013 and has fought some of the best fighters in the bantamweight division. He even fought Chito Vera twice and had a win over him. Since 2019, Grant has gone 6-3, and two of those Ls were split decisions that he should have gone his way. Grant is the Galileo of discovering new arm angles to wing punches. There is no defense for his strikes, no traditional guard or footwork that can thwart his awkwardness. On top of his striking, Grant has noine career submissions, including an inverted triangle choke over Raphael Assucao in 2023. He will be up against Willycat, aka Daniel Santos, and this fight is guaranteed to be a banger. Likely a stand-up affair. Willycat will bring the traditional Brazilian Muay Thai, and Grant will bring the unorthodox wild kickboxing. Grant averages nearly five and a half SLpM and landed one hundred forty-seven in his most recent bout. Win or lose, Grant should put some points on the board.   

Pat Sabatini ($7.5k): Pat Sabatini is a dual threat. He’s an early submission threat and an early sleeper threat, likely to get put to sleep if he can’t get to Joanderson Brito’s back early. When Sabatini loses, it’s usually by TKO/KO within the opening minute. If he survives on the feet early, he usually submits his opponent. Sabatini is grappling or bust. Pat has twelve career subs, including four within the UFC. He is coming in off a submission of Jonathan Pearce, an elite grappler in his own right. Sabatini will be a classic all-or-nothing Fantasy option with a sky-is-the-limit upside and a crab people at the center of the earth downside if he can’t ground Brito like punishment early.   

Robert Valentin ($7.2k): This could be a survive and advance scenario for Valentin against Torrez Finney. Finney will likely ragdoll Valentin early, taking down Valentin and dominating top control. But Valentin is the overall better grappler with slick transitions and reversals. Finney is built like a brick shit house (or a shit brick house?) and has the massive physique of a man who gases sooner rather than later. If Finney’s pace wanes, Valentin will reverse fortunes on the mat and could be a late sub-threat. If the fight stays standing, it might be time to politic with Mary Jay in the garage because it won’t be pretty.   

$6k Clearance Rack

Josh Emmett ($6.9k): I think the odds are off on the main event. Emmett is the finishing threat in the matchup. He has the Dim Mak Death Touch in his right hand. The key for Emmett will be closing the distance, getting inside Lerone Murphy’s long reach, and unloading hooks and overhands. Dan Ige had Murphy in trouble in the first round, and if Emmett can land a big punch similar to Ige’s, Murphy won’t get back to his feet this time. Emmett is one of the best finishing threats on the entire card and could flip the Fantasy script with one heavy bomb. 

Twenty-Twen-Twen Sleepers

Davey Grant (+130): Over the years, I’ve financed second and third homes in Malibu and Martha’s Vineyard by betting Andy Jacks on Davey Grant upsets. This guy makes every fight ugly, and it’s hard to look good against him. It seems like traditional fundamentals and techniques don’t work against this guy because he’s so fookin’ awkward on the feet. Broken cadences, false entries, looping overhands, and boomerang-like hooks make Grant hard to prepare for. There aren’t many guys in the gym with his odd style. The key for Grant will be mixing in some grappling against Daniel Santos. He has to make this an MMA fight to drain some of Santos’ power, especially early. I think this fight will be an FX Nip/Tuck affair with split decision written all over it. 

Gerald Meerschaert (+190): I don’t like this matchup for Gerald. Brad Tavares has some of the most proven takedown defense in the promotion. But Meerschaert is a walking submission. He’s sitting on career submission number thirty, and Tavares has dropped four of his last five fights. If Gerald can, somehow, someway, gain the top position, he can be the first to submit Brad Tavares. When you expect Meerschaert to hand you Blythe, California, he surprises you and hands you the globe. Meerschaert does his best work as an underdog. 

Josh Emmett (+260): My biggest reason for not picking Emmett to pull off the upset is his age, forty. And he’s coming in off nearly a year and a half layoff after catching a body against Bryce Mitchell. Eventually, Father Time shows up out of nowhere like a deadbeat dad and wants to reconcile. But Emmett still has life-altering power and will be the one-punch finishing threat against Lerone Murphy. This will be a battle of range. The key for Emmett will be bullying Lerone, setting traps against the cage, and overwhelming Murphy with his power. He has to draw Murphy into extended combinations in the pocket where Emmett will have the advantage.  

Pick ‘Em

Cortavious Romious (+115) vs. Chang Ho Lee (-140)  

Winner: Chang Ho Lee 

Method: Decision 

Ode Osbourne (+215) vs. Luis Gurule (-260)  

Winner: Luis Gurule 

Method: Decision 

Davey Grant (+130) vs. Daniel Santos (-150)  

Winner: Daniel Santos 

Method: Decision 

Rhys McKee (+135) vs. Daniel Frunza (-155) 

Winner: Rhys McKee 

Method: Decision 

Diana Belbita (+600) vs. Dione Barbosa (-950) 

Winner: Dione Barbosa 

Method: Decision 

Looma Lookboonme (-700) vs. Istela Nunes (+475) 

Winner: Looma Lookboonme 

Method: Decision 

Victor Henry (-220) vs. Pedro Falcao (+180) 

 Winner: Victor Henry 

Method: Decision 

Vanessa Demopoulos (-110) vs. Talita Alencar (-115) 

Winner: Talita Alencar 

Method: Decision 

Thanks for reading LineStar Weekly Knockout! We'll be back next Thursday with another one. Until then, good luck and support your local MMA Gym.

About Me

My name is Chris Guy, and I’m an avid combat sports enthusiast and practitioner. I’ve been a fan of MMA since the early 2000s when Limewire was still around, and I downloaded Bas Rutten’s Big Book of Combat. In 2004, I started training Muay Thai at City Boxing in San Diego, CA. I competed as an amateur for many years, and I've also dabbled in Jiu-Jitsu. I follow many different disciplines, such as Combat Ji-Jitsu, Muay Thai, Glory Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA.

I’m equally as enthusiastic about the craft of writing, and in addition to writing about combat sports, I also write short fiction and music. I hope to bring unique prose to sports writing, and along the way, encourage people to not only become Martial Arts fans but to also become Martial Artists themselves.

In the future, you may see me refer to the Thunderdome; it's an ode to the old Mad Max movie and refers to the world-class training facility I built in my one-car garage. It's complete with throw dummies, wrestling mats, heavy bags, and six months' worth of Chef Boyardee cans from when I thought the world was going to end back in March.

I hope you enjoy my work, and if you don’t, the Thunderdome has an open door policy.