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

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Main Card

Alex Pereira (-500) vs. Khalil Rountree (+360)

Pereira: DK: $9.6k | Rountree: DK:$6.6k

The legend of Tong Po began after he was featured on an episode of VH1’s Behind the Ass-Whoopin’ in 2022. It was a short documentary chronicling Rountree’s journey to the Octagon against Karl Roberson. Cameras famously captured Khalil Rountree’s savage warmup routine, kicking a stone pillar in the arena’s basement, granulated stone like sawdust piling at his feet. Shin-on-stone, with each kick, the arena’s foundation shook. Also captured was the prefight conversation between Roberson and his cornerman, who detailed what he had seen in the basement and pleaded with Roberson to call off the fight. “This guy is different!” the cornerman ejaculated (always wanted to use that word).  

Roberson didn’t heed his cornerman’s advice. What ensued was one of the most violent twenty-five seconds I have ever seen in this sport. It wasn’t sport at all. On some Jason Bourne type-shit, Roundtree blacked out at the beginning of the second round and woke up to the entire arena looking like the Heaven’s Gate mansion, minus the black Nikes. Everybody in that bish was dead, and Roberson was curled up in the fetal position like a fookin’ cheese doodle. It was the body kick to a grounded Roberson that was extra cruel. In a sport of elbows, shins, and knees to the face, that kick to the body while Roberson was crawling to safety like a mutilated escapee from Dr. Satan’s lair was uncalled for. Super unnecessary. Anyone who would do that to a fellow human may not be human at all. 

From that moment on, Khalil Rountree has been known as Tong Po, an ode to the Muay Thai style he developed in Thailand before that fight. Shit only got more violent from there, culminating in the complete destruction of Anthony Smith most recently. Smith looked like he was caught in a 10.0 earthquake after getting hit with one too many Tong Po left hands. Homie was shook. And you already know: Ain’t no such thing as halfway crooks. Hit that “Shook Ones!” Michael J. Fox is standing there like, “What the f**k did I do?” No, that Mobb Deep! Rountree hovered over a fallen Anthony Smith with one fist raised over his head, poised to raise the dead on a muhf**ker. Like Roberson, Po had Smith crawling away from the ass-whoopin'.   

Rountree’s violent streaks are what make him so feared. One second, shit’s sweet. And the next, he’s biting Roy’s face off. Or was it Sigfried? He mauls people. All they recover is an audio recording, someone’s final words, “He’s eating me ass-fir—" Tong Po fights in bursts. Short, aggressive blitzes, and then he has to chill out and recharge for a minute or two before he can explode again. His major malfunction in the past has been inexplicable lulls in activity. Rountree has lost close fights and made others that shouldn’t be close because of long stretches without throwing anything of significance. But your life flashes before your eyes with every shot he throws when he lets his wide hooks and chopping overhands go. Right hook: There’s your sixth-grade birthday party. Left overhand: January 28, 1996, the day the Cowboys won their last Super Bowl. Po’s hands require CCWs. They’re illegal to carry in all fifty states. New York has mandatory minimums for Khalil Rountree’s hands.   

All that is cool and all, but can he beat the Fist God (No Diddy), Alex Pereira? Yes. This gives me Belal/Leon and Merab/O’Malley feels. But the striker vs. striker version. Pereira is hittable. His major malfunction is defense. He parries punches out in front and tends to lean back with his chin up. The key for Tong Po will be extending combinations and keeping a consistent pace. Any lulls in activity will lead to Rountree taking damage. And it’s always just a matter of time until that sub-atomic left hook lands. This is a dangerous fight for Pereira and could play out how I thought the Jamahal Hill fight would play out. I thought Hill’s southpaw stance would cause Pereira problems. Khalil is also a southpaw, and southpaws have caused Pereira problems going back to his kickboxing days. A bet on Rountree would be more than a “just in case” bet.   

Father, Son, and the Alex Pereira. We might have to start saying “Amen!” after his name. This guy is quickly turning into the GOAT. His ass-whoopin's have a religious feel to them. People make pilgrimages to see Alex Pereira kick ass. This fookin’ guy is the Pope of MMA. The bleeding statue of Alex Pereira. “Poatan” spirit cooks mf’s in the Octagon. The only thing missing is Lady Gaga. There’s a dark, ritualistic undertone to an Alex Pereira sacrifice. And it seems like Chama needs appeasement every few weeks. Pereira clocks into the Octagon like a noine-to-five. He even brings a ThunderCats tin lunchbox to work with him with a cute little sticky note inside from wifey. There’s a proverbial Alex Pereira ass groove in the Octagon. He’s the only guy in the arena with the passcode to the thermostat.  

Alex Pereira is HIM. The fookin’ almighty. Alex Almighty. There’s nothing left to say about this guy before he steps into the Octagon for the third time in 2024 and the second in just over two months. After eight weeks, this guy starts going through ass-kicking withdrawals. He needs his next fix. And that’s Khalil Rountree. As always, an Alex Pereira ass-whoopin' is built from the ground up. He starts by disabling your legs. After the shit is kicked out of your calves, and the colostomy bags are attached, he drops the whammy on some Jimi Hendrix type-shit – the left hook. The calf kicks are always the key to Pereira’s striking. He throws them without any hip commitment, so there aren’t any tells to pick up on. Not overlooking Khalil Rountree will be the biggest key for Pereira. Alex is better than Rountree in every striking metric. But he’ll have to be wary of Rountree’s lead hand. Pereira is susceptible to overhand rights, and Rountree’s lead hand is dangerous. 

The numbers: Rountree is 13-5 with noine TKO/KOs and is riding a five-fight dub streak. Pereira will be the higher output striker, averaging over five SLpM to Rountree’s just over three and a half. The main difference in output is leg kicks. Pereira lands leg kicks at a high volume. This one is easy. The only play for both fighters is a TKO/KO finish. If this one goes the distance, satan will be in hell training for the ‘26 Winter Olympics. Pereira will be the massive (-510) favorite, and Rountree will be the (+370) live dog. Yes, live. When throwing fists back and forth, anybody can get got. Rountree will have to risk his consciousness early and often and try to create some chaotic exchanges in the pocket. He can’t get caught on the outside eating leg kicks. Dogs started the year dominating main events. Then, the favorites started representing. But dogs have won two in a row. This isn’t a toss-up, but I think it’s a lot closer than the odds suggest.   

Speaking of main events. The losing streak sits at three. The good news is, I’ve put my money where my mouf wasn’t each of the last two weeks. Money Moicano staved off the creditors once again. He can’t afford to lose. If Alex Pereira can’t end the main event skid, who can? Alex Pereira via TKO, round three. Put it on wax.   

Props

Pereira: TKO/KO (-330) Sub (+1600) Dec (+900) 

Rountree: TKO/KO (+500) Sub (+3000) Dec (+1600)

Winner: Alex Pereira | Method: TKO Rd.3

Raquel Pennington (-175) vs. Julianna Peña (+140)

Pennington: DK: $8.4k | Peña: DK: $7.8k

“Julianna Peña has excellent Jiu-Jitsu, but her striking wouldn’t earn her a top seed on a 90-Day Fiancé reunion special.” Those were my famous last words before Peña shocked the world and beat Amanda Nunes. Beat Nunes on the feet before submitting her. I dined at Peña’s three-star Michelin restaurant for six months straight, eating elaborate dishes concocted from my own words. But then the rematch came, and I was completely vindicated. Nunes boxed Peña's face... off. So, that brings us full circle. Julianna Peña couldn't strike if she was in a picket line. She strikes like she's down in the count 0-3. Her striking looks like ‘87 Punch-Out! Eight-bit striking -no motion capture. There were times in the second Nunes fight that Peña looked like a complete noob on the feet. She was flailing, not striking. It was a miracle that she made it to the final bell. 

Peña's words are her best weapon. Hit that D-12 “Words Are Weapons!” After a one-fight winning streak, she talked her way into a title fight, and it paid dividends. And here she is again, coming into a title fight after getting her ass cracked like single-ply in her last bout. I’ve never seen someone get a title shot after getting walked like Ceasar Milan in their previous fight. Peña is 3-3 in her last six fights. She must have Diddy tapes, the Dana version. This is like not showing up to work for four weeks and still earning employee of the month. Peña is a human bank bailout. She’s the 2008 financial crash personified, and she still got her CEO Christmas bonus.   

But I’ll say this about Julianna Peña: She has excellent Jiu-Jitsu and has that Red Badge of Courage dog in her. She’s on that Ruth Langmore “you’re gonna have to kill me!” type-shit. She’s the bug you try to step on, but somehow, it manages to escape being crushed by fitting between the tread of your shoe and keeps crawling away. Other than that, she has basic training hands. Her hands got their marching orders, left-right-left. If she can’t get the top position against Raquel Pennington, I don’t know how she will win this fight. Pennington isn’t great anywhere, but she’s good everywhere. 

Pennington’s major malfunction is that she has sixteen career dubs, and eleven are decisions. Say what you say like Em and Dre, but the lady can make up her mind. She rocks that Carradine finishing rate. Walking in a Home Depot parking lot is more dangerous than Raquel Pennington. Standing up too fast is more dangerous than Raquel Pennington. I’ve always compared her to the female Joseph Benavidez.    

Pennington wins by rubbing you the wrong way for fifteen to twenty-five minutes. She’s a human indigenous people of America arm burn. A human atomic wedgie. She’s just an irritant anywhere the fight goes. Pennington is just good enough at everything to negate your specialty. Hit that Talib Kweli “Just To Get By!” Raquel does just enough to get by. Her special power is not having one. If she were a WWE wrestler, she wouldn’t have a finishing move. If she were a Mortal Kombat character, she wouldn’t have a fatality. But she’s the Champ, so who gives a fook! She wins this fight everywhere except from her back. Raquel is the more technical striker; she’s better in the clinch, and she can even dominate the top position. Peña's takedown defense is twenty-three percent. That might be the worst I’ve ever seen.   

Pennington will be the (-150) favorite, and Peña will be the (+150) live dog. Neither fighter is much of a finishing threat and neither is dominant in a single area. This will likely be a close, competitive fight and closer to a toss-up. Fantasy-wise, Pennington has had a nice three-fight run. She landed over one hundred significant strikes in two of her last three and eighty-one in the other. She chips away in the clinch and it adds up quick. Pennington averages over four SLpM to Peña's just over three. Without a submission finish, Peña will likely be a bust. She landed only sixty strikes in five rounds against Nunes. Raquel Pennington via decision. On wax. 

Props

Pennington: TKO/KO (+2000) Sub (+450) Dec (+100) 

Peña: TKO/KO (+1200) Sub (+650) Dec (+275)

Winner: Raquel Pennington | Method: Decision

Jose Aldo (+115) vs. Mario Bautista (-135)

Aldo: DK: $7.7k | Bautista: DK:$8.5k

Hit that 2Pac “R U Still Down!” Yeah, Jose Aldo, aka Jose Alpo, is still down to crack some asses like pinkies and single-ply. He still has that DPG dawg in him. You can take Aldo out of the dog, but you can’t take the dog outta Aldo. Wait... what!? You know what I sizzlin’. This guy has won four of his last five fights and is coming in off a domination of Jonathan Martinez after a Jordan-like two-year stint in the boxing minor leagues. Since 2020, Aldo has only lost one fight, and that was to the current Champ, Merab Dvalishvili. And if you go back and watch that fight, it’s hard to call anybody a winner. Merab didn’t dominate Aldo the way he did Petr Yan, Henry Cejudo, and Sean O’Malley. This fight right here may look like another gatekeeping matchup for Aldo, but it’s not. “Super” Mario Bautista is one of the best all-around fighters in the bantamweight division that you haven’t heard of. And this is a dope little banger.   

Jose Alpo is still one of the best leg kickers and pure boxers in the game. They have to transport Aldo’s hands like radioactive material. His best weapon is the liver punch. Fifteen minutes in a cage with Aldo will cause more liver damage than forty years of drinking hard liquor. Aldo’s hands are like Royce da 5’9” and Em: His left hand is Bad, and his right hand is Evil. And even at forty, Aldo still wants all the smoke like mufflers. He remains one of the best pocket strikers in the game, using subtle head movement and slick counters to piece you up without ever taking a step backward. He stays on the tracks when the train's coming like Matt Hughes. Every time you try to attack, you get hit. They call Aldo Scarface because your mind will be playing tricks on you when Aldo is in the zone, slippin’ and rippin’.   

The key for Aldo against Mario Bautista will be staying on his feet and avoiding the clinch. That shouldn’t be difficult for Aldo. He rocks a career noinety-one percent takedown defense and defended all sixteen of Merab’s takedown attempts in their fight. Depression couldn’t get Aldo down. Fookin’ gravity can’t take down Aldo. They’ll do a Life After People episode about Aldo one hundred years from now because he’ll still be standing. If Aldo can avoid getting sucked into the clinch, he’ll have a massive speed advantage on the feet. And he’s the better striker overall. The only knock against Aldo is that he hasn’t finished a fight since 2019 when he TKO’d “Money” Moicano. Aldo is a moderate output striker, averaging just over three and a half SLpM, and the play for him is a decision.   

Mario Bautista keeps winning. He is riding a six-fight dub streak and has an overall UFC record of 8-2. This MF debuted against Cory Sandhagen. Every path to victory against Bautista is like a level in Battletoads. That fookin’ game was impossible to beat. Beating Bautista is like trying to beat Shadow Link in Zelda II. It’s like dodging Viet Cong boobie traps in Vietnam. I’m talking Punji pits, stakes laced with snake venom, mace balls sent swinging with trip wires, green viper pits, rat tunnels – all that shit. This dude is like old-school Mammys; he’ll beat your ass anywhere. At the supermarket, church, the dentist’s office, or in the middle of the street in front of all the homies. Bautista can beat you inside, outside, in the clinch, or on the mat. Choose Your Own Ass-Whoopin'.   

On the feet, Bautista is aggressive, and he extends combinations. He always tries to have the last punch. He stays up all night tossing and turning if he can’t fit in the final strike in an exchange. Just when you think the attack is over, here comes a punctuating left hook. BUT (big but), Bautista tends to throw left-right-left cadences, leaving his body open to counters. And Jose Aldo is the Liver King. Fook that stumpy little steroid Big Poppa Pump lookin’-ass MF. Also, Bautista’s punches are long; he will need to choke up on them – shorten them up against Aldo, or Aldo will eat him up down the middle all night. But the biggest key for Bautista will be making this an MMA fight and not relenting to a kickboxing match with one of the best strikers ever-ever. 

Bautista is 14-2 for his career with three TKO/KOs and six subs. He will be the higher output striker, averaging over five and a half SLpM, and that will come in handy when trying to steal close rounds. I don’t see him getting Aldo to the mat, but that doesn’t mean he can’t do work in the clinch and grind out Aldo for three rounds. In his most recent bout against Ricky Simone, Bautista landed one hundred twelve significant strikes while defending eleven of thirteen takedowns. Even in a loss, Bautista will likely rack up some solid striking stats. 

Mario Bautista will be the (-150) favorite, and Aldo will be the (+130) live-ass dog. I’m surprised Bautista is the favorite. His ground game is superior, but I don’t know if he can get Aldo down at all, much less consistently. On the feet, give me Aldo’s hand speed and boxing acumen over Bautista’s any day of the week. Aldo won’t light up the Fantasy scoreboard, but at plus money, he’s a steal as a straight-up bet. I didn’t come here to pick against Jose Alpo. Jose Aldo via decision. Put it on wax. 

Props

Bautista: TKO/KO (+400) Sub (+1400) Dec (+130) 

Aldo: TKO/KO (+650) Sub (+2800 Dec (+180)

Winner: Jose Aldo | Method: Decision

Kayla Harrison (-1000) vs. Ketlen Vieira (+650)

Harrison: DK: $9.8k | Vieira: DK: $6.4k

“Hov did that...” I watched a Ketlen Vieira fight, so you wouldn’t have to. You watch Ketlen Vieira fights before getting your wisdom teeth pulled. Yo! Hit that Frank Ocean “Novacane!” After watching her most recent fight, I woke up from a coma in a hospital bed, rocking a Steven Seagal beard. Putting this fight on the main card over Wonderboy vs. Joaquin Buckley is nasty work. This fight is all about Kayla Harrison, who signed with the UFC about six months too late after Amanda Nunes called it a career. That was the only real fight to make. But here we are. Both women are grappling specialists, and if neither can assert their dominance on the mat, this one could turn into a La Liga soccer scrap on the feet. Have the bowls packed and the doobies rolled because this one has the potential to turn into a smoke break real quick.   

Kayla Harrison is a monster. She is Ronda Rousey, the unabridged version. Yo! Hit that Beach Boys “Help Me, Rhonda!” Harrison is a modern reimagining of Ronda Rousey. Striking-wise, neither Judo expert could strike a match. They couldn’t strike if they were Teamsters. Kayla Harrison will look like Leo in Shutter Island when the time comes that she can’t get the fight to the mat. That was the case when she lost her only fight to store brand Ketlen Vieira, Larissa Pacheco. Pacheco is Collasal Berry Crunch Ketlen Vieira. That bagged cereal Ketlen. I watched that fight; Harrison struggled to get Pacheco to the mat, didn’t have much to offer on the feet, and subsequently lost a five-round decision.   

But Kayla ain’t coming here to throw hands. This lady will trip you like Autumn. Flip you like burgers. She’s an unofficial member of the Flipmode Squad. She’ll have you flipping like a Simone Biles floor routine. Have you standing on your head like a goalie with forty saves. Harrison will flip the world upside down and make it rain upward. Once she gets you to the mat, Harrison is a Grinder like Pharrell and Clipse. She’ll pack you like suitcases and throw you in the trunk. That’s that Trunk Muzik. When the body in the trunk is thumping like a pair of 12s. Harrison is a two-way finisher on the mat. She can duff you out with strikes or take your arm and mount it over her mantle. She is 17-1 for her career with six TKO/KOs and seven subs and is coming in off a dominant UFC debut against Holly Holm. 

The key stat for Ketlen Vieira is a noinety-two percent career takedown defense. She has only been taken down twice in her eleven-fight UFC career. She is a Jiu-Jitsu specialist with only one submission in the UFC. Vieira is painfully position over submission. She starts growing moss when she gets the top position – starts growing algae like the surface of a lake. Control above everything; that’s Ketlen’s style. She's the personification of the prevent defense. Which noine outta ten times only prevents you from winning. She’s that umbrella defense with 1:30 on the clock and a four-point lead. Life’s a risk, carnal, but Vieira won’t even play the board game.  

On the feet, she’s all singles, like 90s bands. She’s a one-punch striker who has never thrown a combination. This fight could easily turn into a wrestling/grappling stalemate and eventually be decided on the feet. If that’s the case, grab the Mr. Nice Guys card. “When life gets hard, pick up that card with the smiley face.” I would give Vieira a slight advantage on the feet. She can jab and keep her distance, which is more than Kayla can do. Vieira is 14-3 for her career with two TKO/KOs and four subs. And all but one of those finishes came outside of the Octagon.   

Harrison is the (-800) favorite, and Vieira is the (+525) live-ass dog. Live-ass dog? She might be the biggest live-ass dog in WKO history. I think this fight is a toss-up. Maybe Harrison will make an ass out of me. But if she can’t get Vieira to the mat and finish her with the quickness, this will turn into a drawn-out, ugly fight in the clinch with some tepid exchanges on the feet. The last thing I ever thought I would do was bet on a Ketlen Vieira fight. But here we are. And your boy has a crispy Lincoln with Vieira’s name on it. The play for Vieira is a decision. Stuffing takedowns and doing just enough to win on points. Kayla is a bigger finishing threat, but I’d play her for a decision. But just because I’ll be dropping a little scratch on Vieira doesn’t mean I’m picking her. Kayla Harrison via decision. On wax.   

Props

Harrison: TKO/KO (+240) Sub (+300) Dec (+100)  

Vieira: TKO/KO (+3500) Sub (+2500) Dec (+900)

Winner: Kayla Harrison | Method: Decision

Kevin Holland (-145) vs. Roman Dolidze (+130)

Holland: DK: $8.3k | Dolidze: DK:$7.9k

Dancing Bear is back. Roman Dolidze looks like he had chest hair in fourth grade. Dolidze cut himself shaving before school pictures that year. His friends’ parents used to let him babysit his homies after school. He’s always been a man amongst boys. The global birthrate skyrockets noine months after every Roman Dolidze fight. Like Genghis Khan, noinety percent of the global population is Dolidze’s bloodline. Like Nas only needs one mic, Dolidze only needs one night, one night. Roman Dolidze would submit most people reading this at the final instructions in the center of the Octagon and KO them at the glove touch. But Kevin Holland ain’t most people reading this, and I’m sure he’ll have something to say to try to get Roman Dolidze to crack a smile.  

Before there was Meek and Diddy, there was Hermansson and Dolidze. Roman was a trailblazer when it comes to violating people. If this were the 90s, Dolidze would be signed to Violator Records. When this guy gets hold of you, he bends you like corners – leaves you bent like elbows. He isn’t the slickest, most technical striker, but when Dolidze lands, people turn malleable like Play-Doh. He leaves impressions in you like orthodontists. You turn in a human Tempur-Pedic – human memory foam. Dolidze turns you into a square on the Hollywood Blvd. Walk of Fame with his fist impressions in you. Roman has always reminded me of an Andrei Arlovski MGM Grand pool party love child. Their auras are very similar. I’m talking Arlovski when he was the World Champion and rocking the fang mouthpiece. Nobody was scarier than Arlovski when he was the champ. 

Dolidze will have a big advantage on the mat if he decides to commit to his wrestling/grappling. But that’s rare. Dolidze is afraid of commitment. He tends to stand and bang unless an obvious takedown opportunity arises. But Holland rocks a fifty-four percent takedown defense, so the opportunities should be plentiful. The only fighter with worse takedown defense in the division is Dolidze at thirty-three percent. Woof! Dolidze has heavy ground and pound, and even though he only has three career subs, he is more than capable of submitting Kevin Holland, who has been submitted three times. Dolidze is 13-3 for his career, with seven TKO/KOs to go with his three subs. Dolidze only averages three SLpM compared to Holland’s just under four and a half. But Dolidze landed a career-high one-hunnid strikes in his last fight against Anthony Smith.  

Kevin Holland will have a five-inch reach advantage against Dolidze. He will have to use every inch of it to beat him. Holland has grappling hooks for hands. His hands are like the number pie; they just go on forever. 3.142365728... When he was a kid, Holland could get balls out of trees without climbing them. But the problem is, he swings like Spider-Man into the pocket. He’ll rush like Saquon Barkley into the pocket. He doesn’t always use his reach well. Holland’s major malfunction is that he over-pursues on the feet. He often shoots hands past his target and leaves his hips wide open for takedowns. That was the downfall of his first stint in the middleweight division.   

His downfall in the welterweight division was Wonderboy. Against Wonderboy, Holland quit on the stool like he was constipated. Holland hasn’t been the same since that fight. The good news is that going from Wonderboy’s hand speed to Dolidze’s is like going from facing Nolan Ryan to facing Bababooey. Maybe Holland needs a Jiu-Jitsu arc. Maybe they need to kill off Striking Holland like House of Cards did Kevin Spacey. His guard has the potential to be lethal, but Holland often just gets lazy from his back. I say that knowing Holland is coming in off an armbar victory over Michal Oleksiejczuk. Maybe Holland needs to do the unexpected and take advantage of a thirty-three percent takedown deficiency.   

Holland will be the (-150) favorite, and Dolidze will be the (+130) live-ass dog. This will be a battle of damage vs. volume on the feet. Holland will likely win the striking numbers, but Dolidze’s punches are more impactful. This one will likely come down to the judges' interpretations. Whoever decides to wrestle first will have an advantage from the top position. This is a coin flip. The play for both fighters is a decision. I would be surprised if one of these guys finished the other. I would expect moderate striking stats from each, as they will likely show each other a lot of respect on the feet. Man, I just don’t have much faith in Kevin Holland anymore. I rarely pick against him. But I’m going to ride with the dog. Roman Dolidze via decision. Wax on, wax off.  

Props

Holland: TKO/KO (800) Sub (+1400) Dec (+200)  

Dolidze: TKO/KO (+350) Sub (+700) Dec (+175)

Winner: Roman Dolidze | Method: Decision

Prelims

$7k Value Menu

Wonderboy ($7.4): Spoiler alert: Expect to see Wonderboy’s name again with the Twenty Twen-Twens.  If Joaquin Buckley can’t get Wonderboy to the mat, it’s curtains. Wonderboy was more than holding his own against Shavkat Rakhmonov in his most recent bout. That was until he broke his foot and became a sitting duck for Rakhmonov’s takedowns. Wonderboy’s lateral movement and hand/feets speed are still nukin’ futs for a forty-one-year-old man. I see Wonderboy’s speed causing Buckley all kinds of problems on the feet. And Buckley is far from Khamzat when it comes to takedowns. His go-to move is the Bobby Boucher football spear. You won’t catch him chain wrastlin’, turning singles into doubles and all that. He has one straight shot to get Wonderboy to the mat. Check it: In the last three fights in which Wonderboy faced a fellow striker, he was well over the one-hunnid strikes mark. If he defends one or two takedowns, this will turn into a kickboxing match - Wonderboy’s specialty.   

Marina Rodriguez ($7.6k): This lady was on the verge of a title shot on multiple occasions but, ultimately, she was forsaken by her takedown defense. M-Rod will be in a gatekeeper role against the mini-Amanda Nunes Iasmin Lucindo. On the feet, M-Rod wins this fight and racks up moderate (60-80) significant strikes on the way to a decision dub. On the mat, she gets dominated. But I’m not sure Lucindo will be able to consistently get M-Rod to the mat for fifteen minutes. Also, M-Rod has been in the cage with the most savage women in the game. She won some and lost some, but she’s still standing here screaming F**k the Free World! If M-Rod can scramble to her feet and keep the fight standing, I like her chances of scoring the upset and scoring some solid striking stats along the way. That’s a big if, though.   

OSP ($7k): I never thought I’d be typing this. One reason is because I thought OSP was done - retired. Then he came out of nowhere and beat Kennedy Nzechukwu. Let’s be clear: This is a looooong shot, an all-or-nothing pick. And it’s mostly based on my lack of confidence in OSP’s opponent, Ryan Spann, who turns into Ryan Spam if he can’t score a finish in the opening five minutes. If OSP can make it out of the first round, he can finish Spam on the feet or, at the least, eke out a decision. Spam is almost worthless after the first round. I know I know; the first rule of the WKO is never ever ever bet on OSP. He’s a schitzo fighter. But guess what. So is Ryan Spam. This is Harvey Dent vs. Harvey Dent. A coin flip to determine which version of each fighter will show up will determine this fight. But OSP’s upside is a finish after the first round. His downside is getting finished in the first round.   

$6k Bathroom Clearance Rack

Khalil Rountree ($6.6k): Don’t sleep on Tong Po. I think he’ll have a little somethin’-somethin’ for Alex Periera. I also think the odds are a little off. Not by much, but still off. Rountree has deceptively quick hands, and most importantly, he’s a southpaw. Jamahal Hill never got going against Pereira. I don’t think that will be the case with Rountree. The lead hand will be the key for Rountree and defending calf kicks. If the version of Tong Po, who showed up for those twenty-five seconds in the second round of the Roberson fight shows up, Po might fook around and shock the world. As a dog or Fantasy option, Rountree will be an all-or-nothing pick, aka a gamble. But, after all, isn’t that what the fook we’re here for? 

Twenty-Twen-Twen Sleepers

Wonderboy (+170): Speed kills. And Wonderboy still has plenty. His in/out darting and lateral movement will have Buckley chasing him around the cage and running into nasty straight punches. Wonderboy’s punches will fit perfectly between Buckley’s wide, looping punches. Of course, that won’t matter if Wonderboy can’t stay on his feet. Buckley is a power wrestler. He has football tackles in the open field. But other than that, he’s far from a takedown specialist. I think Wonderboy can run away with this fight on the feet if he can keep it standing.  

Marina Rodriguez (+150): This is a changing of the guard fight. An OG vs. a young buck. The experience factor will be heavily in M-Rod's corner. This will be the highest level of competition Iasmin Lucindo has ever faced. On the feet, this will be much like Wonderboy vs. Buckley. Marina has the speed and straight punches to beat Lucindo’s wide, arcing punches. But, again, that won’t matter if Marina can’t stay upright. That has been the bane of her MMA existence. She rocks a sixty-five percent career takedown percentage, and it will have to be better than that to beat Lucindo. But if Marina can stay on her bike, skirting along the outside, she can piece up Lucindo with crispy two to three-punch combinations.   

Underdog Parlay Wonderboy (+165) & Marina Rodriguez (+170): An Andy Jack on a two-fight dog parlay will return $132.  

Roman Dolidze (+130): I have lost a ton of confidence in Kevin Holland. This fight will be a nip/tuck close scrap. Holland will have the length and speed advantage, but Dolidze will have the power advantage. There’s also a chance Dolidze can get Holland to the mat and chip away with heavy ground and pound. Dolidze also has filthy submissions that we don’t get to see too often. Never forget the Deliverance ass whoopin’ he administered to Jack Hermansson. And Holland’s lack of takedown defense led him to drop to welterweight for a brief stint.   

Pick ‘Em

Wonderboy (+170) vs. Joaquin Buckley (-210)  

Winner: Wonderboy 

Method: Decision 

Marina Rodriguez (+150) vs. Iasmin Lucindo (-175)  

Winner: Marina Rodriguez 

Method: Decision 

Cesar Almeida (-400) vs. Ihor Potieria (+310) 

Winner: Cesar Almeida 

Method: TKO Rd.2 

Austin Hubbard (+140) vs. Alexander Hernandez (-175) 

Winner: Alexander Hernandez 

Method: Decision 

Ryan Spann (-275) vs. OSP (+220) 

Winner: OSP 

Method: TKO Rd.3 

Carla Esparza (+150) vs. Tecia Pennington (-180) 

Winner: Tecia Pennington 

Method: Decision 

Court McGee (+170) vs. Tim Means (-200) 

Winner: Tim Means 

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.