MMA DFS and Betting Breakdown: UFC Fight Night - Vettori vs. Dolidze 2

by Liam Heslin (LiamPicksFights) Last Updated 2025-03-15 18:55:29 Premium Content Part of the product MMA Premium

Liam Heslin (aka LiamPicksFights) is a massive combat sports fan with over a decade of experience competing in wrestling and grappling martial arts. For each UFC event, he produces the MMA DFS and sports betting breakdown for RotoGrinders.

The UFC is experiencing a post-pay-per-view hangover this weekend, as they roll out a 13-fight card with limited star power. Weigh-ins were a mess yesterday, and the bout order has been under construction all week. Let’s break down what we’ve got and see if we can find the winning recipe on a tricky card.

Note: All DFS salaries listed are from DraftKings & all odds quoted are from FanDuel Sportsbook.

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MMA DFS and Betting Breakdown: UFC Fight Night – Vettori vs. Dolidze 2

Da’Mon Blackshear ($9,200) vs. Cody Gibson ($7,000)

Fight Odds: -450 Blackshear vs. +330 Gibson
Weight Class: 135lb. (Bantamweight)

Da’Mon Blackshear (3-3-1 UFC) is looking to start building some momentum in the UFC bantamweight division after snapping a 2-fight skid with his last performance against Cody Stamann (7-7-1 UFC). In order to do so, he will have to halt the momentum of Cody Gibson (3-5 UFC; 2-2 second stint). “The Renegade” is coming off a pair of convincing wins against Chad Anheliger (2-3 UFC) and Brian “Boom” Kelleher (8-9 UFC). Blackshear is a talented fighter, but it is hard for me to support a fighter with a 3-6 career record to the decision being such a massive favorite against an opponent who has won 9 of the 15 decisions he has been a part of as a professional. This fight is favored to see the judges’ scorecards, and Gibson has the high water mark on significant strikes between the pair, with a career high of 164 significant strikes landed compared to just 90 for Blackshear.

Normally, my biggest concern for Cody Gibson entering a fight is his cardio can fall off a cliff at times because he fights with an energy-intensive style. In this fight, I think he will fare okay because his opponent is also a known gasser who has struggled in the 3rd round on more than one occasion inside the octagon. Mario Bautista flipped the script on Blackshear and took his back in the 3rd round, while Youssef Zalal battered him to a 10-8 round. Both men like to mix it up in the grappling phase, so we could see Gibson’s submission defense tested (5-4 to the SUB), as Blackshear is a dominant grappler while fresh (10-0 to the SUB), and the only time Gibson was finished in the UFC was via submission.

Da’Mon Blackshear is the more skilled and aesthetically pleasing fighter in this matchup, but Cody Gibson has the veteran savvy and well-rounded skill set needed to test Blackshear. Blackshear has never been a favorite of this size in the UFC, and Gibson hasn’t been a dog of this size since he fought Aljamain Sterling in his UFC debut (first stint) in February of 2014. I like Gibson to make this a dog fight and test the chin of Blackshear late or eke out a close decision.

Prediction: Cody Gibson defeats Da’Mon Blackshear via TKO/SDEC

Alexander Hernandez ($8,600) vs. Kurt Holobaugh ($7,600)