The UFC is spoiling us this weekend. We have a huge PPV with three mega fights and two of them for titles at UFC 273 in Las Vegas. There's good leverage on the underdogs in those bouts, as those guys would be favored against most anyone else. That really unlocks unique builds this week for our UFC DFS lineups on DraftKings. Let's jump in! 

 


 

Playbook:

Main Event
Fighter(s)PriceOpponentRiskOdds
Alexander Volkanovski vs Chan Sung Jung9500/6700-Stackability: Moderate-720/ +500
This should be a pretty fun main event on a great night of fights. Volk is one of the most complete fighters in MMA right now. You're going to struggle to beat him anywhere. That said, Zombie is always game and sneaky dangerous. He's a power puncher with a few nice BJJ tricks. The line is probably right but that doesn't mean Zombie is drawing dead. We've seen Volk weather storms against the elite of the division but that doesn't mean he's invincible. It's a good stack and Volk always scores well.
     
Expensive
Fighter(s)PriceOpponentRiskOdds
Petr Yan9300Aljamain SterlingSomewhat-Safe-435
Yan is likely the chalk and for good reason. He's a savage. Once he gets an opponent's timing he dismantles them. He showed patience in their first fight and turned up the heat as Aljo tired. Then the illegal knee came as Aljo was floundering. It's hard to expect anything else in the rematch, hopefully minus the knee.
Khamzat Chimaev9400Gilbert BurnsSomewhat-Safe-490
The most exciting prospect since Khabib gets a legitimate test here. Burns is a title challenger and down to fight anyone. Khamzat is just a specimen. He has elite wrestling, is stronger than anyone at 170, and has been drilling his striking relentlessly. It's a huge price tag for the less experienced man, though.
Ian Garry9200Darian WeeksModerate-365
I'm not particularly keen on Garry at this price. He's got an upright stance and doesn't move his head well. That he was able to clear the cobwebs after being hurt and win by KO in his debut is a double-edged sword. You don't get away with that consistently in the UFC. He's young and improving, though. Weeks is a handpicked opponent, too.
Julio Arce9000Daniel SantosModerate-180
Arce is the much more polished striker. He should piece up Santos. Arce did miss weight in his first fight down at 135. That is a minor concern.
     
Mid-Range
Fighter(s)PriceOpponentRiskOdds
Mike Malott8800Mickey GallModerate-180
This is less about Malott and more about Gall. Mickey is a sitting duck on the feet and doesn't have much cardio. If you keep him off your back he's pretty controllable.
Anthony Hernandez8700Josh FremdSomewhat-Risky-180
It's hard to love Fluffy as a big favorite. His performance has been all over the map. He's probably the right pick but leaves openings. His main path to fantasy scoring is an effectively scrappy submission game.
Vinc Pichel8400Mark MadsenSomewhat-Risky-120
Vinc tends to take suspect fighters and expose them. Madsen's striking is sketchy and he's had endurance issues. Both spots Pichel can exploit.
Raquel Pennington8900Aspen LaddSomewhat-Risky-170
Rockies probably does what she does here. Cage control and savvy carry here against non-elite competitors but rarely scores well.
Mackenzie Dern8200Tecia TorresSomewhat-Risky-120
Dern is as dangerous as they come in women's BJJ. Her striking lags far behind, however. She doesn't wrestle particularly well either, leaving her BJJ locked away often.
Tecia Torres8000Mackenzie DernRisky+100
Torres is a sparkplug, with quickness and a taekwondo style. If she avoids grappling she can probably cruise.
     
Pay-Downs
Fighter(s)PriceOpponentRiskOdds
Mark Madsen7800Vinc PichelSomewhat-Risky+100
Madsen is always an intriguing underdog for the potential wrestling volume. It's not encouraging that he abandoned it in his last fight with Clay Guida. Pichel is probably a better wrestler than Guida. He has been taken down in spots, though.
Gilbert Burns6800Khamzat ChimaevRisky+360
Credit to Burns for taking the fight no one wants. He's an interesting pay down as a very dangerous fighter. He's got big power and elite BJJ. Whether he can defend enough wrestling to deploy either will be fun to see.
Darian Weeks7000Ian GarryRisky+280
We were let down by Weeks in his short notice debut. A wrestler should dominate Bryan Barbarena. It's possible that Weeks looks much different with a full camp. Irish prospects don't particularly wrestle well either.
Aljamain Sterling6900Petr YanRisky+330
Aljo has two paths. One, find a submission. Always possible but Yan is solid there. Two, he has to find a balance in out-pacing Yan while not gassing and staying safe. Very tough to do.
Mickey Gall7400Mike MalottRisky+160
Gall, for all his flaws, is a gamer. He will take a beating to try to win. His only reliable path is via rear naked choke, however.
Josh Fremd7500Anthony HernandezRisky+155
We don't know much about Fremd at this level. Hernandez is a total wildcard and on the right night he loses to a big underdog.
Aspen Ladd7300Raquel PenningtonRisky+150
Ladd has looked lost for some time. Maybe she rediscovers the edge that made us think she was a contender. It is women's MMA so anything is possible.

 

Example Lineup:
 


 

Live Dogs: 

Burns, Jung, Sterling, Weeks, Hansen, Gall, Madsen 

 

Stats & Picks: 

   
Alexander VolkanovskivsChan Sung Jung
$9,500DFS Salary$6,700
Record: 23-1-0RecordRecord: 17-6-0
11Knockouts6
3Subs8
-720Vegas Odds+500
7/10Lineup Pool4/10
   
Aljamain SterlingvsPetr Yan
$6,900DFS Salary$9,300
Record: 20-3-0RecordRecord: 16-2-0
2Knockouts7
8Subs1
+330Vegas Odds-435
3/10Lineup Pool7/10
   
Gilbert BurnsvsKhamzat Chimaev
$6,800DFS Salary$9,400
Record: 20-4-0RecordRecord: 10-0-0
6Knockouts6
8Subs4
+360Vegas Odds-490
4/10Lineup Pool5/10
   
Mackenzie DernvsTecia Torres
$8,200DFS Salary$8,000
Record: 11-2-0RecordRecord: 13-5-0
0Knockouts1
7Subs1
-120Vegas Odds+100
4/10Lineup Pool4/10
   
Vinc PichelvsMark Madsen
$8,400DFS Salary$7,800
Record: 14-2-0RecordRecord: 11-0-0
8Knockouts3
0Subs3
-120Vegas Odds+100
4/10Lineup Pool24/10
 0 
Ian GarryvsDarian Weeks
$9,200DFS Salary$7,000
Record: 8-0-0RecordRecord: 5-1-0
5Knockouts4
1Subs1
-365Vegas Odds+280
4/10Lineup Pool4/10
   
Anthony HernandezvsJosh Fremd
$8,700DFS Salary$7,500
Record: 8-2-0 (1 NC)RecordRecord: 9-2-0
1Knockouts7
6Subs1
-180Vegas Odds+155
5/10Lineup Pool3/10
   
Aspen LaddvsRaquel Pennington
$7,300DFS Salary$8,900
Record: 9-2-0RecordRecord: 13-9-0
6Knockouts1
1Subs4
+150Vegas Odds-170
4/10Lineup Pool4/10
   
Mickey GallvsMike Malott
$7,400DFS Salary$8,800
Record: 7-4-0RecordRecord: 7-1-1
0Knockouts3
6Subs4
+160Vegas Odds-180
3/10Lineup Pool5/10
   
Aleksei OleinikvsJared Vanderaa
$8,100DFS Salary$8,100
Record: 59-16-1RecordRecord: 12-7-0
8Knockouts7
46Subs3
-110Vegas Odds-110
4/10Lineup Pool4/10
   
Piera RodriguezvsKay Hansen
$8,300DFS Salary$7,900
Record: 7-0-0RecordRecord: 7-5-0
5Knockouts2
0Subs4
-120Vegas Odds+100
4/10Lineup Pool4/10
   
Julio ArcevsDaniel Santos
$9,000DFS Salary$7,200
Record: 17-5-0RecordRecord: 10-1-0
5Knockouts4
5Subs1
-180Vegas Odds+155
5/10Lineup Pool3/10
   
#N/Avs#N/A
#N/ADFS Salary#N/A
 Record 
#N/AKnockouts#N/A
 Subs 
#N/AVegas Odds#N/A
2/10Lineup Pool6/10

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