Diego Sanchez vs Jake Matthews Pick, 9/26/2020 Predictions UFC 253 Odds

by Josh Schonwald - 9/25/2020

Diego Sanchez vs Jake Matthews

UFC 253

Flash Forum in Abu Dhabi, UAE

Saturday, September 26, 2020

Diego Sanchez will take on Jake Matthews at UFC 253 on Saturday, September 26, 2020. The opening moneyline has Sanchez coming in at +525 while Matthews is priced at -750.

Diego "Nightmare" Sanchez walks into the cage with a mark of 31-12-0. The 38-year-old tips the scales at 170 lbs and comes in at 5'10". The southpaw fighter stretches 72". Jake "The Celtic Kid" Matthews measures in at 5'11" and steps on the scale at 170 lbs. The orthodox fighter holds a career record of 16-4-0. The 26-year-old extends his reach 73". When talking about significant strikes, Diego Sanchez is landing 2.73 per min while Jake Matthews is landing 2.98 significant strikes per minute. Sanchez connects on 38% of the significant strikes he tries and Matthews connects on 46%. When it comes to defending in the cage, "Nightmare" absorbs 2.95 significant strikes per minute and "The Celtic Kid" allows 2.16. Sanchez also thwarts 56% of the significant strikes that are thrown his way while Matthews deflects 62% of the shots thrown in his direction.

Concerning grappling, Diego Sanchez is the lesser skilled grappler as he is averaging a takedown 1.57 times per 3 rds. Sanchez is taking his opponents to the canvas on 24% of his attempts and is stopping 46% of the takedowns his opponents try. Matthews is getting his opponent to the mat on 41% of the takedowns he tries and defending 68% of the attempts against him. When it comes to subbing the opposition, Sanchez is the more able fighter by going for 0.9 subs per 15 min while Matthews looks to get 0.7 subs per 3 rounds.

In his last bout, Diego Sanchez squared up with Michel Pereira and got a win for the night via disqualification due to an illegal knee in round 3. Pereira ended up landing 56 of 94 total strikes that he threw in that fight. Sanchez walked away from this fight having landed 29 of 68 total strikes. In terms of significant strikes, Pereira ended up landing 53 of 91, which means his percentage was 58%. He ended up landing 20 of 52 significant strikes to the head. On the other side of the Octagon, Sanchez landed 39% of his significant strikes by landing 25 of 64. Looking at the significant strike accuracy, he connected on 6 of 34 aimed at the head. 73% of the significant strikes connected on by Pereira and 92% of them connected on by Sanchez were done at distance.

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In the last Octagon appearance for Jake Matthews, he fought Emil Meek and wound up taking home the win via unanimous decision in round 3. Meek connected on 38% of his significant strikes at distance while Matthews ended up connecting on 78% of his significant strikes at distance. Matthews connected on 45% of the significant strikes he attempted by connecting on 33 of 73. He landed 32 of 70 significant strikes directed at the head. Meek ended up landing 50 of 118 significant strikes in that fight. Of those significant strikes, he connected on 35 of 95 directed at the head. In terms of the total strikes thrown in this fight, Meek landed 85 of 162 while Matthews was 71 of 112 total strikes.

Other bouts on the card to keep an eye on

Another fight to keep an eye on is when Juan Espino goes up against Jeff Hughes. Espino steps into the Octagon holding a record of 10-1-0. The 39-year-old is fighting at 250 lbs and measures in at 6'3". The orthodox fighter has a reach of 80". Hughes comes in at 6'2" and is weighing in at 250 lbs. The orthodox fighter comes into this fight with a record of 10-3-0. The 32-year-old extends his reach 77". In the grappling category, Juan Espino is averaging a takedown 8.33 times per 3 rds and Jeff Hughes takes his opponents down 0.78 times per 3 rounds. Regarding striking, Espino lands an average of 6.11 strikes/min and lands 95% of his attempted strikes. The other guy in this fight is Jeff Hughes, who tags his opponent on 51% of the strikes that he throws and connects on 4.34 per minute.

If you're going to be watching the fights, don't miss when Sijara Eubanks is set to enter the Octagon with Ketlen Vieira. Vieira walks into the cage with a mark of 10-1-0. The 29-year-old records a weight of 135 lbs and measures 5'8". The orthodox fighter extends her reach 68". Eubanks measures 5'4" and steps on the scale at 135 lbs. The orthodox fighter will be looking to add a win to her record of 7-4-0. The 35-year-old extends her reach 67". In terms of wrestling, Ketlen Vieira is able to deflect 92% of the takedowns her opponents go for and is taking her opponents to the canvas on 57% of her tries. Eubanks is taking her opponents to the mat on 48% of the attempts she tries and is able to thwart 61% of all takedown attempts. Concerning striking, Vieira is taking 3.82 strikes per minute while she is dealing 2.74 per min. Eubanks, in contrast, is taking 3.14 strikes/minute and is dealing 4.71 per minute.

Who will win tonight's UFC match against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take Jake Matthews (-750)

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Diego Sanchez vs Jake Matthews Pick, 9/26/2020 Predictions UFC 253 Odds

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