MMA fans will hopefully be treated to the resumption of the career of one of the women’s flyweight class’ emerging talents on Saturday. Suarez v De La Rosa features the return of the betting favorite to the Octagon after almost four years.
Tatiana Suarez takes to the mat with sportsbooks strongly backing her staying undefeated in UFC bouts. For bettors, the action might be on how quickly she can get a favorable result.
Suarez v De La Rosa brings anticipated return
Just the fact that Suarez will appear in the ring on Saturday already makes her a winner. She’s battled multiple injuries through a process of almost four years to prepare for the moment. Before the prolonged absence began, she was a rising star in the UFC.
The winner of “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 20, Suarez has a 5-0 record in UFC events. UFC Vegas 70 main card action starts at 7 p.m. ET on Saturday, Feb. 25 from the UFC Apex. Fans can stream the action on ESPN+.
While this will be Suarez’s first bout in the flyweight class, sportsbooks aren’t shy about her chances. In fact, they expect her to dominate.
The lines on Suarez v De La Rosa
As of 3 p.m. ET on Wednesday, most major legal online North American sportsbooks have moneyline odds on this fight.
| Sportsbook | Suarez to win | De La Rosa to win |
|---|---|---|
| BetMGM | -800 | +550 |
| BetRivers/PlaySugarHouse | -770 | +500 |
| Caesars | -800 | +550 |
| DraftKings | -800 | +575 |
| FanDuel | -850 | +500 |
| PointsBet | -750 | +525 |
Handicapping Suarez v De La Rosa
Montana De La Rosa has the size advantage by two inches in terms of height and reach. De La Rosa is five years younger and has more fights under her belt. Regardless, all the indications are that Suarez is the superior combatant.
Suarez has a significant edge over De La Rosa in terms of wrestling ability. For example, Suarez executes on 62% of her takedown attempts and De La Rosa is successful at defending against such maneuvers just 63% of the time.
The only chance that De La Rosa seems to have in terms of pulling off this upset is landing enough significant punches to score points while also staying out of Suarez’s grasp. That’s a tall order. Hence, the moneyline is probably a market most bettors will stay away from.
If round and method of victory props are available on this match, those could bring some value. Suarez could be looking to re-establish herself with a strong showing and go for a submission early.
