How the public is betting Blagoy Ivanov vs. Augusto Sakai

UPDATE 11:01 pm: Augusto Sakai wins by split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28). Yes, that scorecard is correct. There were plenty of big punches from the big men, and a missed fence grab that should have seen a point deducted that was missed, but the scorecards will be the most controversial part here.

When Augusto Sakai fights Blagoy Ivanov tonight at UFC on ESPN 9, he’ll be doing so as the betting public has started to move against him. A fight that opened with Sakai as a -121 favorite has now pulled dead even, despite the additional betting and handle moving against Ivanov.

Ivanov is coming off a November 2019 split decision loss to Derrick Lewis at UFC 244. Sakai won his last fight with a September 2019 first round knockout win over Marcin Tybura.

Ivanov, aka “Baga” is 18-3 with one no contest, and the 18 wins are split evenly between KO/TKO, submissions, and decisions. He is averaging 3.56 significant strikes per fight while absorbing 4.44 in the UFC

Sakai is 14-1-1 as an MMA professional. and has won five straight fights, with four of the five via stoppage. 11 victories of his victories are by KO/TKO and three by decision, with his one loss coming on the scorecards. He lands 7.9 significant strikes per minute, while absorbing 11.17, meaning he’s trying to end this early.

Here are the betting splits at DraftKings Sportsbook for Blagoy Ivanov vs. Augusto Sakai at UFC on ESPN on May 30th:

Betting splits

Blagoy Ivanov: Opened at -106, now at -112 — 40% handle, 48% bets
Augusto Sakai: Opened at -121, now at -112 — 60% handle, 52% bets

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