The Garden State, New Jersey, hosts UFC 316 this Saturday, June 7, at the Prudential Center in Newark. A Batamwegiht Championship duo of fights headlines the card as men’s king Merab “The Machine” Dvalishvili defends his title against No. 1 “Suga” Sean O’Malley. Two-time women’s champion Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Pena battles Kayla Harrison in the co-main event.

The Early Prelims start at 6:00 p.m. ET, with the Prelims beginning at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN/ ESPN+. The Main Card airs live on ESPN+ PPV at 10:00 p.m. ET. Check out my favorite fighters to add to your daily fantasy lineup for Saturday’s UFC 316: Dvalishvili vs. O’Malley 2.

Set your DraftKings fantasy MMA lineups here: UFC $600K UFC 316 Special [$200K to 1st]

Studs

Joe Pyfer ($9,200)

The pride of Philadelphia will be fighting very close to home as Newark is less than two hours away from the city of brotherly love. Pyfer suffered an illness when initially slated to face Kelvin Gastelum in Mexico. But now Pyfer is back healthy and is ready to go. This is an excellent matchup for Pyfer against a tough veteran in Kelvin Gastelum.

Pyfer has a warrior mentality in the cage, as 12 of his 13 professional wins have come by finish. He doesn’t want to win decisions; Pyfer intends to finish his opponent in each fight. Even though Gastelum has more big fight experience, his best days seem to be behind him, while Pyfer appears to be in his prime.

He has been very consistent, totaling 96-plus fantasy points in four of his last five bouts. He is coming off a 103-point performance against Marc-Andre Barriault. Pyfer is big for the middleweight division and has a four-inch edge in height (6’2″ vs. 5’9″) and standing reach (75″ vs. 71″). If Pyfer comes out as his usual aggressive self, he will likely pick up a finish, resulting in another big fantasy showing.

Patchy Mix ($8,500)

Patchy “No Love” Mix enters the UFC as a decorated champion, winning two bantamweight titles in Bellator. He is facing No. 10 Mario Bautista in his UFC debut. Although he has won seven straight fights, Mix has displayed supreme confidence during fight week, stating that Bautista isn’t on his level.

Throughout the years, a few Bellator fighters have joined the UFC, most famously Ben Askren, Michael Chandler, and Eddie Alvarez. Alvarez is the lone fighter to win a Bellator and UFC title. At 31, Mix has the best opportunity to join “The Underground King” in the history books. But before he can challenge for a title, he must get past Bautista, who is always a challenging and game opponent.

On paper, Mix matches up well against Bautista. Mix is taller by two inches (5’11” vs. 5’9″) and has a 2.5-inch reach advantage (71.5″ vs. 69″). Mix is a well-rounded fighter, but his best skill might be his submission ability. He has 13 submissions in his career, of his 20 victories.

Even though adding Mix to your lineup could be a little risky since he doesn’t have experience in the UFC Octagon, he has a ton of upside at $8,500. If Mix lives up to his word, his price in fantasy lineups will quickly rise. Mix’s pace and activity will likely wear Bautista down as he does a great job of mixing in striking with wrestling.

Value Play

Sean O’Malley ($7,200)

Even though he scored 16 fantasy points en route to a loss against Dvalishvili in his previous fight, it is still an incredible value play getting O’Malley this cheap. Dvalishvili is an elite champion, but O’Malley has proved he can be as well on his best night.

In O’Malley’s two fights before his last defeat, he totaled 91 and 122 fantasy points. After a disappointing performance at UFC 306, his price went from $8,500 to $7,200. That is too big of a price drop, especially since he only had one off night. He has recorded 91-plus points in six of his previous 10 bouts. In their first fight, O’Malley said he wasn’t 100 percent healthy and fought through a torn labrum. With Suga looking like his usual self, an upset and a big outing could be incoming on Saturday.

O’Malley landed 47 of 89 significant strikes against Dvalishvili in their first fight. “Suga” must be more active, throwing more combinations to get a different result this time. O’Malley has the tools to defeat Dvalishvili as he is five inches taller and has a larger reach. He also has a 61 percent defensive takedown rate, which is very good. Dvalishvili only landed six of 15 takedown attempts at UFC 306. If O’Malley wants revenge, he must dictate the fight’s pace and keep Dvalishvili at range.

Set your DraftKings fantasy MMA lineups here: UFC $600K UFC 316 Special [$200K to 1st]