What betting splits, DFS advice tell us about Zalal vs. Barrett at UFC Fight Night

It’s the opener of what will be back-to-back featherweight bouts at UFC Fight Night on ESPN+ this Saturday as Youssef Zalal is the replacement fighter and favorite, taking on promotion newcomer Peter Barrett live from Las Vegas.

Zalal is 9-2 in MMA and and 2-0 in the UFC, with a quick turnaround after his win over Jordan Griffin on June 27th in this same Apex arena. The 23-year-old from Englewood, Colorado has five submissions and two knockouts on his resume from his time in the indies, and has never been stopped early. In his two UFC bouts so far, he’s landed 90 significant strikes and six takedowns on his way to a pair of unanimous decision wins.

Barrett was originally scheduled to take on Steve Garcia in this bout, but Garcia withdrew two weeks ago. Barrett is 11-3 and got here via a win at Dana White’s Contender Series last August to earn a company contract. The 33-year-old from Plymouth, Massachusetts has nine career stoppage wins, seven of them by KO or TKO. In his Contender Series victory, he landed 109 significant strikes and four takedowns on his way to the decision win.

Here are the betting odds at DraftKings Sportsbook for Youssef Zalal vs. Peter Barrett at UFC Fight Night from Las Vegas on August 8th.

Betting splits

Youssef Zalal: -480 (71% of action, 36% of bets)
Peter Barrett: +340 (71% of action, 36% of bets)

Here are the DraftKings DFS salaries for Youssef Zalal vs. Peter Barrett tonight:

DraftKings DFS Salaries

Youssef Zalal: $9,300
Peter Barrett: $6,900

Zalal is for sure the play here, as his huge edge and ability to marginally score in his first two fights gives him the big margin. Barrett is -$1500 under par value while Zalal is just $1000 above it, so take “The Moroccan Devil” who should be looking for his first UFC stoppage tonight after seven of those in a row before arriving.

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