“The UFC is back on PPV this week, and while UFC 287 isn’t their strongest offering ever, it’s a solid enough card with a few gems for fans. The main event features the quadrilogy bout between Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira, with just as many questions hanging over it as their first three meetings. The co-main between Gilbert Burns and Jorge Masvidal isn’t nearly so compelling, but bouts for Adrian Yanez, Kevin Holland, and Raul Rosas Jr. should make for a strong event.” – Zane Simon 04.05.23
For those looking to dive deeper into the extensive undercard, check out the Prelims Vivi released today on the Bloody Elbow Podcast Network, and right here on substack it is found in the ‘MMA Vivisection Shows Tab’ at the top of the homepage.
The UFC 287 prelims have a couple notable highlights… much like the main card of this week’s UFC 287 PPV event, the prelims are…fine, not great. A middleweight bout between Kelvin Gastelum and Chris Curtis is set for the feature prelim slot and looks like a strong crossroads bout for both men, but might also just be a slow-simmering staring match. Michelle Waterson and Gerald Meerschaert hope to slam the gates on upstart prospects, while Karl Williams looks to keep his train rolling.
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The MMA Vivisection is brought to you by ‘The Fine Art of Violence’, a collection of art and essays recapping the year in MMA by Chris Rini, featuring the most talented artists and writers in Mixed Martial Arts. The book is available in both hard copy and digital formats at chrisrini.com.
Here’s a look at the UFC 287 fight card, as it stood at the time of recording:
ESPN/ESPN+ PPV CARD | SAT. APR. 8 — 10/7PM ETPT
13. 185lbs: Alex Pereira (7-1) vs. Israel Adesanya (23-2) — Picks: Both, Pereira | At 05:32, Odds 24:16
12. 170lbs: Gilbert Burns (21-5) vs. Jorge Masvidal (35-16) — Picks: Both, Burns | At 25:45, Odds 36:26
11. 135lbs: Rob Font (19-6) vs. Adrian Yanez (16-3) — Picks: Both, Yanez | At 37:24, Odds 50:19
10. 170lbs: Kevin Holland (23-9) vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio (29-6) — Picks: Both, Holland | At 51:37, Odds 1:00:07
9. 135lbs: Raul Rosas Jr. (7-0) vs. Christian Rodriguez (8-1) — Picks: Both, Rosas | At 1:00:47, Odds 1:01:58
ESPN/ESPN+ FEATURED PRELIMS | 8/5PM ETPT
Kelvin Gastelum (17-8) vs. Chris Curtis (30-9) — Picks: Both, Curtis
Michelle Waterson-Gomez (18-10) vs. Luana Pinheiro — Picks: Both, Waterson-Gomez
Gerald Meerschaert (35-15) vs. Joseph Pyfer (10-2) — Picks: Both, Meerschaert
Karl Williams (8-1) vs. Chase Sherman (16-11) — Picks: Both, Williams
UFC FIGHTPASS EARLY PRELIMS | 6/3PM ETPT
Cynthia Calvillo (9-5) vs. Lupita Godinez (8-3) — Picks: Both, Godinez
Trey Ogden (16-5) vs. Ignacio Bahamondes (13-4) — Picks: Both, Bahamondes
Steve Garcia (13-5) vs. Shayilan Nuerdanbieke (39-10) — Picks: Both, Nuerdanbieke
Sam Hughes (7-5) vs. Jaqueline Amorim (6-0) — Picks: Both, Hughes
For those of you following the picks made on the show, we started tracking them with the July 13th, 2020 Vivisection shows for UFC Fight Island 1: ‘Kattar vs. Ige’. So far, here are the overall standings:
For our last event, UFC San Antonio FN: ‘Vera vs. Sandhagen’:
Zane picked 5/10 for 50% and Connor also picked 5/10 for 50%
Overall stats from UFC Fight Island 1 in July, 2020, through UFC San Antonio in Mar., 2023:
Zane went 876/1367 for 64% and Connor went 835/1367 for 61%
2023 Stats:
Zane is 76/125 for 60.8% and Connor is 71/125 for 56.8%
2022 Stats:
Zane went 331/505 for 66% and Connor went 312/505 for 62%
2021 Stats:
Zane went 305/493 for 62% and Connor went 295/493 for 60%
July-Dec 2020 Stats:
Zane went 164/244 for 67% and Connor went 157/244 for 64%
Vivi Stats Reference Spreadsheets
Check out the MMA Vivi Facebook Page, be sure to “Like”, Follow, Share — At: https://www.facebook.com/TheMMAVivi.
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Loyal Vivi Follower ‘Call to Action’:
We need a loyal Vivi listener to volunteer your time for us...
The task we need accomplished, is for someone to —
Go to the Bloody Elbow Podcast YouTube Channel Vivisection Playlist
Scroll down to the UFC 251 Main Card show & the UFC 251 Prelims Show (from July, 2020)
Listen to each show, you can skip ahead every few minutes until you get before the odds were timestamped (timestamps are listed in the show descriptions)
Carefully listen for the guys’ picks for each bout, which they generally state just prior to reading the odds
Make a log of Zane’s picks, as well as Connor’s picks for each bout they discussed on the Main Card show AND the Prelims show
Be sure to note the name of the event as you go along
Then do the same for all of the following events from the beginning of 2020:
UFC 251, UFC Vegas 4: Poirier vs Hooker, UFC on ESPN: Blaydes vs Volkov, UFC Apex 1: Eye vs Calvillo, UFC 250, UFC on ESPN: Woodley vs Burns, UFC FN: Overeem vs. Harris, UFC FN: Smith vs Teixeira, UFC 249, UFC Brasilia (UFC on ESPN+ 28): Lee vs Oliveira, UFC 248, UFC Norfolk (aka UFC on ESPN+ 27): Benavidez vs Figueiredo, UFC Auckland (aka UFC on ESPN+ 26): Felder vs Hooker, UFC Rio Rancho (aka UFC on ESPN+ 25): Anderson vs Blachowicz 2, UFC 247, UFC Raleigh (aka UFC on ESPN+ 24): Blaydes vs Dos Santos, & UFC 246. (These are the events in 2020 we did not track picks on, which makes our stats tracking incomplete for that year, and all years since then)When completed, please forward your completed log to our BE Production Manager: June M. Williams at orijunels@gmail.com. She will gleefully input your data into the ‘Vivi Stats Spreadsheets’ for us
This project requires someone with integrity who will log the picks honestly and accurately, without bias towards either Zane or Connor.
You will be credited by name for your hard work in the first post which contains the updated spreadsheet files, and if you wish to receive one, we may even be able to wrangle you up a Bloody Elbow tee-shirt for your efforts!
If you are interested in volunteering for this project, please email June with any questions and let her know you are ready to undertake the task for us. Thanks for your consideration!
UFC 287: Pereira vs. Adesanya 2, Picks, Odds, & Analysis | The MMA Vivisection Main Card Show