UFC on ESPN 51 Picks - Vicente Luque vs Rafael dos Anjos Prediction

Rafael dos Anjos vs Vicente Luque

UFC: Saturday, August 12th at 7:00 PM ET

Betting Odds: -- Rafael dos Anjos +100 / Vicente Luque -120 Click Here for the Latest Odds

Where to Watch: ESPN Stream unmatched UFC coverage on ESPN+. Sign up now!

Vicente Luque and Rafael dos Anjos face off in a welterweight battle in the main event of UFC on ESPN 51 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Victor Luque vs Rafael dos Anjos Odds

Rafael dos Anjos is the slight favorite sitting at -120 while Vicente Luque is the underdog sitting at +100. The total rounds sits at 4.5 goals with the over paying out at +114.

Vicente Luque Betting Preview

Vicente Luque comes into this fight with a 21-9-1 record but he has really struggled heading into this fight. Each of his two fights have been losses and he has looked pretty bad in each of the fights. In Luque’s last fight against Geoff Neal he took 127 significant strikes and it was in the third round that was knocked out by punches. Luque is averaging 5.49 significant strikes per minute while absorbing 5.51 significant strikes per minute. He is averaging 0.51 takedowns every 15 minutes and he is successful on 50 percent of his takedown attempts. He also stops 61 percent of his opponents takedown attempts.

Rafael dos Anjos Betting Preview

Rafael dos Anjos might be 38 years old, but he is still a fighter that has a ton of confidence in what he can do inside the octagon. He comes into this fight with a 32-14 record overall and he has won three of his last four fights. Dos Anjos' last fight came against Bryan Barberena and it was a little over halfway through the second round that he locked in a rear naked choke and that led to the victory. Dos Anjos is averaging 3.56 significant strikes per minute while absorbing 3.21 significant strikes per minute. He wants to get the fight to the ground and is averaging 2.05 takedowns every 15 minutes. He is only successful on 35 percent of his takedown attempts but he stops 59 percent of his opponents takedown attempts.

Shane’s Free Pick

This fight is all going to come down to how well Luque is able to defend against the takedown. Dos Anjos is an elite wrestler, but Luque also stops 61 percent of his opponents takedown attempts. Luque is durable fighter and he’s going to find a way to keep this one on the feet. On the feet he’s going to be able to dominate the fight, and that will be the difference as he’s going to be able to get the job done. Back Luque on the money line.