UFC 234 is set to take place less than two weeks from today at Rod Laver Arena at Melbourne, Australia. With the card fast coming up, there have sadly been some injuries and a couple of fights have been affected. Here is an update on the latest fights for UFC 234 in today’s MMA odds and ends.
Sam Alvey vs. Jimmy Crute, UFC 234
Because of an injury to Ryan Spann, Sam Alvey has stepped up on short notice and will take on rising prospect Jimmy Crute at a light heavyweight battle. News of the new matchup was initially shown by news.com.au.
Alvey (33-11, 1 NC) is 10-6 overall in the UFC while dividing his time between middleweight and light heavyweight. Since going around 205lbs, Alvey has gone 2-1 with wins over Gian Villante and Marcin Prachnio along with a sudden TKO loss to Antonio Rogerio Nogueira in his final fight. Alvey has settled into the role of gatekeeper, and despite the loss to Nogueira he remains a stern test for any up-and-coming in the light heavyweight division, making Crute the most ideal opponent. Be aware that Alvey was originally set to fight Gadzhimurad Antigulov in UFC Fight Night 145 before being pulled for this matchup.
Crute (9-0) looked great in his UFC debut as he submitted Paul Craig. He’s only 22-years older and has tons of assurance as an undefeated prospect. He’s the Aussie native and contains all of the pressure on him, but he hasn’t shown any symptoms of not being able to fulfill the hype. From all reports, Crute seems like he’s a few of the qualities of a future light heavyweight title contender.
In terms of the odds, Crute was a +110 underdog against Ryan Spann, but I’d have bet him those odds as I saw worth there. Against Alvey, I don’t see any reason why Crute would not be a big favorite. I would peg him about -300 in this struggle, and I visit him beating Alvey and continuing his march towards the top-15 rankings.
Callan Potter vs. Jalin Turner, UFC 234
Due to an injury to Alex Gorgees, Callan Potter will make his UFC debut on brief notice when he chooses on Jalin Turner in UFC 234. Nolan King broke the news.
Potter (16-7) is a local Aussie fighter and has been riding an eight-fight win streak before being filed by Marcin Held in ACB in his last struggle. He really has quite a bit of experience, having fought Jake Matthews earlier in his career. But he’s got no notable wins. Note that all Potter’s struggles have finished inside the space — win or lose.
Turner (7-4) was pumped out by Vicente Luque in his UFC debut. That was definitely going to be a challenging matchup for Turner, and I’m still not certain why the UFC set him up as a sacrificial lamb there. All seven of Turner’s career wins have come by stoppage, however he has been pumped out three times which is of course concerning.
Turner is the bigger name and had a full camp so I do expect him to be preferred, but I believe Potter has a pretty good chance here. However, this might be a struggle where the props might be the best bet, and the prop I’ll be on the lookout for is the fight ending inside the distance, as I fully expect someone to get knocked out.
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