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Bantamweights

Batgerel Danaa (12-3, 3-2 UFC) vs. Kyung Ho Kang (17-9, 6-3 UFC)

ODDS: Danaa (-150), Kang (+130)

Expect a banger between these two typically aggressive bantamweights. It is good to see Kang back in the cage less than seven months after his November loss to Rani Yahya, which counts as a relatively quick turnaround for “Mr. Perfect,” whose UFC career has been marred by long stretches of inactivity. That has dampened Kang’s momentum despite the fact that he has mostly been successful in his trips to the Octagon and reliably puts on exciting performances. That latter point is not always to Kang’s advantage, however. His constant aggression does not seem to be part of any greater gameplan, leading him into nip-tuck affairs where he can often give back on defense whatever he gains on offense. That makes for a fun pairing against Danaa, who has had a surprisingly strong run in the UFC thus far. Not much was expected of Mongolia’s “Storm” upon his 2019 debut, but after dropping a decision to Heili Alateng in that fight, Danaa found success by focusing on aggression and carving out a niche as an exciting knockout artist. Danaa’s three-fight winning streak came to an end against Chris Gutierrez in March, but he should find a more forgiving matchup against an opponent as aggressive as Kang. Even then, this figures to be yet another close fight involving Kang, whose wrestling should lead him to success against an opponent who has not had his takedown defense tested much in recent years. As always, Kang figures to eat some hard offense on his way to trying to control the fight. Given his historical durability, the pick is Kang via decision in what should be a close and entertaining affair.

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