Free bet #10 (Blaydes vs Volkov) June 20th
Newcomer Max Rohskopf is making his UFC debut on short notice against Austin Hubbard on June 20th. Hubbard makes his 4th UFC appearance Saturday and is in for another tough test depsite Rohskopf having no UFC experience. Stylistically speaking, Rohskopf presents a ton of problems here for Hubbard.
I have bet against Hubbard twice in the UFC. Lost with Prepolec and won a big play on Mark Madsen. Hubbard's best asset is his toughness. One of those fighters who doesn't really shine in any one particular area but cardio and grit goes a long way against lower/mid tier competition in MMA. Hubbard isn't necessarily a bad fighter but I still think he hasnt quite figured out who he is as a fighter yet. Dating back to 2018 I've noticed Hubbard has lost just about every 1st round he has fought in. He is a very slow starter and that is a bit of concern in this particular matchup.
Rohskopf is making his UFC debut on short notice. Replacing Joe Solecki who was orginally supposed to fight Hubbard. While it definitely is short notice I wouldn't exactly harp on it if you are against Rohskopf here. Rohskopf has been rumored to getting that UFC call for quite some time now. Even as recently as a few weeks ago (Against Daniel Rodriguez at 170 lbs). Rohskopf has said in multiple interviews that he hasn't taken a day off since the pandemic started. As a young fighter who is trying to get that call up to the big show it makes sense to stay ready, especially in the current situation we are in. A lot of fighters are dropping out for various reasons and UFC has been calling up a lot of new talent lately. Rohskopf is an accomplished D-1 wrestler who also has a purple belt in BJJ. Rohskopf has competed in numerous submission grappling bouts and I'd urge people not to underestimate him on the mat just because he is only a purple belt. If he gets in that front choke position you are in a ton of danger. While we haven't seen too much of his striking, I do think the little I have seen is a bit green and could improve.
The matchup- I think a large part of this fight will be played out on the ground and will have a lot of scrambles. Hubbard does have a wrestling background but I really don't see Rohskopf having trouble getting him down. I know Davi Ramos wasn't able to submit Hubbard but Ramos was looking for the KO in that fight. I believe Rohskopf gets to his bread and butter early on here. Rohskopf is super unorthodox with his submissions and can finish from a lot of positions. I can see Rohskopf taking the back and sinking in a RNC or hitting a D'arce choke early on. Madsen had a few opportunities to hit the choke against Hubbard but couldn't pull it off. Fun fact- Rohskopf has trained very closely with Mark Madsen in the past and is no stranger to Hubbard's game (another little wrinkle that could make a big difference here). I am pretty high on the grappling ability of Rohskopf and I just don't think Hubbard will be able to survive on the mat if Rohskopf can consistently ground Hubbard in first 2 rounds. The one PTV for Hubbard is if Rohskopf slows late. Rohskopf hasn't been in a 3rd round ever in his mma career. Hubbard on the other hand loves to close that gap later on in fights. I would be worried a tad if this fight gets to round 3. But again I don't believe we see that round 3.
Official pick- Rohskopf via submission (+200)
