UFC 249: Francis Ngannou vs Jairzinho Rozenstruik Betting Odds and Prop Bets

Francis Ngannou takes on Jairzinho Rozenstruik during UFC 249 on Saturday night at the VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Florida.

Ngannou is looking to get another shot at the UFC title while Rozenstruik is out to prove that he belongs to the elite. This bout could have title implications as it remains to be seen who UFC heavyweight champion will fight next.

Let’s take a look at the match-up and some of the best prop bets available for this gargantuan encounter:

The Predator

Francis Ngannou is the #2 ranked heavyweight in the UFC. Known as the Predator, the 33-year old French-Cameroonian is a former UFC heavyweight title challenger. Ngannou challenged Stipe Miocic for the belt at UFC 220 and lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Ngannou is a massive monster who stands 6-4 tall, has a reach of 84 inches, weighs 255 pounds, and fights out of the orthodox stance. He has a professional MMA record of 14-3 with 10 knockouts and 4 wins via submission. After suffering back to back decision losses in 2018, Ngannou has won three straight bouts, all by stoppage within the first round.

The Predator lands an average of 2.15 significant strikes per minute at a 37% accuracy. He absorbs 1.97 significant strikes per minute and has a 47% striking defense. Ngannou has not recorded a takedown in the UFC and he has a takedown defense of 73%.

Ngannou may be the most powerful puncher in the UFC and he doesn’t need to land cleanly to knock his opponents out. He is one of the scariest strikers in the business, given his power and excellent boxing background. The only worry on Ngannou is that he runs out of gas, just like what happened when he fought Miocic.

Bigi Boi

Jairzinho Rozenstruik is the 6th ranked UFC heavyweight contender. The undefeated 32-year old fighter from Suriname is the former WLF Super Heavyweight tournament champion and DangerZone kickboxing champion.

Bigi Boi is 6-4 tall with a reach of 78 inches. He weighs 242 pounds and fights out of the orthodox stance. Rozenstruik has a record of 10-0 with 9 knockouts. Rozenstruik is 4-0 with four knockouts inside the UFC octagon. In his last bout, he stopped former Strikeforce champion Alistair Overeem at UFC on ESPN 7.

Rozenstruik lands an average of 3.72 significant strikes per minute at a 46% accuracy rate. Bigi Boi gets hits by an average of 3.05 significant strikes per minute and he has a striking defense of 32%. Like Ngannou, he has not recorded a UFC takedown and has 75% takedown defense.

Big Boi is an intriguing fighter who has a solid kickboxing background. He also has ridiculous punching power and his left hooks can tear off his opponent’s heads. Rozenstruik likes to fight on his feet and he also has a durable chin. In his last fight though, he was outclassed by Alistair Overeem before coming up with that late knockout.

Who Wins?

These are two heavyweights who have incredible knockout power so while you can say that Ngannou is better, there is always a chance that Rozenstruik catches him with one punch that ends the Predator’s night.

However, when you compare these two fighters, Ngannou is more experienced in the UFC. Not only has he fought for the title, but he also went five rounds with Stipe Miocic. We saw Derrick Lewis slow him down and Rozenstruik might employ that tactic but given his skill set, I think Rozenstruik’s only chance is to stand and trade early and see which of them has the better chin.

I agree that Rozenstruik didn’t get the kind of respect that he should’ve had in the past. But when you look at the Overeem bout, he was sure to earn his first career loss before he connected with the punch that started the end for Reem. The knockout happened late in the 5th round and Overeem was a few minutes away from totally outclassing Bigi Boy.

Neither of these fighters has attempted a takedown so it’s unlikely that this fight will be going to the ground. Ngannou is the more equipped fighter here. He also has more experience and has fought better competition. I think there is always a chance that Big Boy comes up with an upset KO but Ngannou is much wiser now.

Prediction: Francis Ngannou (-300)

Total Rounds Betting

Ten out of Francis Ngannou’s 14 wins have come inside the first round. His last seven wins, all in the UFC, have come inside round one. He hasn’t fought for 10 straight minutes inside the octagon since 2016 and his average fight time is six minutes and five seconds.

On the other hand, Rozenstruik has gone past round one only thrice in his career and he’s gone past 1.5 rounds only twice, although one of those was in his last fight. His last four wins have been by knockout within 1.5 rounds, so he’s a guy who also doesn’t waste too much time inside the cage.

When you have two heavy hitters like this, you don’t expect a long fight. However, you have to look at Francis Ngannou’s two losses which went the distance. As I said earlier, Rozenstruik might try to use his kickboxing background to keep Ngannou at a distance. However, the Predator has a five-inch reach advantage which may be the difference here.

Prediction: Under 1.5 -115

Round Betting

Ten out of Ngannou’s 14 knockouts have come inside the first round and save for Curtis Blaydes, all his UFC knockouts have come in the very first round. I like Ngannou to win this fight early.

If you want to go with the underdog Rozenstruik, you have to think that he needs the early stoppage to beat Ngannou because he doesn’t have the skill nor experience to take this fight deep. I think Rozenstruik in Round 1 is a very tantalizing bet.

Prediction: I think this one is ending early and I will go with round one. If you like Ngannou go with him at +130. If you’re thinking upset, Rozenstruik at +600 is a very juicy bet.

Method of Victory Betting Odds

This one is a no-brainer. 10 out of Ngannou’s 14 wins have come via knockout while 9 out of Rozenstruik’s 10 wins have been by stoppage. When you have two men with unprecedented punching power meet each other in the center of the octagon, one of them has to go down.

Ngannou and Rozenstruik don’t need to land multiple punches to score a knockout. I think both men are durable but given their otherworldly punching power, I think a knockout is waiting here.

Prediction: Ngannou by KO, TKO, or disqualification at -120. If you’re going with the challenger, go with Rozenstruik at +350.

When Will the Fight End

Ngannou’s average fight time is 6:05 while Rozenstruik’s is 7:52 or barely 1.5 rounds. The Predator has gone more than one round just three times in the UFC, while Bigi Boy has a total of 7 first-round finishes.

• Either Round 1 (-120)
• Either Round 2 (+300)
• Either Round 3 (+600)
• Either to Win on Points (+300)

I like the fight to end in the first round but I will not rule out it ending in the second round, based on the fighters’ average fight time.

Prediction: Round 1 (-120)

Will the Fight Go the Distance?

I think this is the easiest prop bet here. 90% of Rozenstruik’s bouts have ended prematurely. On the other hand, 82% of Ngannou’s fights have ended in a stoppage. Again, these men possess massive punching power.

• Yes (+250)
• No (-350)

One of these giants should go down hard. Prediction: No -350

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