Dustin Jacoby vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu UFC Betting Prediction

One of the funniest upcoming UFC fights this weekend is this light heavyweight matchup between Dustin Jacoby and Kennedy Nzechukwu, coming to you from Nashville on Saturday night. Jacoby is looking to bounce back from a losing skid, and Nzechukwu is on a winning streak. 

Read more for the breakdown of this matchup, along with the betting analysis and official Jacoby vs Nzechukwu prediction ahead of making your bets this weekend.

Dustin Jacoby vs. Kennedy Nzechukwu

Location: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, Tennessee, United States

Date and Time: August 05, 2023. 9:00 PM ET main card start

How to Watch: ESPN+

Jacoby is looking to get back in the winning column after losing a unanimous decision to Azamat Murzakanov in April.

Nzechukwu is fresh off an impressive guillotine finish over Devin Clark in May at UFC 288. 

Jacoby is an 18-7-1 MMA veteran with 11 KOs and one submission under his belt. He is a multiple-time tournament winner in GLORY kickboxing, a former FURY FC middleweight champion, and now a solidified UFC veteran. 

In the octagon, Jacoby averages 5.44 significant strikes landed and 4.03 significant strikes absorbed per minute–along with a 58% striking defense. In two of his most recent three losses, Jacoby has outstruck his opponent. 

Nzechukwu has done a very good job staying active and getting better every time he steps foot in the UFC octagon. His size and power is the biggest factor in making the Jacoby vs Nzechukwu prediction this weekend. He isn’t a world-class kickboxer like Jacoby, but he has the hand speed and the power to dominate a MMA bout.

He has a professional record of 12-3 with eight KOs and one submission. Nzechukwu has a 7” reach advantage over Jacoby and has averaged 4.89 significant strikes landed per minute in the UFC. He also fights out of the southpaw stance. 

No injuries have been reported to the UFC. 

• Moneyline: The UFC oddsfor this light heavyweight bout have Nzechukwu as the -155 betting favorite over the +135 Jacoby. Jacoby is +355 to win inside the distance, while Nzechukwu is +175 to do the same.
• Total: The over 2.5 round total is favored at -135 as well.

If you are looking at this bout from the technical side of things, it’s just as narrow as the betting odds say it is. Jacoby has the edge in striking ability, such as timing, distance, and fight IQ. But, Nzechukwu has the size and power to end the fight at any time. 

Since this is MMA and not kickboxing, it’s okay that Nzechukwu has the edge in the odds. There are more weapons for Jacoby to worry about. But don’t look past Jacoby because he’s undersized in this matchup. 

Making UFC picks for fights like this is so difficult to do. You never predict a matchup between these two, but they are for sure going to put on an interesting fight. 

The official Jacoby vs Nzechukwu prediction is that Jacoby will outclass the inexperienced, raw Nzechukwu. Jacoby is one of the more crafty fighters on the UFC roster, with a lot of durability to take the heavy shots that Nzechukwu will land on him.

The money line is plenty for this pick because he’s most likely going to win a decision and finally get a group of judges that go his way.

If you love sports and want more sports betting information@InsidersBetDigfree betting picks.