Joe Smith Jr. vs Maxim Vlasov Odds and Picks
- Joe Smith Jr. vs Maxim Vlasov goes Saturday, February 13th at 10 PM EST
- Who emerges as the WBO world champion?
- Check out the fight odds, analysis, and predictions below
Joe Smith Jr. vs Maxim Vlasov goes down at The Bubble this weekend. The MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada is where it happens live, but the event broadcasts on ESPN at 10 PM EST.
The vacant WBO world light-heavyweight title is up for grabs here, and this marks the first Top Rank show of the calendar year.
Joe Smith Jr. vs Maxim Vlasov Odds
| Fighter | Odds |
|---|---|
| Joe Smith Jr. | -360 |
| Maxim Vlasov | +250 |
| Fighter | Odds |
| Adam Lopez | -240 |
| Jason Sanchez | +180 |
| Fighter | Odds |
| Jared Anderson | -1500 |
| Kingsley Ibeh | +800 |
Odds as of Feb. 10
Joe Smith Jr’s Road to WBO Gold
Smith Jr. inserted himself on the radars of many when he sent Bernard Hopkins careening out of the ring in Hopkin’s December 2016 retirement bout.
Joe Smith Jr. has previously contended for a world title but came up short in the pursuit. Dmitry Bivol bested him in a March 2019 unanimous decision loss for the WBA championship.
Since losing that Bivol bout, Smith Jr. has put together back-to-back victories, including a ninth-round TKO win inside The Bubble during his last bout. That victory for Smith Jr came against the former light-heavyweight champion Eleider Alvarez in August.
Smith Jr. steps into the ring here for his 30th pro outing.
He looks to ward off the oncoming challenge of his #3 ranked WBO adversary.
Maxim Vlasov Redirection to Light-Heavyweight
Vlasov has mostly plied his trade as a cruiserweight but has world title aspirations in the division lower. He is closing in on 50 bouts overall as a professional.
Vlasov had a 12 fight winning streak snapped in a bid for the interim WBO cruiserweight world title.
He lost that title fight by unanimous decision to Krzysztof Glowacki in November 2018 but is currently riding a three-fight winning streak towards this pseudo-redemptive second crack at another WBO world championship.
Vlasov is the current WBO global light heavyweight champion but is looking to ascend to that world title level. Though he doesn’t have the highest overall knockout rate, Maxim Vlasov has shown some KO ability in past outings.
These 175-pound warriors match up well, on paper, for a truly high level twelve round affair.
Smith Jr. has the edge in punching power considering their previous histories, but one wonders Vlasov’s aptitude for sustaining these blows since he has fought bigger guys at cruiserweight.
Smith Jr. vs Vlasov Tale of the Tape
| 26-3 | Record | 45-3 |
| 21 | Knockouts | 26 |
| 6’0 | Height | 6’3.5 |
| Not Available | Reach | 76.5″ |
| Bernard Hopkins, Eleider Alvarez, Jesse Hart | Significant Wins | Emmanuel Martey, Denton Daley, Omar Garcia |
| Orthodox | Stance | Orthodox |
In summation, I think that the former will defeat the latter when Smith Jr. vs Vlasov goes down.
Smith Jr. has a notable stoppage rate, but I think the size and proven durability of Vlasov will allow him to push through to hearing the judges’ scorecards.
I think there’s good value in prop bets on this one going the distance and a prop bet on Smith Jr winning via points/decision.
Pick: Joe Smith Jr. (-360)
Main Card Picks for Smith Jr. vs Vlasov
- Adam Lopez vs Jason Sanchez: I think the likeliest outcome here is Lopez securing the victory on the judges’ scorecards and getting the victory via points/ decision. Pick: Adam Lopez (-240)
- Jared Anderson vs Kingsley Ibeh: Anderson wins via stoppage here, and I think there’s good value in some prop bets that see Anderson getting it done between the first and third round and Anderson winning via TKO or KO. Pick: Jared Anderson (-1500)
A part-time writer and full-time broadcaster, Dylan has hosted MMA talk shows Lights Out and Pure Fight Radio with featured guests like Jens Pulver, Roy Nelson, Miesha Tate, and covered some of the biggest MMA promotions like Rumble in the Cage, Unified MMA, and King of the Cage.
