Dana White’s Contender Series Week 7 Odds and Picks – Cortez vs Rodriguez

• Four contracts were handed out last week, how many will be awarded this week?
• A bantamweight bout between Junior Cortez and Christian Rodriguez headlines the card
• See the odds and betting preview for Week 7 below

Dana White’s Contender Series has been must-watch TV for MMA fans who have had the chance to see future UFC stars earn their way into the promotion. The show has produced the likes of Sean O’Malley, Alex Perez, Ryan Spann, and Maycee Barber, among countless others.

After six episodes where 25 contracts have been handed out, five more fights happen on Tuesday, October 12 as those fighters try to earn themselves a UFC deal. Week 7 takes place at the UFC Apex on October 12, and in the main event, Junior Cortez battles Christian Rodriguez in a bantamweight scrap.

DWCS Week 7 Odds

All odds as of October 10th at BetMGM.

Does Rodriguez Remain Undefeated?

Junior Cortez (5-1) is on a two-fight winning streak and coming off a decision win over Axel Osuna back in June at Combate Global which is a good promotion. He hasn’t fought the highest level of competition as his opponents are 0-0, 0-1, 0-1, 3-4, 6-10, and 3-0. His loss actually came at the hands of the 3-4 opponent as he lost by split decision. He hasn’t fought anyone of note so it’s hard to tell how good he is, as he is winning the fights he should.

Christian Rodriguez (5-0) has been competing in CFFC and was supposed to headline a card in August before getting the call to the Contender Series. Although he hasn’t fought the best competition either, only one opponent was under .500 while the rest are .500 or above. He does come from a good camp at Roufusport in Milwaukee though.

Cortez vs Rodriguez Stats

This appears to be a mismatch and that is what I think it is as Christian Rodriguez is a much better striker and even on the ground, he should have an advantage with his jiu-jitsu if he decides to take it there. Cortez, however, has proven he has the cardio to go a full 15 minutes while Rodriguez has only entered the third round once, which was his last fight.

I do expect Cortez to come out aggressive and look for the early KO. Yet, Rodriguez has good head movement and will be able to avoid the power shots and counter Cortez with something big. The first round should be competitive on the feet but in the second, Rodriguez will start to take over and earn a TKO win and a UFC deal.

Pick: Christian Rodriguez (-200)

Other DWCS Week 7 Picks:

• Martin Buday (-400): Buday will land a clean shot in the first and then sink in a choke and get the stoppage and a UFC deal.
• Jake Hadley (-300): Both Hadley and Raposo are legit and both are UFC-calibre but I expect Hadley to grind out a decision and likely earn a contract.
• Chris Duncan (-175): Duncan should be a much bigger favorite as he’ll be able to piece up Borshchev and earn a TKO win and a UFC deal.
• Maria Silva (-175): Silva should be able to take this fight to the mat early and sink in a choke and earn a UFC deal. A parlay of Silva, Duncan, and Rodriguez is also a good bet.