UFC Florida: Harris vs Overeem Odds, Picks & Betting Preview

• The UFC is back for their third event in eight days
• Walt Harris battles Alistair Overeem in the main event
• Event back at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will hold their third event in just eight days on Saturday night where a heavyweight bout headlines the card.

In the main event, Walt Harris returns to the Octagon after the tragic murder of his stepdaughter Aniah Blanchard to battle longtime heavyweight contender, Alistair Overeem. The co-main event is a really intriguing strawweight bout between Claudia Gadelha and Angela Hill.

The UFC Florida main card airs live on ESPN+ at 9:00 pm EST. The table below shows odds for the entire card, followed by best bets for the event.

UFC Florida Odds

All odds taken May 14

Will Harris Extend His Winning Streak?

Walt Harris (13-7 and one no-contest) is on a four-fight unbeaten streak where last time out he knocked out Aleksei Oleinik in just 12 seconds. Before that, he knocked out Sergey Spivak in 50 seconds. He had the biggest named opponent at UFC 232 when he fought Andrei Arlovski where he won by decision, but it was overturned to a no-contest after he tested positive for LGD4033. In his career, he has notable wins over Daniel Spitz, Chase Sherman, and Cyril Asker.

Alistair Overeem (45-18 and one no-contest) had a shocking knockout loss to Jairzinho Rozenstruik with just four seconds left after he was dominating the entire fight. The loss snapped his two-fight winning streak where he had TKO’d Oleinik and Sergei Pavlovich. In his career, the combat sports legend has notable wins over Junior dos Santos, Brock Lesnar, Fabricio Werdum, Frank Mir, and Vitor Belfort among others.

This fight was scheduled to take place at UFC Washington on December 7, but Harris’ stepdaughter was kidnapped and later murdered which forced Harris to pull out of the fight. It was obviously a tragic event for Harris and he was supposed to fight Overeem again at UFC Portland on April 11, but the event was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Entering this fight, this is a crucial scrap for both men, as if Harris wants to become a title contender he needs to get past Overeem. For the 39-year-old in Overeem, a win over Harris gets him back on track to work his way up to the heavyweight ranks.

This is such an interesting matchup as both have insane knockout power and all it takes is one punch. I think Harris is the faster and stronger fighter. I talked to several people who have trained and fought Harris, where they say he has the fastest hands in the UFC regardless of weight class.

In this fight, I think Harris will use his striking to close the distance and land a massive shot that will drop Overeem and will finish him via ground and pound strikes in the first round. I just don’t trust Overeem’s chin at this point to last five rounds against such a strong puncher in Harris.

Pick: Walt Harris (-163)

Harris vs Overeem

Does the Winner Enter the Title Picture?

Claudia Gadelha (17-4) returned to the win column last July at UFC 239 with a decision win over Randa Markos. Before that, she alternated wins and losses by losing to Nina Ansaroff and Jessica Andrade but beat Carla Esparza in between them. The Brazilian is a former title challenger at strawweight and has notable wins over Karolina Kowalkiewicz, Valerie Letourneau, and Cortney Casey.

Angela Hill (12-7) is on a three-fight winning streak where she beat Loma Lookboonmee by decision last time out and before that TKO’d Hannah Cifers and Ariane Carnelossi. In the UFC, she’s 6-5 with notable wins over Ashley Yoder, Jodie Esquibel, and Maryna Moroz.

The first finish inside the Octagon for @ClaudiaGadelha_ AND the first woman to finish Kowalkiewicz as a pro! Round of applause ? #UFC212 pic.twitter.com/X9KqrwnJju

— UFC (@ufc) June 4, 2017

Hill has become someone who fights anyone, anytime, anywhere as this will already be her third fight of 2020 and fifth in a calendar year. She likes taking short-notice fights and says she is the best when she is active. Gadelha, meanwhile, has been dealing with several fight cancelations as she was supposed to fight December 7, January 18, and May 2, but none of them came to fruition.

In this fight, I really like Gadelha here as although Hill has looked impressive in her last three, they were not against top-ranked opponents like Gadelha is. The Brazilian is the better striker and I think she can use her wrestling to get Hill down and work ground and pound shots and look for a submission win, which I think she’ll get in the second round to snap Hill’s winning streak.

Pick: Claudia Gadelha (-195)

Other UFC Florida Picks

• Dan Ige (+112): I don’t like Edson Barboza cutting to featherweight and I think Ige will use his wrestling to gas out Barboza and earn a third-round TKO win.
• Eryk Anders (+141): This really should be a pick’em fight, so at +141 all the value is on Anders who I believe will be able to outpoint Jotko for the decision win.
• Song Yadong (-196): Whenever Vera fights a top-ranked opponent, he falls short and I think that happens again as Yadong wins by TKO.