In the blink of an eye, @OdeOsbourne locks it up #DWCS pic.twitter.com/S9in3TSmoP
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) July 17, 2019
Featherweight
NR | Ode Osbourne (8-3, 0-1 UFC) vs. NR | Jerome Rivera (10-4, 0-2 UFC)THE ODDS: N/A
Osbourne showed a great deal of potential in his win on Dana White’s Contender Series, but his UFC career has not gained momentum just yet. Prior to the UFC, “The Jamaican Sensation” found most of his success thanks to his opponents’ willingness to take him to the mat, at which point Osbourne could leverage his long frame to a submission victory. Indeed, that is how he got the win over Armando Villarreal to earn a UFC contract, but a quick submission loss to Brian Kelleher in his UFC debut showed that Osbourne needs to make some progress defensively if he wants to make much headway moving forward. Osbourne has been slated to drop down to flyweight for a few attempts that have fallen through and actually winds up moving up to featherweight here for a late-notice bout. Rivera seemingly had the tools to hit the ground running at the UFC level, but it has not come together yet. While “The Renegade” has a long frame himself and is potent offensively, he has struggled to control his two UFC bouts against opponents who could hit harder or keep him glued to the mat. Osbourne is the more powerful puncher, but that may not matter in a fight that could turn into a messy grappling battle. At that point, this fight essentially becomes a coinflip. Neither man is much of a control artist and each is capable of giving up submissions, and whatever strength advantage Osbourne looks to have could be nullified by Rivera’s lack of a weight cut. The pick is Osbourne via decision, if only because he is the more functional striker in a fight that is otherwise about even and could easily go either way.