UFC Vegas 61 will be hosted at UFC APEX in Las Vegas on Saturday night.

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The prelims will begin at 5:00 PM ET and the main card will get underway at 8:00 PM ET. There are 13 fights scheduled for the UFC Vegas 61 card, but that could change before Saturday.

The main event will feature Mackenzie Dern vs. Xiaonan Yan. There are some interesting fights on both the main card and prelims this weekend, so make sure you tune in to watch all of the action.

Dern vs. Yan Predictions

Fight Odds: Dern (-230) vs. Yan (+195)

Dern (12-2) is coming off a split decision win against Tecia Torres. Prior to that, she was coming off a loss against Marina Rodriguez (Decision). She’s now 7-2 since joining the UFC in 2018.

Yan (15-3-0-1) is coming off two losses. She lost to Rodriguez last time out by split decision and prior to that she suffered a knockout loss against Carla Esparza. She started her UFC career 6-0.

This fight is scheduled for five rounds, which Yan has never experienced yet. Yan has the edge in striking (5.66 SLpM and 3.77 SApM vs. 3.16 SLpM and 4.35 SApM) and has shown some power in the past.

However, Dern has the grappling edge and would be wise to take this fight to the mat.

Yan has gone the distance in seven of her eight UFC fights. Dern has gone the distance in five of nine UFC fights. I don’t expect this fight to end early and we should reach the championship rounds.

I’ll be betting on this fight starting round 4, as we’re getting even money on that wager.

Best Bet: Fight to Start Round 4 (+100)

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Brown vs. Trinaldo Predictions

Fight Odds: Brown (-315) vs. Trinaldo (+260)

Brown (15-4) is 9-4 in the UFC and he has won three consecutive fights. After being knocked out by Vincent Luque, Brown has wins against Alex Oliveira, Jared Gooden and Kalinn Williams.

Trinaldo (28-8) won five of his last fights and two in a row. He’s coming off a win against Danny Roberts and prior to that he defeated Dwight Grant. The veteran still knows how to put on a great show.

Brown averages 4.42 SLpM and 3.32 SApM, while Trinaldo averages 3.15 SLpM and 2.60 SApM. Brown will have a huge reach advantage of 8”, which is going to make this fight tough on Trinaldo.

Trinaldo hasn’t been finished in a fight since he lost by submission to Kevin Lee in 2017. I like Brown to win, but stopping Trinaldo is tough and the best bet in this fight is for the fight to go the distance.

Best Bet: Fight Goes to Decision (-122)

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Yusuff vs. Shainis Predictions

Fight Odds: Yusuff (-900) vs. Shainis (+625)

Sodiq Yusuff (12-2) is a huge favorite against Don Shainis (12-3). Shainis is making his UFC debut and will have his hands full. Yusuff is 5-1 in the UFC with two wins by knockout.

Yusuff will have a 4” reach advantage and should be able to land shots the entire fight. Shanis has been knocked out once before and there’s a good chance Yusuff will be able to win by TKO/KO.

Yusuff averages 5.22 SLpM while only eating 3.63 SApM. If Yusuff wants to continue moving up the UFC featherweight rankings he needs to take care of business with a big TKO/KO win against Shainis.

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UFC Vegas 61 Prelims Best Bet

In the final prelims fight, Ilir Latifi (15-8-0-1) will fight Alexey Oleynik (60-16-1).

Latifi is favored at -175 odds, but you can’t count out Oleynik (+150). The 45-year-old MMA veteran is coming off a win against Jared Vanderaa (Submission) back in April, snapping a three-fight losing streak.

Latifi is coming off a win against Tanner Boser by split decision, also snapping a three-fight losing streak. It’ll be interesting to see what these two veterans have left in the tank for this fight on Saturday.

Oleynik will have a 7” reach advantage, which could pose problems for Latifi. Oleynik is a better striker (3.50 SLpM vs. 1.84 SLpM) and should have an edge when both guys are standing.

Both fighters will be looking to take the fight to the mat, though. Oleynik averages 3.50 takedowns per 15 minutes and Latifi averages 1.84 takedowns per 15 minutes.

Latifi has never been taken down in his career. Will Oleynik be able to change that? He has also never been tapped out. I’m going with the Oleynik to pull off the upset this weekend.

Best Bet: Oleynik ML (+150)

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UFC Vegas 61 Parlay Predictions

Here’s my best parlay bet for UFC Vegas 61:

Dern ML + Brown ML + Ricci ML (+179 Payout Odds)

I’ve already discussed why I like Dern and Brown to win on the main card.

I’ll also be adding Tabatha Ricci (7-1) to my parlay. She’s fighting Jessica Penne (14-6). Ricci is 2-1 in the UFC. She lost her debut to Manon Fiorot, but defeated Maria Oliveira and Polyana Viana.

Penne is 3-4 in the UFC and she’s coming off a loss against Emily Ducote. She has been knocked out twice in her short UFC career already. Ricci doesn’t have a lot of power, but she’ll pick up the victory.

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UFC Vegas 61 Betting Lines

Mackenzie Dern (-230) vs. Xiaonan Yan (+195)

Randy Brown (-315) vs. Francisco Trinaldo (+260)

Raoni Barcelos (-230) vs. Trevin Jones (+195)

Sodiq Yusuff (-900) vs. Don Shainis (+625)

John Castaneda (-190) vs. Daniel Santos (+160)

Mike Davis (-180) vs. Viacheslav Borshchev (+155)

Ilir Latifi (-175) vs. Alexey Oleynik (+150)

Jessica Penne (+180) vs. Tabatha Ricci (-210)

Joaquim Silva (-150) vs. Jesse Ronson (+130)

Krzysztof Jotko (-120) vs. Brendan Allen (+100)

Maxim Grishin (-180) vs. Philipe Lins (+155)

Julija Stoliarenko (-115) vs. Chelsea Chandler (-105)

Guido Cannetti (+240) vs. Randy Costa (-285)