UFC 200 has already been referred to as the greatest UFC night ever. Kicking off on Saturday, July 9th, UFC 200 does have some of the best fighters of all-time scheduled to fight. Big names like Jon “Bones” Jones, Miesha Tate, Frankie Edgar, and Brock Lesnar are all entered to fight on the main card, making it one of the biggest nights in fighting history, any way you look at it. The fights are scheduled to begin earlier in the day for the undercard, and the first event in the main card prelims begin at 6:30 PM local, or 9:30 PM Eastern Time. The fights are coming to us from Las Vegas, Nevada, where they will be held at the T-Mobile Arena. If you’re an MMA fan, this is one night of excitement that you will not want to miss.
DraftKings certainly has taken this into account as they put together their contests for this night. These are some of the biggest tournaments that DraftKings has ever had when it comes to MMA fighting, especially when you consider the $100K Haymaker Special. This $100,000 guaranteed tournament has already more than half filled up. There are 39,215 entry spots, and more than 20,000 people have already registered. It’s free to enter if you’ve never played at DraftKings before, or $3 if you are already a member of the site. Part of the appeal of this tourney is that it’s part of a bigger series. It is part of a four tournament event that is occurring on Saturday. If you enter at least one entry in each of the four tournaments, you will be eligible to take part in the $200K Fight Card Series. The Axe Kick, the Chokehold, and the Knock Out are the other three parts of this mega-tourney. The Haymaker is the cheapest of these to enter at just $3, so if you’re going to be in just one tourney, this is the most crowd friendly for most people.
The headliner of UFC 200 is Daniel Cormier vs. Jon Jones. Jones is the heavy favorite here, and DraftKings has given him a price of $10,900, compared to Cormier’s $8,500. Jones is 22-1 in UFC action, and he is the heavy crowd favorite, too. Cormier’s record isn’t too far behind, though. He is 17-1, which indicates a weaker percentage, but simply because he hasn’t had as many fights as Jones. This is one of those fights that really could go either way, especially as Cormier’s only loss was a decision, and not a KO or submission. This means he has endurance and can go the distance when needed. He will certainly need it in this fight, but there could be a lot of value for daily fantasy MMA fans by drafting Cormier rather than the favorite.
Even though Cormier vs. Jones is the official main event for UFC 200, for many people the real treat is going to be Brock Lesnar’s return to the UFC. He’s been absent for the last five years or so as he was fighting in the WWE, but UFC marks his return to the sport. Lesnar is the sentimental favorite for many people in this fight, but his salary has been placed at just $9,000, indicating that he’s not the favorite by the analysts to win this one. His opponent, Mark Hunt, has a salary of $10,400. Yes, Lesnar hasn’t fought in a UFC match in about five years, but that might not necessarily hurt him here. He’s been active professionally wrestling, which is a very different sport, but a way to keep in great fighting shape nonetheless. Lesnar did lose his last two UFC fights though, both by TKO/KO. That’s definitely worth considering when you draft your team for this event. Hunt has much more experience with his 12-10-1 record. Lesnar’s is better statistically speaking at 5-3, but Hunt has strength and experience on his side.