DraftKings Playbook welcomes former UFC fighter and current MMA coach Yves Edwards! Yves was one of the best lightweight fighters of his era and has over 20 UFC fights, including UFC bouts against former UFC champions Tony Ferguson and Matt Serra. Yves currently coaches UFC fighter Adrian Yanez and Bellator champion Raufeon Stots.

Below, Yves gives his picks on DraftKings Sportsbook for UFC 285.

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Bo Nickal vs. Jamie Pickett

We all know what this fight truly is—the UFC is introducing the next star to the PPV masses. I’m going with Bo Nickal by first-round ground-and-pound or submission.

Pick: Round of Finish: Bo Nickal Round 1

DraftKings Sportsbook odds: -200

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Mateusz Gamrot vs. Jalin Turner

This one has Fight of the Night written all over it for me. Jalin Turner is a sharp striker who knows how to control distance and range with his footwork and straight punches, while Gamrot is a pressure fighter with the better wrestling of the two.

The winner of this fight, even if it goes to a decision, will be determined by the middle of the second round. The determining factors are whether Gamrot is able to have success with his wrestling early and able to keep Turner on his back and do damage while controlling the fight. Turner needs to be able to defend the takedown and punish Gamrot for his attempts and make Mateusz lower his shot attempts over time, forcing him to engage in a striking battle where I believe Turner has the advantage. Those are the two ways I see this fight playing out. I believe Turner will get the TKO late in the second round or third round.

Pick: Jalin Turner To Win By KO/TKO/DQ

DraftKings Sportsbook odds: +400

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Geoff Neal vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov

This is another fun fight for fight fans. Both fighters are competent strikers with solid overall MMA skills, but Rakhmonov is in my opinion the more complete mixed martial artist. I believe Neal will give a good fight, but it’ll be early when Rakhmonov will establish his dominance.

Pick: Round of Finish: Shavkat Rakhmonov Round 1

DraftKings Sportsbook odds: +175

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Valentina Shevchenko vs. Alexa Grasso

Grasso has earned this title shot with some quality wins, but she is challenging the woman who sets the bar for the women’s flyweight division. Meanwhile, Shevchenko is coming off a hard-fought win against Taila Santos. For a champion who has been dominant in their division for so long to then face real adversity in the octagon, I believe that type of fight refocuses the truly great fighters and brings them back to form.

While Grasso is truly a quality opponent, I don’t feel she is as physically strong as Santos. I believe Shevchenko will step into the octagon with a point to prove and be too much for the challenger after 25 hard minutes.

Pick: Valentina Shevchenko To Win By Decision

DraftKings Sportsbook odds: +175

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Jon Jones vs. Ciryl Gane

Ciryl Gane has looked amazing since coming into the UFC, finishing and/or dominating everyone the UFC put across from him in the Octagon until he ran into Francis Ngannou. He did have his moments in the Ngannou fight and he looked like he was on his way to a victory until Ngannou somehow learned to wrestle between rounds.

People are saying that Gane is the most complete kickboxer Jon Jones will have ever faced, and though Jones fought some good strikers at light heavyweight, I could agree with that statement. However, it did make me go back and look at some of those fights, and the one that stood out to me was Jones vs. Thiago Santos. While rewatching that fight, I noticed that Jones didn’t commit to many, if any, takedown attempts at all. Yet, he still won a close decision in what was effectively an MMA kickboxing match. I also look at the success that Jones had in the wrestling aspect of his rivalry with Daniel Cormier, a former UFC heavyweight champion. I have to give the edge going into this fight to the MMA GOAT Jon Jones. I’m going with Jon Jones by late finish or unanimous decision.

Pick: Jon Jones moneyline

DraftKings Sportsbook odds: -165

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Yves Edwards is on Twitter and Instagram! @thugjitsumaster

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All odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.

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