Read our UFC predictions for the Saturday, August 2 event live from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The preliminary card airs on ESPN+ starting at 6:00 p.m. ET, with the main card on ESPN at 10:00 p.m. ET.
Our MMA experts went through this weekend's 12-fight lineup for their UFC best bets and identified their three favorite picks for the card.
You can find their analysis and picks, as well as Sean Zerillo's moneyline and prop projections, on those matches below.
UFC Vegas 108 Moneyline Projections
UFC Vegas 108 Prop Projections
UFC Vegas 108 Best Bets
Rodolfo Viera vs. Tresean Gore
Billy Ward, Staff Writer
Fighter walkouts: Approx. 8:15 p.m. ET
I've been on Rodolfo Viera all week, but the case for him got even stronger on Friday morning.
His opponent, Tresean Gore, missed weight by 3.5 pounds, which typically signifies an injury, lack of proper training, or other issues in the Gore camp.
Both of Gore's UFC wins have come via guillotine, making this a terrible matchup for him against Viera. Viera is a multiple-time world champion in both gi and nogi grappling and has adapted his game well to MMA.
Gore is a raw athlete who hasn't shown much technical improvement since his time on The Ultimate Fighter season 29, instead relying on raw power and techniques like guillotines. Gore has solid on paper 83% takedown defense, but the only true grappler he's faced was Cody Brundage — who knocked out Gore in Round 2.
That's the same Cody Brundage that Viera submitted in 2023, in case you're interested in doing some MMA math.
I took Viera's moneyline early in the week to win half of a unit, and I'm adding to that Viera to win inside the distance at even money on DraftKings. That way, a Viera decision win works out to a break-even return, while a finish returns a solid profit.
The Pick: Rodolfo Viera Inside the Distance +100 (DraftKings)
Nora Cornolle vs. Karol Rosa
Sean Zerillo, Senior Writer
Fighter walkouts: Approx. 10:15 p.m. ET
Nora Cornolle is a popular underdog selection this week — with bettors and fans backing her to win this matchup more than 60% of the time on average, compared to implied odds nearer to 37% in the betting market.
While I typically prefer the underdog in fights heavily juiced to go to decision (projected -457, listed between -450 and -500), I view Rosa as the more reliable and well-rounded MMA point fighter, who has proven her skillset against a higher calibre of competition than Cornolle.
Rosa maintains a higher pace (averages 129 strikes landed per 15 minutes vs. 87 for Cornolle). Still, she's also the more efficient striker — outlanding opponents by 1.5 strikes per minute at distance, compared to a +0.5 margin for Cornolle.
Still, Rosa racks up a lot of attritional volume with her kicking game — whereas Cornolle carries more power, and should land the more impactful head strikes.
Still, Rosa has a clear grappling advantage in this fight over Cornolle – a Muay Thai specialist who has been controlled for 8:42 by Jocelyene Edwards (in an undeserved split win), 5:20 by Melissa Mullins (before a come-from-behind TKO win), and 4:25 by Hailey Cowan (before a come-from-behind submission win) in her UFC wins.
It's an oversimplication, but Rosa is 5-1 in the UFC when she lands a takedown vs. 1-3 when she gets taken down herself. When she has the grappling advantage over her opponent, she typically wins since she can dictate where the fight takes place, and if she proactively grapples against Cornolle, she could win all three rounds from top position.
While I project an edge on Rosa's moneyline (projected -213) to -195, I prefer her odds to win by decision (projected -130, listed -120) at a similar edge but a substantial discount.
The Pick: Karol Rosa (-180 at BetMGM) | Karol Rosa wins by Decision (-120 at BetRivers)
