Do you like seeing surprises happen in the UFC? If so, there’s one bout on the main card of UFC on ESPN 41 that you should pay special attention to – Devin Clark vs. Azamat Murzakanov.
Online sportsbooks see Azamat “The Professional” Murzakanov as the favorite to triumph in Saturday’s fight. No surprise as he’s 11-0 with eight wins by knockout/technical knockout. However, he’s still relatively new to the UFC having fought only once under the banner of the most successful MMA promotion in the world.
His opponent, Devin “Brown Bear” Clark, on the other hand, is a UFC veteran who’s been involved with this promotion since summer 2016. He’s got the experience on his side, but will it help him to pull off an upset in San Diego on August 13?
UFC on ESPN 41 Odds
All odds are per FanDuel as of August 11.
Moneyline
| Devin Clark | -164 |
| Azamat Murzakanov | +128 |
Where and When to Watch
- Date: Saturday, August 13
- Location: Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California
- Watch: ESPN
Devin Clark Must Not be Underestimated
On August 4, Devin Clark celebrated the ninth anniversary of his professional MMA debut. He started his career in 2013 and after six straight wins, he inked a deal with the UFC. Clark’s debut in this promotion wasn’t a successful one, but he then went on to build a pretty successful UFC career.
In August 2022, Clark is 13-6 overall, with his UFC record being 7-6. It’s not too impressive but bears in mind that Brown Bear has fought against some real elites of the UFC Light Heavyweight division. Just take a look at the names of the six fighters he’s lost to in the UFC so far:
- Ion Cutelaba (decision)
- Anthony Smith (submission)
- Ryan Spann (submission)
- Aleksandar Rakic (technical knockout)
- Jan Blachowicz (submission)
- Alex Nicholson (knockout)
What’s interesting is that only two of his losses happened by KO/TKO. And both of those defeats happened a long time ago – Nicholson beat him in 2016, and Rakic did it two years later. The reason why this fact is important is that the strongest weapon of his next opponent is striking.
Further, Clark has also ventured into the UFC Heavyweight division, where he fought William Knight in April. Even though Knight was 11-3 before that fight, with nine wins by KO/TKO (one more than Murzakhanov), Clark was able to withstand his powerful strikes and get a win. The best thing is that he did it by knockout.
Are Bookies Right to Favor Azamat Murzakanov?
No one can blame oddsmakers for favoring Azamat Murzakanov. After all, the 35-year-old Russian has a flawless record with 11 wins and zero losses. Plus, he’s been very fun to watch, with nine finishes in total, eight of which happened by KO/TKO.
However, he still hasn’t fought against such a tough rival as Clark. In fact, his toughest opponent so far is probably Tafon Nchukwi, whom he fought at UFC Fight Night 203 in March. Nchukwi was 6-1 before that fight, but with just two wins in the UFC.
Devin Clark vs. Azamat Murzakanov
We think August 13 is going to be an unlucky day for Azamat Murzakanov. We think he’s not going to meet the expectations set by the bookies who see him as the odds-on favorite against Clark. Instead, we think that Black Bear is going to outsmart him on Saturday.
Pick: Devin Clark to win