September 2026 | Gamblou

Glendale, AZ. hosts a salute to the Mexican fighter with their UFC NOCHE fight card.

Thirteen bouts are scheduled and are populated by nine fighters with Mexican heritage facing adversaries from around the globe. There are but four fighters flying into the states from foreign addresses as well this card features only three bouts with combatants weighing over 170lbs. where the finishes are most apparent.

Seven of the thirteen bouts opened with a line of -250 or greater for the favorite which I view as unhealthy for the UFC long term, not to mention difficult on the lower class fighter that must walk straight into the fire against a heavily favored combatant.

Favorites continue to win at a 70% clip which makes uncovering underdogs somewhat of a rarity, nonetheless we did find Axel Sola last week who as a +135 underdog KO’d Fares Ziam in the first round. We’ll try to parlay our momentum forward as we hit the last quarter plus of 2026 UFC wagering.

*Digital readers and GambLou.com enthusiasts hold a ticket for Arman Tsarukyan who was parlayed with Su Mudaerji -215 in a card two weeks ago. We hold Tsarukyan -115 as a net price while his number currently stands -350 in his battle upcoming against Mauricio Ruffy (that fight takes place next week UFC 331).

Jean Silva -450 vs. Jose Delgado +295 Featherweight (145lbs.) main event

This fight was originally booked as Silva against Mexican fighter Yair Rodriguez however Rodriguez was forced out of the fight due to ‘injury.’ In steps Phoenician Jose Delgado to assume the opportunity.

Delgado arrives to this most challenging but potentially rewarding opportunity on the heels of a terrific showing against a novice in the organization with tremendous wrestling chops in Austin Bashi.

Delgado has won his last two bouts coming into this dynamic step up in class, so the professional’s at the MMALab, Delgado’s gym, have their work cut out for them in this fight.

Delgado will hold physical advantages in this matchup namely he is four inches the taller man, he’s a year younger than the barking Brazilian as well he’ll hold arm/leg reach advantages of four inches each.

These physical traits will provide Delgado opportunity while this fight remains standing. I expect this fight to be waged on the feet so while the fifteenth ranked Delgado fights all the way up in ranks to take on the number six ranked featherweight in Silva, he has the feet, the movement, the Muay Thai/Boxing, and the fight IQ to be able to compete effectively against this Tasmanian devil.

Brazilian Jean Silva is one of the leaders of the red hot MMA team called the ‘Fighting Nerds.’

These cats wear crooked glasses with white tape on the rims to look odd but do not mistake these fighters as anything but lethal world class killers.

Silva himself is a touch undersized physically, but he overcomes that lack of stature with a rabid attack as soon as the opening bell chimes.

Silva is a Muay Thai based striker who is incredibly powerful, brilliantly fast and is in constant forward movement with the single point of focus on engaging any opponent in a toe to toe throwdown. One last aspect to Silva is that he is offensively dynamic but the defensive aspect to his fighting game is of secondary concern to him.

This can be an issue as we have seen prior in his fight against Diego Lopes, who he was beating when he charged into a spinning elbow and was knocked out.

Silva lands 4.82 significant strikes per minute which is high volume especially considering their effect. The issue for Silva is that he accepts 4.50 significant strikes per minute which displays his lack of fear in that he’ll walk through an adversaries strikes in order to try to land a few of his own.

Lastly, Silva can grapple and strike, so if Delgado begins to find Silva with effective strikes look for the Brazilian to shoot in order to try to ground Degado and remove him from his advantage, striking.

Delgado for his part is no stranger to high power output as his significant strikes landed per minute stands at a whopping 6.07. What makes that number so impressive is that he accepts only 4.18 significant strikes per minute a stat that highlights his ability to not only power strike at high volume but also evade incoming strikes quite effectively.

Delgado’s wrestling is a forte so should Silva begin to shoot for the takedown, I look for Delgado to be able to utilize knee’s and uppercuts to fend him off.

In the days leading up to this fight while Delgado has been preparing in earnest for the biggest fight of his life, he has found comfort in talking to the press about his chances in this bout.

Delgado’s been mashing into the microphone about how he is going to take advantage of this short notice opportunity which is fine but to color his commentary with cockiness is something that can only motivate his Brazilian adversary.

While I do appreciate his confidence I would offer the young man this advice:

Do not poke the sleeping Doberman Pincer with a sharp stick!

Rather than mumbo-jumbo into a microphone, keep your intentions to yourself and speak loudly on fight night for there is little good that can come from irritating a world class mixed martial artist who leaves bodies quivering in his wake.

Delgado is live in this fight

Total in this fight: 1.5Rds Over -245

Waldo Cortez-Acosta -195 vs. Curtis Blaydes +175 Heavyweight (265lbs.)

Seventh ranked Dominican Republic heavyweight Waldo Cortez Acosta arrives to this fight in Phoenix on the bounce.

After having won three fights straight the former boxer with a blue belt in BJJ got the match he sought against number two ranked Alexander Volkov which he lost via unanimous decision back in May.

Now he has the opportunity to get back to winning ways if he can defeat eleventh ranked UFC veteran Curtis Blaydes.

Cortez-Acosta is primarily a stand up power striker who is putting some grappling into his repertoire while Blaydes is a world class wrestler/grappler with a purple belt in BJJ who has developed his striking acumen in each fight during his career.

Blaydes who has competed against the elite of the division for years comes to this fight off a loss to Josh Hokit back in April at the White House. He will be looking to dominate the Dominican ‘Salsa-boy’ in this fight and capture back his previous ranking.

Once this bout begins I look for Cortez-Acosta to be as outmatched in this matchup as he was in his last against Volkov for elite heavyweight fighters are few and far between.

I regard Blaydes as world class, and I do not believe Cortes-Acosta is refined enough for that accolade at this point in his career especially being as singularly versed in fighting weaponry as he is.

Cortez-Acosta has one way to win this fight and that’s to bust Blades with a scud missile.

Blaydes has the striking to set up his power wrestling which will allow him to transition this fight from standing to the ground where the Dominican athlete will be completely outmatched. From the ground Blaydes may then reign ground and pound upon Waldo from top position.

I believe this is an advantageous spot for Curtis Blaydes.

Blaydes +175

Total in this fight: 2.5Rds Over -240

Friday mid-day the ‘Bout Business Podcast drops across all podcast platforms and on GamLou.com, there one may access all of my final releases for this NOCHE fight card.

Enjoy the fights and Thank you for reading!

Paris, France is the host city for his week’s UFC Fight night production.

This fight card is scheduled for thirteen bouts highlighting an international set of combatants many of whom arrive to face the nine French athletes that will be competing on this slate.

Only five of the thirteen bouts are lined competitively, which is getting to be the case as the UFC continues to flood its roster with low end, unqualified and inexperienced athletes.

Last week favorites realized an 8-3 result pushing their results to a staggering 249-97-10 a 70% rate. Traditionally favorites win at about a 63% clip.

Regression? Let’s hope so, and soon.

Last week we banked the first leg of a two fighter parlay as Su Mudaerji won a decision against Alex Perez.

Su -215 in pocket provides readers with firm advantage on Arman Tsarukyan who is currently priced -380 (Tsarukyan fights Maurico Ruffy 9-18) as we hold Tsarukyan tickets at a net price of -115!

On to Paris

Dan Hooker + 400 vs. Salahdine Parnasse -500 Lightweight (155lbs.) main event

Parisian Parnasse makes a main event headline spot in his UFC debut.

Unusual as that appears, the fact is Parnasse arrives to the UFC fairly well credentialed after having earned two titles in KSW at featherweight and lightweight.

He is trained in boxing, BJJ and Mauy Thai and is a highly athletic fighter who uses movement, angles and grappling all to his advantage in fights.

Parnasse as a mixed martial artist stands 23-2 with eight wins via KO seven via submission and another eight via decision.

The one issue I can uncover about Parnasse is that his level of competition is quite inadequate so Hooker, his opponent sets up as a substantial step up in competition based on the elites Hooker has traded against.

In from Australia is the aforementioned Dan ‘the Hangman’ Hooker to try to take the steam away from Parnasse’s Parisian debut. Hooker is currently the organizations twelfth ranked lightweight.

Hooker is a grizzled UFC veteran who has competed for better than a decade against the top talent in the lightweight division of the UFC.

Hooker’s motive is singular in purpose. Arrive to the cage, provide his adversary with an all out stand up war and hope the he, Hooker is the man who remains standing when the dust clears.

After defeating a ranked contender in Poland’s Mateusz Gamrot, Hooker has dropped his last two bouts to elite lightweight talent in Benoit Saint-Denis and Arman Tsarukyan.

Hooker will hold height and reach advantages as well he’s been the fighter that has competed against the more staunch competition.

Parnasse though inexperienced against UFC level competition is lightning fast, offers diversified fight weaponry and is eight years the younger combatant in this fight.

Hooker has been enlisted by the UFC to make this fight with the Frenchman in order to determine if Parnasse can cut the Poupon or not.

Hooker, who is closer in fight years to forty than his actual thirty-six years is more than up for this challenge despite the betting market investing Euro’s on a fighter I regard as relatively risky as a favorite here, Parnasse.

Parnasse will look to make an instant impression on the UFC with a sensational victory but is that and can that add to the pressure for this twenty-seven year old fighter stepping up in class and fighting in front of his fellow countrymen?

Parnasse has finished his last five opponents in a row and now steps up to be tested by a legitimate top fifteen UFC lightweight.

Somehow, someway I believe Hooker can make a fight of this!

Total in this fight stands: 3.5Rds Under -260

Fares Ziam -155 vs. Axel Sola +135 Lightweight co main event

This is a battle between Ziam from Lyon, France, and Sola from Nice, France.

Both of these lightweights are similar in height, reach and age, the difference between these two is that Sola is a southpaw which will add some complexity to this French fracas.

Ziam enters this fight off a loss to Tom Nolan while Sola corrected his loss to Mason Jones two fights back with a victory over Brazilian Ishmail Bonfim in his last outing.

Both of these men carry high risk/reward into this fight for the victor will more than likely be ranked and the loser will need to put more victories together in order to earn their way into the top fifteen.

Ziam has the UFC experience and he’s the more fluid moving well rounded fighter while Sola is a mean, aggressive, junk yard dog who needs to convert any fight into a filthy, a grimy brawl.

I handicap Sola to be the more forceful, stronger man in the cage and believe this price should be lined closer to a pick-em.

In a fight that could be the fight of the night, I’ll advise an investment in Axel Sola +140 to upset Fares Ziam this weekend in Paris.

Friday morning the ‘Bout business Podcast drops across all podcast platforms and on GambLou.com.

Catch my final releases for this week’s card there.

Enjoy the fights from France and Thank You for reading.

UFC NOCHE Silva vs. Delgado: Lord floored?

Fight Night paris: Hooker vs. Parnasse: Nursultan of Swing

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