Azamat Bekoev vs Zachary Reese Prediction: We Wish Russian Win But Don't Expect It

On the night of 19 January, UFC 311 will take place. This will be the first bout in the league for Russian fighter Azamat Bekoev. His opponent will be the dangerous American Zachary Reese. The fight will be in the middleweight category. 

Azamat Bekoev

Bekoev will become the first Ossetian to fight in the UFC. In 2023, he went to build his career abroad and has been successful. Azamat is now the current champion of the strong LFA promotion - the same one where Shovkhal Churchaev recently got his first American victory. In 2020/21, Azamat had four fights in the UFC, winning two and losing two. In his last fight, he knocked out Chauncey Foxworth (who was riding a winning streak of six fights in a row) and defended his title at the LFA tournament on 22 June 2024.

Zachary Reese

Zack Reese lost his first UFC fight in 2023, but then, won his next two fights, knocking out Julian Marquez in just twenty seconds of the first round. Rees is on an upward career trajectory and is still improving. Zachary became well known when he fought in the Fury FC promotion, winning five times in a row in the first round. This got him on Dana White's Contender Series show, where he knocked out Eli Aronov in one minute and signed with the UFC.

Expert Betting Tips

We hope Azamat Bekoev wins, but we're not that optimistic. Zachary Reese is no weakling and he's already had a taste of the UFC. Morevoer, he is much bigger than Azamat. The American spent much time in a camp preparing for the tournament, while Azamat only took the fight a week before. Also, the opponents usually don't like to put things off, and fights with their participation usually end quickly.

Prediction:

W2 for 2.62

TU (1.5) for 2.28

TU (2.5) for 1.71