PFL Playoffs Week 1 Predictions, MMA Picks and Betting Odds August 16

PFL Playoffs Week 1 Betting Preview – Ultimate MMA PFL Playoffs Week 1

UFC WagerTalk handicapper Andy Lang gives his 2024 PFL Playoffs Week 1 predictions and picks for August 16th with Impa Kasanganay and Joshua Silveira headlining in the main event. The main card starts up at 9:00pm ET from Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Hollywood, FL!

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2024 PFL Playoffs Week 1 Info

Friday, August 16	2024 PFL Playoffs Week 1 Betting Notes (Courtesy of Caesars)
Main Event:	Impa Kasanganay -500 vs Joshua Silveira +380
Rounds:	N/A
Fight Time:	Main Card Starts at 9:00pm ET / 6:00pm PT
Arena:	Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino, Hollywood, FL
TV:	ESPN

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2024 PFL Playoffs Week 1 Predictions

Rob Wilkinson -175 vs Dovletdzhan Yagshimuradov +145

We can’t take anything away from either of their last fights because they were at the elevation in Utah, and everyone got tired early in the fight, and both got decision wins with pretty boring, low volume fights.

These guys can be exciting strikers as they both have first-round finishes recently, and since both guys are tied for 2nd and 3rd in the points, I expect fireworks on the feet early.

I lean Wilkinson to get the better of those exchanges as he’s a bit more explosive, and he’s super motivated this season to prove he’s Championship caliber after the positive drug test.

Yags is going to have to get to Wilkinson’s chin early, but if he doesn’t he’ll eventually eat a big shot that I don’t think he can recover from.

However, if this gets out of the first round and both guys used a lot of energy, this could turn into a wrestling/clinch match that goes the distance. Wilkinson is the play, but I can’t play him by finish as Yags is a tough guy to KO.

Gadzhi Rabadanov -575 vs Miael Dufort +425

Dufort really blew it in his last fight losing a decision to Piccolotti at the high elevation in Utah, and he really looked awful.

This was coming off a fight against Burnell where he got the 2nd round guillotine finish, but he didn’t look amazing in that fight either as he was hittable on the feet, and struggled with takedowns and Burnell’s forward pressure.

Rabadanov shouldn’t have any trouble landing strikes on Dufort, and he has the better takedown game as Dufort has had the benefit of submitting a lot of weak opponents, but just stepping up in competition to Piccolotti and Burnell, we’ve seen him struggle to win control of his opponents.

Rabadanov will stay away from the choke’s of Dufort, and piece him up on the feet which will set up the wrestling, clinch and takedowns. It won’t be an exciting fight, but Rabadanov should win a decision over three rounds.

Brent Primus -135 vs Clay Collard +114

This should be a great fight as Primus will have the advantage on the ground, and
Collard will have the advantage on the feet so whoever can win the battle of where will the fight take place will most likely win the fight.

Collard’s inability to stop takedowns or reverse positions on the ground or in the clinch has cost him big time as he’s lost three out of the last four fights by the same recipe, and he just doesn’t seem to know how to handle himself if it’s not a boxing match.

Primus isn’t a dummy, he’ll entertain Collard on the feet for a bit before closing the distance and getting a clinch or takedown, and I think he can do that throughout the fight. I’ll take Primus to win unless Collard can damage him early on the feet.

Biaggio Ali Walsh -1100 vs Brian Stapleton +700

This fight is truly laughable. Walsh is their Golden Boy, and they’re trying to bring him along slow, and they know his striking defense is awful so they keep giving him very low level fighters, but Stapleton might be the worst I’ve seen.

This is his first pro fight, and he absolutely is not a professional caliber fighter. He’s lankly, holds his hands way to low, his stance is awful, and he’s fought other amateurs with similar abilities, and he’s only 4-4.

Walsh is going to steamroll this guy, but don’t be too quick to take Walsh to win in the first round. Cage time is really important for Walsh at this stage in his career, and we saw him go the distance in his last fight against Palacio where I thought he could’ve finished him, but it was pretty obvious the strategy was to go all 15 minutes.

Walsh will use this as a training session so while I expect him to dominate, I don’t think it will be a quick round one finish.

The sneaky play might be Walsh by submission as this will be a great fight for him to work on takedowns and chokes on a bad opponent, but really the only play is to use Walsh as a parlay piece.

2024 PFL Playoffs Week 1 Main Event: Impa Kasanganay -500 vs Josh Silveira +380

Josh Silveira might have the most fraudulent run in PFL history. He beats Sam Kei, who is awful and isn’t in the promotion anymore.

He fights Delon Monte who blows out his knee in the first round when he stepped on it awkwardly, and Josh gets credited with a first round KO.

Next he fights Ty Flores, and Josh is gassing hard, lands a hail mary knee to get the KO, but make no mistake, he was getting ready to lose.

Then this season, Sadibou Sy randomly breaks his thumb early in the fight against Josh, and Silviera gets credited with another first round KO.

However, in two of his last three fights he’s lost decisions to Wilkinson and Impa Kasanganay, and I see the same result here.

Impa worked him over easily for five rounds in last years final, and Impa showed he had better cardio, better striking, and better movement, and I don’t see what adjustments Josh will have made.

He’s not polished on the feet, and his cardio is bad. In his last five wins, all have been in the first round. His last three losses have all been by decision so he wins early, gasses and fades quickly. Impa by decision is the play here.

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