UFC Fight Night DraftKings DFS Picks for Medic vs. Rodriguez

For the first time in the promotion's history, they'll hold an event in Belgrade, Serbia to celebrate a recent wave of the country's MMA talent.

UFC Fight Night: Medic vs. Rodriguez locks at 10 a.m. EST on Paramount+.

The main event is a can't-miss welterweight slugfest between hometown knockout artist Uros "The Doctor" Medic and veteran boxer Daniel "D-Rod" Rodriguez. Considering the favorite has the division's shortest average fight time, don't blink as these two strikers collide in the center of the octagon.

Every week, DraftKings Daily Fantasy has MMA contests featuring the full schedule of UFC fights. Here are this week's top plays in each pricing tier.

UFC Fight Night: Medic vs. Rodriguez Studs to Target

Mateusz Rebecki ($9,600)

According to DraftKings Sportsbook, Mateusz Rebecki is 87.5% implied to win his fight on Saturday. That might not be a bad place to start in DFS.

The 33-year-old from Poland is well-known for his violent, scrappy style. He fights at such a frantic competitive pace that he's scoring 54.6 DraftKings points (DKPTS) in losses. As a hefty favorite, he's well positioned to be the fifth fighter to beat Kyle Prepolec in five tries.

Prepolec's striking (48%) defense is poor, but his takedown defense (45%) is worse when Rebecki averages 6.35 takedown attempts per 15 minutes and lands an efficient clip of them (48%).

A smooth finish for Mateusz Rebecki 😮‍💨

Stream #UFC295 NOW on ESPN+ ▶️https://t.co/2KZBNgp0yD pic.twitter.com/0tj9F3Xhix
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) November 12, 2023

Value is tough to come by on the slate overall, which could make Rebecki's highest salary a bit contrarian in tournaments.

Aleksandar Rakic ($9,300)

I love this move to heavyweight for Aleksandar Rakic, and there are plenty of ways for him to score in Saturday's fight.

Now that he's no longer cutting weight, he might up a solid pace of 4.13 significant strikes landed per minute at 205 pounds. Will his speed enable him to be the seventh pro to finish Marcin Tybura? It's possible as Tybura, 40, has really slowed in terms of reaction time and foot speed.

Rakic's knockdown rate (0.82 KD%) at light heavyweight was just okay, so I wouldn't be surprised if this fight made it to Round 2 or Round 3. That could allow him to find the balance of points for strikes and an early finish, though.

UFC Fight Night: Medic vs. Rodriguez DFS Mid Tier Picks

Borislav Nikolic ($8,400)

Mark Vologdin's opponents have been a fantasy gold mine in his brief, two-start career with UFC.

On the Contender Series, Juan Adrian Martinetti landed 165 significant strikes and 3 takedowns. Castaneda pummeled him for 135 in his official debut. Vologdin has absorbed 10.00 significant strikes per minute so far with an awful striking defense (40%).

In some ways, Borislav Nikolic is his toughest test just because of size. Nikolic has fought regionally at 145 pounds, and Vologdin (5'3") has been small but mighty to make it to the final scorecards despite his defensive issues. Does that ends against the Serbian newcomer?

Borislav Nikolić makes his UFC debut from Brave FC this week pic.twitter.com/stJCkKuzDH
— Clint MacLean (@DieHardMMAPod) July 28, 2026

Milos Janicic ($8,200)

Saturday's main card opens with what appears to be an exciting clash of newcomers. With value sparse as 11 favorites are 65% or better implied to win, according to DK Sportsbook, Milos Janicic and Noah Gugnon's fight is a crucial one in DFS, too.

I'll take the Montenegrin striker. Milos Janicic's ability to put out combinations, stay defensively sound despite low hands, and wilt an opponent's confidence with his prowess at rolling power punches remind me of King Green from this same division. Gugnon's grappling might not also be as lethal against the former OKTAGON MMA roster staple.

We're largely guessing in an important mid-range fight, so it's noteworthy that 78% of MMA diehards at Tapology are picking Janicic.

UFC Fight Night: Medic vs. Rodriguez Underdog Plays

Dusko Todorovic ($7,700)

If there's a sentimental hometown fighter, it's the second-longest tenured Serbian fighter on the roster behind Rakic.

Dusko Todorovic has had to scrap his way to this appearance via a 4-6 record despite some brutal assignments at middleweight, including Gregory Rodrigues, Christian Leroy Duncan, and Punahele Soriano. Robert Valentin (1-3 UFC) is more manageable.

"Robzilla" is an extremely poor striker with poor defense (33%), and he's staked his entire strategy to 1.8 submission attempts per 15 minutes. Todorovic, a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, has never been tapped as a pro.

The standup favors the hometown guy here, and don't be surprised if Todorovic wrestles into the lion's den. Torrez Finney, landing eight takedowns, had no problem flooring the Swiss favorite.

Daniel Rodriguez ($6,800)

If Daniel Rodriguez indeed emerges from Saturday's firefight with a win, he'll be signing up for Hollywood scripts.

D-Rod spent time in a Mexican prison earlier this year due to possession of marijuana but is back just mere months after his release in April. The 10-4 UFC veteran is back in his comfort zone.

WHAT A SCRAP 👏 #UFC318

Daniel Rodriguez beats Kevin Holland by unanimous decision! pic.twitter.com/nXqLSfMvtr
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) July 20, 2025

Coming off the best win in his career, we've yet to see the 39-year-old dropped with punches in 25 pro appearances. It's being lined at DraftKings Sportsbook as a formality here because of Uros Medic's huge knockdown rate (4.04%), but the question I ask is...what if that seminal blow never comes?

In an extended fight, the boxer lands an efficient 7.20 significant strikes per minute, and Medic has faded badly to the point where he's never seen a 13th minute in the octagon.

You really want me to pick against this guy -- of all guys -- overcoming a little early adversity?

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