Rabbi Mort warned listeners not to chase Jeremy Stephens’ +900 to +1000 knockout prop, calling it “the trap of the century.” He reminded bettors that Stephens has not fought MMA since November 2022 and has spent the interim in bare-knuckle boxing, leaving his takedown defense and submission awareness even rustier. Stephens has been submitted in three of his last four MMA appearances and now faces Mason Jones, a 29-year-old Cage Warriors champion who has shown a willingness to wrestle whenever he’s clipped. Mort argued that if Jones gets hurt standing, he’ll immediately grapple, neutralizing Stephens’ only path. Given Stephens’ five prior sub losses, Mort believes the KO number is artificially high to lure casual money and suggested passing entirely or pivoting to Jones-by-submission instead.

Andy Lang echoed the Stephens knockout angle, telling viewers to avoid parlays with Mason Jones entirely and instead ‘just take Stephens by K.O.’. Lang pointed out that Stephens is fighting in his home region, will be in full kill-or-be-killed mode on a one-fight contract, and has zero intention of wrestling or pacing himself. Given Stephens’ age and style, Lang does not expect any other realistic win condition—no submissions, no point-fighting decisions—so the KO prop captures all of his equity while juicing the already sizable underdog price.

Jim Malaro urged listeners to fire on Jeremy Stephens by knockout at the huge underdog price. Malaro thinks Mason Jones being lined around –500 is ‘absolutely insane’ because Jones’ two UFC losses exposed shaky striking defense and he was repeatedly tagged on Cage Warriors by Michael Pagani. Meanwhile Stephens has spent the last two years in bare-knuckle boxing—Malaro joked they are ‘handing out the good vitamins’ there—so he expects a sharper, more aggressive version of Lil’ Heathen returning on this one-fight UFC deal. If Jones can’t get easy takedowns and hold them, Malaro sees Stephens’ one-shot power turning the fight, noting the veteran ‘only needs one swing to put your lights out’. Because Stephens has virtually no submission or decision equity, Malaro recommends skipping the moneyline and playing Stephens by KO for the best odds.