We are used to seeing weekly events in the UFC, but every so often, one comes along that has every fight fan eagerly anticipating the start. You have to say that UFC 259 certainly falls into that category because how often do you see three title fights set to go on the main card? This is an absolutely ridiculously good main card and one that you do not want to miss. Each of the 5 fights have the potential to be explosive, and with belts on the line all over the place, we expect a lot of these bouts to be close. There is a lot of ground to cover here, so let’s dig a little deeper into each of the bouts on the main card, with UFC odds and predictions included.
UFC 259: Blachowicz Vs Adesanya Betting Preview
Thiago Santos (+135) Vs Aleksandar Rakic (-165)
The main card opens with what looks to be a great Light Heavyweight matchup. Things have not been going well for Thiago Santos of late, as he comes into this one having lost back-to-back fights against very good opponents. He is still ranked #4 in the division, so there is every reason to believe he can bounce back. Rakic was on a 12-fight winning streak before losing a controversial split decision to Volkan Oezdemir back in December of 2019. He bounced back with a win last August and I think he gets another one here via decision.
Islam Makhachev (-380) Vs Drew Dober (+305)
A pair of in form fighters take to the Octagon next, with both looking to crack the top 10 in the Lightweight division. Makhachev has rolled to 6 straight wins, taking his career mark to 18-1 in the process. Over those 6 fights, he finished 2 in the opening round, with the other 4 going the distance. After a loss to Beneil Dariush, Dober has bounced back nicely and put together a trio of consecutive wins, with none of them going beyond the second round. He is going to need to go deeper into this one, with Makhachev, I believe, getting the decision.
Petr Yan (-120) Vs Aljamain Sterling (-110)
The first of the three title fights of the night is for the Bantamweight crown, with Petr Yan looking to defend the title that he won last year against Jose Aldo. With his win over Aldo, Yan extended his winning streak to 10 fights, taking his career mark to 15-1 in the process. The champ is going to be tough to beat, but Sterling, who is 19-3 and the winner of 5 in a row looks to be up for the task. I would be a little surprised to see this one going the full 5 rounds and I am on Yan to win by KO.
Amanda Nunes (-910) Vs Megan Anderson (+560)
The women’s Featherweight title fight is up next and is the one that looks the most likely to be over quickly. Amanda Nunes is coming in looking to defend her belt for the second time and she has all the tools to make this a short fight. Nunes has not lost a bout since back in 2014, and while her last 2 fights have gone the distance, they were against tougher opposition. This is not to suggest that Anderson is a slouch, but she is just 3-2 in her last 5 and looks to be in over her head here. I have Nunes in the first or second round.
Jan Blachowicz (+185) Vs Israel Adesanya (-225)
The headline event of the night has all the makings of a beauty, as a pair of great fighters prepare to square off for the Light Heavyweight title. Blachowicz will be defensing his title for the first time after taking out Dominick Reyes at UFC 253. He is on a 4-fight win streak, with 3 of those victories coming in the first or second round. Adesanya already holds the title at Middleweight and is stepping up to try and add another belt to his trophy cabinet. Unbeaten at 20-0, it would be a brave person who bet against him doing just that.
UFC Betting News
Odds and Lines: UFC Betting | Live
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