Dana White’s Contender Series takes place Tuesday, August 13 at UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The offshore sportsbooks recently opened up the betting odds for the full card, and here they are.
Dana White’s Contender Series 24 Opening Odds
William Knight -139
Herdem Alacabek +100
Devin Smyth -139
Brok Weaver +110
Shanna Young -139
Sarah Alpar +110
Tony Gravely -500
Ray Rodriguez +333
Julius Anglickas -278
Karl Reed +200
And here are my initial thoughts on the Dana White’s Contender Series 24 Opening Odds:
- The main event is a battle of unbeaten light heavyweights as Alacabek (5-0) takes on Knight (4-0). The 28-year-old Alacabek is unbeaten as a pro since making his debut in 2014 with all of his wins coming by stoppage. His last three wins came in LFA. The 31-year-old Knight is also unbeaten since beginning his MMA career just last year in 2018. All four of his wins have come by knockout, including one in CES his last time out. Of note, he has an amateur win over new UFC heavyweight Yorgan de Castro. This looks like a really tough fight to call as Knight looks like a natural in MMA while Alacabek has slightly more experience. I’m leaning slightly towards Knight but this fight can go either way and it’s hard to be confident in either guy.
- Next is a welterweight bout between Weaver (13-4) and Smyth (9-1). The 24-year-old Smyth is unbeaten over his last nine bouts since losing his pro debut in 2016. More than half of his wins come by submission, although he picked up his first knockout in his last fight. The 27-year-old Weaver has been fighting as a pro since 2013 and has won his last six fights. One of those wins was a split decision nod over PRIDE veteran Charles Bennett. Weaver has more experience and has fought better competition and I believe he should have opened as the favorite here. At dog money I would take Weaver.
- Then it’s a women’s bantamweight bout between Young (6-1) and Alpar (8-4). The 28-year-old Young is an Invicta veteran and has won her last two fights by stoppage. She holds a notable split decision win over Invicta featherweight champion Pam Sorenson. The 28-year-old Alpar has been fighting as a pro since 2011 and is currently riding a two-fight win streak. She has quite a bit of experience as well, including a notable decision win over former UFC fighter Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger. Both these women are very experienced and this should be a good fight, but I lean towards Young to get her hand raised.
- The bantamweights are up next as Gravely (18-5) takes on Rodriguez (15-5). The 27-year-old Gravely has been fighting as a pro since 2015 and is currently riding a six-fight win streak. He has fought all over the United States regional scene against a number of notable opponents. The 31-year-old Rodriguez is riding a two-fight win streak and his only loss in his last 11 fights is to current UFC bantamweight Chris Gutierrez. He has a ton of experience as well fighting all over the United States since making his pro debut in 2012. Both of these guys are veterans of the sport and have been waiting a long time to get this opportunity. I honestly feel like the odds are a bit wide here, and believe this is a dog-or-pass situation. Give me the big plus money on Rodriguez.
- And finally, it’s a light heavyweight bout between Reed (6-1) and Anglickas (6-1). The 30-year-old Reed is on a four-fight win streak since losing on the first season of the Contender Series in 2017. The 28-year-old Anglickas is on a five-fight win streak since his lone career loss in 2016. It’s worth noting both men lost to Cameron Olson. This is another fight that could go either way but I lean towards Anglickas based on momentum and fighting better competition.
