UFC 242 takes place Saturday, September 7 at The Arena, Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The offshore sportsbooks recently opened up the betting odds for the full card, and here they are.
UFC 242 Opening Odds
Khabib Nurmagomedov -325
Dustin Poirier +255
Edson Barboza -175
Paul Felder +135
Islam Makhachev -405
Davi Ramos +285
Curtis Blaydes -275
Shamil Abdurakhimov +195
Mairbek Taisumov -385
Diego Ferreira +265
Andrea Lee -165
Joanne Calderwood +125
Zubaira Tukhugov -565
Lerone Murphy +375
Liana Jojua -165
Sarah Moras +125
Ottman Azaitar -305
Teemu Packalen +225
Belal Muhammad -230
Takashi Sato +170
Muslim Salikhov -195
Nordine Taleb +155
Omari Akhmedov -185
Zak Cummings +145
Don Madge -350
Fares Ziam +250
And here are my initial thoughts on the UFC 242 Opening Odds:
- The main event should be an incredible lightweight title fight between the champ Nurmagomedov and the challenger Poirier. Nurmagomedov is in the prime of his career and is a perfect 27-0 in his MMA career. He is the most dominant wrestling-based fighter in the sport and doesn’t appear to be slowing down anytime soon. He now takes on Poirier, who is unbeaten in his last six fights. Poirier proved in his win against Max Holloway that he’s an elite fighter and he showed in his wins over Eddie Alvarez and Justin Gaethje that he has incredible KO power. Still, Nurmagomedov has never lost and it’s hard to picture anyone beating him. If anyone is going to do it, it may be Poirier. But until we see Nurmagomedov show any flaws in his game it’s just very hard to bet against him.
- The co-main event is a lightweight rematch between Barboza and Felder. These two met back in 2015 with Barboza defeating Felder by decision. There’s no reason to think that won’t happen this time around. Although Barboza’s chin has been tested in his recent fights, when he’s the aggressor he’s able to batter his opponent with his leg kicks and that’s how he beat Felder in their first fight. Felder has looked really strong as of late and should put up a better fight this time around than he did in the first fight, but it sure looks like another stylistically favorable fight for the technician Barboza against a fighter in Felder who is willing to brawl.
- Another important lightweight bout on the card sees Makhachev take on Ramos in a battle between two rising contenders. Makhachev is 6-1 overall in the UFC and is riding a five-fight win streak while Ramos is 4-1 and on a four-fight win streak. Both fighters are in their primes right now but Makhachev is the guy everyone is saying is going to be the next champion in the lightweight division and he’s a big favorite here. But don’t sleep on Ramos if this fight hits the mat.
- The heavyweight bout between Blaydes and Abdurakhimov should be interesting as well. Blaydes is one of the best heavyweights in the UFC but he has shown he can be knocked out if his chin is touched the right way. Abdurakhimov is on a three-fight win streak and has shown a lot of improvements in his game recently. Blaydes is a big favorite here, but at these odds it might be a dog-or-pass situation.
- Overall this is a very deep card that features a number of preliminary-card bouts that should keep fight fans and bettors interested. A number of the Muslim-based fighters on this card are significant betting favorites at the window and you’d have to think that most of them will win their fights based on how loud the crowd will be cheering for them. But then again, we’re likely to see a couple of upsets as well. It’s just hard to say in what fights those upsets will be coming in.
