Although most major sports are still on pause, this feels like a real sports week to some degree. There are multiple UFC cards, NASCAR, and soccer are back, and we’ll even have some golf.
With betting odds posted on all of these events at all of the big books in the Garden State, let’s do a rundown of this week’s card and see what we’ve got coming up:
UFC on ESPN 9
When: Wednesday, May 13th
DraftKings Odds: Smith -182, Teixeira +150; Saint Preux -139, Rothwell +115
After an awesome UFC 249 card on Saturday, the UFC is back with two more events this week. The Wednesday card will be highlighted by an important Light Heavyweight bout between Anthony Smith and Glover Teixeira.
Smith has been a strong Light Heavyweight as he’s won four of his five fights in the division with the lone loss being to Jon Jones. Meanwhile, Teixeira is ranked No. 8 in the division and he’s won three in a row.
Smith is a sizable favorite here because he’s still in his prime (at 31) whereas Teixeira is viewed to be in the twilight of his career (he’s 40 years old).
Another interesting bout on this card will be the Ben Rothwell-Ovince Saint Preux heavyweight clash. Both fighters are nearly the end of the line and the loser might be pushed into retirement. Rothwell has lost three of four while Saint Preux has dropped three of five.
UFC on ESPN 10
When: Saturday, May 16th
FanDuel Odds: Harris -155, Overeem +130; Gadelha -190, Hill +150
Saturday’s UFC card will also be on ESPN+ and will have a couple of big fights at the top of the card. Alistair Overeem has had an illustrious career in the heavyweight division but he might be nearing the end of the line.
We’ll find out when he takes on Walt Harris on Saturday. Overeem is 9-7 in his last 16 bouts but all of those seven losses have come via knockout, so he’s been rocked many times. As for Harris, he’s undefeated in four straight with his last two wins earning him Performance of the Night honors.
Another interesting bout will be the Claudia Gadelha-Angela Hill strawweight showdown. Both are hoping to move closer to a title show with Zhang Weili.
Gadelha is ranked No. 6 in the division and has mostly only lost to fighters who are ahead of her in the rankings. Meanwhile, Hill is ranked No. 15 and is just 12-7 in her career. She’s getting a shot here because she’s won three in a row with all of the wins coming since September of 2019. We’ll see if she’s finally turned a corner in her career.
Bundesliga
When: Saturday, May 16th
It’s a good week for soccer fans as the Bundesliga is back on Saturday while it was also announced that the English Premier League has been cleared to return for June 1st. While Liverpool was running away with the EPL at last check, the Bundesliga has been far more competitive.
As we entered the break, FC Bayern Munich was at the top of the table with 55 points in 25 games (all of the teams have played 25 games). Borussia Dortmund was in second with 51 while RB Leipzig was third with 50. Borussia Monchengladbach (49), who is fourth, and Bayer Leverkusen (47), who is in fifth, are the only other teams with a real shot at the title as all of the other teams have 37 points or less.
All of the major New Jersey sportsbooks like FanDuel, DraftKings and everyone else already has lines up on the games. Bayern Munich is one of the biggest favorites on the board as they’re laying -500 over FC Union Berlin, who is 11th in the standings with just 30 points.
NASCAR Cup Series Race at Darlington Raceway
When: Sunday, May 17th
Odds: Busch +550, Harvick +550
NASCAR is back this weekend as the drivers make their return at Darlington Raceway. Most of the New Jersey sportsbooks already have odds up on the board and all of them should by the end of the week. Taking a look at DraftKings, they have odds on who’ll win the race, Top 3 and Top 10 props, and head-to-head matchups.
Over the last two races at this track, nobody has finished better than Kyle Larson, who was second and third in his last two starts there but remember he was fired for using a racial slur during a NASCAR iRacing event.
Taking a look at some other drivers who do well here, Erik Jones has placed first, eighth and fifth in his three starts here while Brad Keselowski has been in the Top 9 in four of his last five starts.
Kyle Busch and Kevin Harvick are tied as co-favorites at +550 while Denny Hamlin is next in line at +700.
PGA TOUR: TaylorMade Driving Relief
When: Sunday, May 17th
Odds: McIlroy-Johnson -225, Fowler-Wolff +175
We’ve got a friendly skins competition for charity on Sunday where four major golfers will compete in teams. Dustin Johnson and Rory McIlroy will be a duo against Ricky Fowler and Matthew Wolff. Johnson and McIlroy figure to have an edge as McIlroy is the World’s No. 1 player right now and is a two-time FedExCup champ. As for Johnson, he’s won 20 events on the PGA Tour. The other team will be Fowler, who is No. 27 in the world and Wolff, who is the 2019 NCAA National Champion. Both Fowler and Wolff are Oklahoma State University alumni.
The event will take place at Seminole Golf Club and DraftKings already has odds up on the event. McIlroy-Johnson are sizable favorites. We’ll see if they can cash in or if the young bucks will surprise.
