The underdog party was a loud, month-long celebration in the UFC.
Amanda Nunes may be the officer sent to break it up at UFC 250.
The featherweight champion, one of UFC’s most exciting pound-for-pound performers, is a prohibitive -670 at DraftKings against Felicia Spencer in Saturday’s UFC 250 main event from Las Vegas.
FanDuel offering HUGE odds boost for main event
Before we break down the fight card, I just have to talk about this no-brainer odds boost.
FanDuel giving you a chance to bet on Amanda with +250 odds!
FanDuel Sportsbook is offering Amanda Nunes to beat Felicia Spencer at 2.5/1 (+250) for a $20 max-bet.
This is enhanced from an original line of (-650).
- In order for users to claim this offer – any new user, will just need to have made a deposit and they’ll be able to access the enhanced Amanda Nunes market.
- It will not appear until the deposit is made.
Nunes will try and do something no UFC fighter has ever done
There have been several UFC fighters to hold titles in multiple divisions, and even fewer who have held the belts at the same time.
If she gets the win, Nunes will be the only UFC fighter to EVER defend both belts.
Nunes appears likely to break the four-fight win streak notched by the underdogs during four UFC May cards.
It is the first of the organization’s five return cards in which the favorite has been greater than 2-1. Nunes was solidly listed at what seemed like a bulging +335 a week ago according to DraftKings. That line now seems like a bargain to Nunes supporters.
UFC 250 Odds: prelim & main cards in Las Vegas, without fans.
Fans can watch via ESPN+.
Main Card, 10 p.m. DraftKings Sportsbook odds as of Wed. night
- Amanda Nunes -670 vs Felicia Spencer +475
- Cody Garbrandt -155 vs Raphael Assuncao +125
- Aljamain Sterling -117 vs Cory Sandhagen -106
- Neil Magny -150 vs Anthony Rocco Martin +120
- Sean O’Malley -500 vs Eddie Wineland +360
UFC 250 Odds Preliminary Card 6 p.m.
Prelim card: Fanduel Sportsbook odds as of Wed. night
- Chase Hooper – 172 Alex Caceras +140
- Ian Heinisch -122 vs Gerald Meerschaert +100
- Cody Stamann -280 vs Brian Kelleher +215
- Charles Byrd -178 vs Maki Pitolo +144
UFC 250 Bonus Early Prelim Odds: DraftKings
Alex Perez-143 vs Jussier Formiga +115
DraftKings announced an odds boost for a three-pack ticket.
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- Wins by Heinisch at -125, Perez at -143 and Pitola at +140 will now pay +700, up from +641.
Bettors may be stabbing at a Nunes prop and looking moneyline for two competitive undercard fights.
Nunes is nearly un-playable from the moneyline, but bettors may try to cash by nailing the right victory method.
- A KO/TKO is -182, not terrible considering her ability to win by numerous means.
A Nunes submission win is +600
She has won that way before, including in first-round fashion over Miesha Tate in 2016.
- Spencer: +1800 for a KO/TKO
- Spencer: +1100 for a submission win
- Spencer: +1200 to win by decision.
The bantamweight division unfurls four ranked fighters
Garbrandt is slightly favored despite being ranked ninth compared to Assuncao’s fifth slot.
Gardbrandt is trying to recapture lost form. He was the division champion after defeating Dominik Cruz in 2016. But that his last win. He fought once apiece in 2017, 2018 and 2019, losing each.
His last bout was a one-round setback to Pedro Munhoz in March, 2019.
Assuncao also needs a win badly. He has lost two straight.
In his last bout, Assuncao dropped a three-round decision to Sandhagen. He has a previous win over Sterling and hasn’t been sliding as long as Garbrandt has. That makes him attractive at +125 to some bettors.
Style variables: Assuncao is well-rounded, notching decisions in 48% of his wins, submissions at 37% and knockouts at 15%.
Garbrandt is a superb striker. More than 80% of his victories come by knockouts. Eighteen percent come from decisions. Submissions? Zero. Garbrandt wants to keep this fight off the ground.
Aljamain Sterling vs Cory Sandhagen
- Sterling, ranked number two in the division, is -117.
- Sandhagen, number four, is -106.
This looks like perfectly reasonable odds for two fighters who can barely be separated in the rankings.
They are both hot.
Sterling has won his last four and six of seven. He comes in off a June, 2019 decision against Munhoz.
Sandhagen is unbeaten in the UFC and enters off an August, 2019 decision win against Assuncao. Sandhagen has a diverse victory menu, with 36% knockouts and technical knockouts. He also produces 27% wins by submission.
Sterling is much heavier in the decision and submission department, at more than 40%. Only 12% of his wins come by knockout.
So it’s a contrast. The bantamweight fights are close on paper, yet this is the shortest price Nunes has ever fought at.
Amanda Nunes: In A Class by Herself
Nunes is a seasoned pro, who commands a Floyd Mayweather-type persona in the sport. She is ranked as the UFC’s top pound-for-pound athlete and holds titles both in the bantamweight and featherweight class.
She’s the greatest female MMA fighter of all time.
“The Lioness” is a package of speed, muscle, sudden power and balance. She owns 10 consecutive triumphs since a 2014 loss to Cat Zingano and is one of the UFC’s most versatile performers.
During the six-year surge, she has done it all.
- Nunes Holly Holm with a devastating head kick
- She finished Ronda Rousey with a collection of solid rights to the head, producing a first-minute stoppage.
- Remember her odds that night in 2016? She was +240 at most major books and +130 at fight time. Showing a sense of entertainment, seconds after the fight Nunes put her finger over her mouth in a gesture of silencing the Rousey hype.
- Nunes defeated Miesha Tate with a first-round submission.
- She stopped Cris Cyborg with a series of thunderous right hands.
- Nunes earned two tough victories over Valentina Shevchenko, and that’s revealing.
- Shevchenko is the UFC flyweight champ and the second in the female pound-for-pound rankings to Nunes.
Spencer notched a first-round knockout over Zarah Fairn Dos Santos in February. She suffered a decision loss to Cyborg last year.
This is the history Nunes is shooting to reverse:
On May 30, Gilbert Burns, defeated Tyron Woodley via dominating decision.
On May 16, Alistair Overeem stopped Walt Harris in the second round of their heavyweight bout.
Three days earlier, Glover Teixeira scored a light-heavyweight knockout win over Antony Smith and Ben Rothwell secured a heavyweight decision over slightly-favored Ovince Saint Preux.
Justin Gaethje got the underdog express rolling on May 9 when he halted Tony Ferguson in round five.
The underdogs paid in the +150 range, but some bettors capitalized on Prop City.
Both Gaethje and Teixeira secured odds of around 35-1 to bettors who took them to secure a fifth-round victory.
This may have been the best UFC underdog run ever.