UFC 293 Odds: Adesanya vs. Strickland Betting Angles
The UFC is in Sydney, Australia, this weekend for a pay-per-view event headlined by middleweight champion Israel Adesanya defending his belt against outspoken rival Sean Strickland. According to the UFC 293 odds, Adesanya is the heaviest betting favorite on the card, with Strickland as the biggest longshot.
In the co-main event, heavyweight knockout artist Tai Tuivasa will have the local crowd behind him, but oddsmakers have pegged him as an underdog against Russian striker Alexander Volkov.
We’ll take a detailed look at all the UFC 293 odds below, complete with full analysis of the pay-per-view event. But first, here’s a look at the best sportsbook promo codes ahead of the fights. Click on any of the links below to head to the best sports betting odds. If you do not see UFC odds, you may need to turn off your pop-up blocker.
UFC 293 ODDS FOR ENTIRE CARD
UFC 293 Main Card
Israel Adesanya vs. Sean Strickland
Tai Tuivasa vs. Alexander Volkov
Manel Kape vs. Felipe dos Santos
Justin Tafa vs. Austen Lane
Tyson Pedro vs. Anton Turkalj
UFC 293 Prelims
Carlos Ulberg vs. Jung Da-un
Jack Jenkins vs. Chepe Mariscal
Jamie Mullarkey vs. John Makdessi
Nasrat Haqparast vs. Landon Quiñones
UFC 293 Early Prelims
Mike Mathetha vs. Charlie Radtke
Shane Young vs. Gabriel Miranda
Kevin Jousset vs. Kiefer Crosbie
HOW TO WATCH UFC 293
Early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+, 6:30 p.m. ET
Prelims on ESPNews/ESPN+, 8 p.m. ET
Main card on ESPN+ PPV, 10 p.m. ET
UFC 293 MAIN EVENT PREVIEW
Almost any middleweight in the world would come in as an underdog against Adesanya at this point, but the odds here reflect the fact that Strickland faces a particularly difficult stylistic challenge. For all his psycho killer talk, Strickland is not known as a vicious finisher in the cage. He’s not a power puncher, nor is he a suffocating grappler with tricky submission skills.
Mainly, he’s a volume fighter. He puts a lot of forward pressure on opponents, maintaining a high pace with constant output, while remaining just hard enough to hit that he gradually pulls away on the scorecards.
The problem is that Adesanya is the far superior kickboxer in this matchup. He’s also the bigger, taller man, and he’s at his best when he gets to control the range. Strickland will have the solve the problem of the distance somehow, but how? If he stays on the outside, Adesanya should be able to easily pick him apart. If he goes rushing in, well, the champ excels at countering those kinds of efforts.
Strickland may try to use his wrestling as a way around the issue. But Adesanya has proven tough to take down and keep down for most middleweights, and Strickland isn’t known as one of the division’s best wrestlers.
Conclusions
Almost all the advantages in this matchup belong to Adesanya, and he knows it. Strickland’s best chance may be to hope that this fact alone leads to Adesanya taking him lightly and letting his guard down. Because if the champ is on his game, he should be able to pick Strickland apart over the course of five rounds – even if he may not end up putting him away.
Main Event Method of Victory Odds
Main Event Round Betting
UFC 293 CO-MAIN EVENT PREVIEW
Some UFC events have true co-main events that are occasionally title fights themselves or at least title eliminators. Other events have fights that just happen second-to-last. This is the latter type, but at least it has the potential to be fun.
Tuivasa is a true slugger in every sense of the word. He hits like an old truck and fights like he’s unaware that there’s such a thing as Round 2. Volkov is more technical and more well-rounded, plus he has the height and the reach to keep Tuivasa’s bombs at a safe distance. Trouble is, Volkov doesn’t always fight like he realizes these things, and he has been knocked out by exactly this type of fighter before.
Conclusions
If there’s an underdog worth looking hard at on this main card, it’s probably Tuivasa. He only needs to land one – but he does need to land it. There’s probably no other path to victory that doesn’t include getting inside and dropping the hammer. Volkov’s whole game plan should be built around avoiding that, but he’s struggled with it before and could do so again here.
Co-Main Event Method of Victory Odds
Co-Main Event Round Betting
OTHER MAIN CARD BOUTS
Manel Kape vs. Felipe dos Santos
The UFC is giving dos Santos a tough assignment in his promotional debut. Kape is a very dangerous opponent with quality experience, making this feel like a showcase fight for him. Kape is also one of the division’s truly capable finishers, so chances of him getting a UFC debutant out of there inside the distance are fairly good.
Justin Tafa vs. Austen Lane
These two met in a UFC bout back in June, but it ended almost immediately due to an accidental eye poke, resulting in a no-contest. Now, we’re trying again to get a real result out of these two heavyweights, with the understanding that almost anything can happen once the (relatively lesser skilled) big men start throwing leather. One way or another, it seems unlikely to go the distance.
Tyson Pedro vs. Anton Turkalj
This will be Turkalj’s third try at getting his first UFC win. Pedro, meanwhile, is one of those fighters who seems like he should be more successful than he is, given all the obvious physical tools he has to work with. Slight underdog odds on Pedro, for whom this is a home game, are appealing in this otherwise close matchup.
PRELIM PROP BET OPTIONS
Carlos Ulberg has a ton of potential and the UFC seems to be eyeing him as a potential future contender. The Kiwi’s been given an advantageous matchup against Da Un Jung in front of what will be a friendly crowd, and the goal seems to be to give the Aussies something to cheer about on the prelims.
Elsewhere, Jamie Mullarkey had a surprising setback in his last fight but is getting a chance for a slow rebuild here against John Makdessi, who’s solid but not spectacular in any area. Makdessi has been in the UFC since it was still on Spike TV. The years and the miles are starting to show for him, while Mullarkey is supposed to be the hot new thing.
Best of luck wagering on UFC 293 odds.
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