The final UFC pay-per-view of the year is arguably the best of the last 12 months. UFC 245 takes place on Dec. 14 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and features three championship bouts.
Below, find the odds for the five fights on the main card, building in chronological order from the opener between Petr Yan and former WEC featherweight champion Uriah Faber. All odds are courtesy of MTS who help beginners pick a reputable site to bet on, and find a sportsbook you can use on an iPhone or Android is also essential if you plan on betting on the go.
Petr Yan vs Uriah Faber – Bantamweight
Despite name recognition, Faber (35-10, 10 KO, 17 SUB) is a massive $4.60 underdog against Yan (13-1, 5 KO, 1 SUB). This is just Faber’s second fight out of retirement, and while he made short work of Ricky Simon as a $2.85 underdog last time out, the reality is that he’s now 40 years old and well past his prime.
Yan, a $1.20 favorite, is just entering his prime at age 26 and comes in on an eight-fight winning streak. Coincidentally, his last fight was a unanimous-decision win over Jimmie Rivera, the man who handed Faber a unanimous decision loss shortly before Faber retired.
Marlon Moraes vs Jose Aldo – Bantamweight
Again, the bigger name is the underdog. Aldo (28-5, 17 KO, 1 SUB) is at $2.65 while Moraes (22-6-1, 10 KO, 6 SUB) is a $1.53 favorite.
Aldo looked like he was on a path to redemption with two straight wins over Renato Moicano and Jeremy Stephens, victories that halted a run of three losses in four fights. But his comeback was stymied in May when he lost a UD to the man who will be getting a crack at the featherweight title belt later in the evening: Alexander Volkanovski.
Moraes also lost his last fight, getting KOed by bantamweight champ Henry Cejudo at UFC 238 in his first shot at a UFC title. But he had been ripping up the division prior to that loss, winning four in a row and scoring three straight stoppages over Aljamain Sterling, Jimmie Rivera, and Raphael Assuncao.
Amanda Nunes (C) vs Germaine De Randamie – Women’s Bantamweight Title Fight
The first title fight sees Nunes (18-4, 13 KO, 3 SUB) sitting as a $1.33 favorite to defend her belt against De Randamie (9-3, 4 KO), who’s a $3.5 ‘dog. This is a rematch of a Nov. 2013 fight that Nunes won by TKO.
Nunes is on an absolute tear, winning nine in a row dating back to Sep. 2014. She’s crossed off the best of the best in the women’s game, including Holly Holm, Cris Cyborg, Valentina Shevchenko (twice), and Ronda Rousey. Even more impressively, she’s only been to a decision once in her last six bouts.
While De Ramandie has improved since 2013 and enters on her own four-fight win streak, she doesn’t have the finishing power of the champ and there’s little reason to think the result this time will be much different than last when De Ramandie lasted a mere four minutes and landed just a single strike.
Max Holloway (C) vs Alexander Volkanovski – Featherweight Title Fight
One of the tighter matchups on the main card sees featherweight champion Holloway (21-4, 10 KO, 2 SUB) sitting as a $1.59 favorite against a very game Volkanovski (20-1, 11 KO, 3 SUB). Holloway had his 13-fight win streak broken by Dustin Poirier in April, but that was at lightweight. Back at his natural featherweight, the champ has strung together 14 straight victories, including dominant title defense over Frankie Edgar in July.
Volkanovski is a similar opponent to Edgar in terms of style: a stocky wrestler with quick hands, formidable power, and solid grappling. But he’s seven years younger (31), actually has a longer reach than the taller Holloway, and has only ever lost one fight, all the way back in 2013. This one should be a war.
Kamaru Usman (C) vs Colby Covington – Welterweight Title Fight
The main event of the night sees Covington (15-1, 2 KO, 5 SUB) finally get his title shot as a $2.55 underdog against newly-crowned Usman (15-1, 6 KO, 1 SUB). The champion’s only career loss came in his second pro fight when he got caught in a rear-naked choke. Since then, he’s won 14 in a row. He doesn’t have a lot of finishes on his resume, but the high-level wrestler has still been dominant. All of his eight decision wins in the UFC have been unanimous. In terms of striking, he has out-landed every opponent he’s faced. When it comes to takedowns, he owns a 42-0 advantage in ten UFC fights.
Covington is unbeaten since 2015 (seven straight wins) including five consecutive UD victories of his own. Another elite wrestler, he has 58-5 edge in takedowns in 11 UFC fights. His big disadvantage will be in the reach department, where Usman has four inches on him (76” vs 72”).
Usually, fights between two excellent wrestlers end up being stand-up battles.
