Two of the best fighters in UFC historical past make their Octagon returns after lengthy layoffs when Jon Jones defends the heavyweight championship in opposition to two-time former champion Stipe Miocic in the primary occasion of UFC 309.
Jones defeated Ciryl Gane in March 2023 to win the championship, his heavyweight debut and first combat since early 2020. A combat with Miocic was then deliberate for that November, however Jones suffered a pectoral damage that pressured the combat to be postponed. That postponement additionally prolonged a prolonged layoff for Miocic, who has not fought since a knockout loss to Francis Ngannou in March 2021.
It has been an odd week for a lot of following the game as most consideration has shifted to a possible Jones vs. Tom Aspinall combat. Whereas Jones was inactive, Aspinall stepped up and earned the interim heavyweight crown and has accomplished all the things he can to persuade Jones to take a combat with him. As a substitute, Jones has given a litany of excuses for why that will not occur, starting from Jones’ declare {that a} win over Aspinall does nothing for his legacy to eager to drop the belt altogether to pursue tremendous fights with Alex Pereira and Derrick Lewis to straight up not liking Aspinall and the way he has gone about his enterprise. UFC CEO Dana White refuses to provide any credence to the “ducking” accusations being levied at Jones.
Elsewhere on the cardboard, a light-weight rematch between prime contenders is about when former champion Charles Oliveira takes on former Bellator king Michael Chandler. The 2 beforehand met in 2021 for the vacant strap at 155 kilos with Oliveira overcoming an early barrage from Chandler to attain a second-round knockout for the championship.
Plus, rising middleweight prospect Bo Nickal is again when he takes on veteran Paul Craig. Nickal is without doubt one of the most adorned newbie wrestlers of all time and has confirmed himself nicely early on in his MMA profession. Now, he will get an opponent who ought to be capable of give him some resistance within the grappling division in Craig, who’s a black belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu.
Regardless of the layoffs and the rise of different, doubtlessly extra worthy title contenders, Jones vs. Miocic represents a conflict of probably the most completed heavyweight champion (Miocic) and light-weight heavyweight champion (Jones) and can draw loads of consideration due to that reality alone. The betting odds lean closely towards Jones retaining the title at Madison Sq. Backyard.
After going 1-4 with our greatest bets for UFC 308, we’re sitting with a file of 26-33 on the 12 months. It has been a tough 12 months for our picks, however we’re hoping to shut out the 12 months robust beginning with UFC 309.
FanDuel has odds for each side of UFC 309 in addition to the undercard on Saturday. Take a look at the newest FanDuel promo to get in on the motion.
Let’s check out our picks for the perfect guess for every predominant card combat at UFC 309.
Mauricio Ruffy vs. James Llontop
Mauricio Ruffy by way of KO/TKO/DQ (-150)
Ruffy is a particularly correct striker out of the Combating Nerds camp. He blasted out Jamie Mullarkey within the first spherical at UFC 301 with a flying knee and a few follow-up punches for an enormous assertion win in his UFC debut. Llontop, in the meantime, is on a brutal two-fight shedding skid. He was a substantial favourite in opposition to Chris Padilla in April however missed weight and was submitted within the first spherical. Llontop then adopted that up with break up choice loss to Viacheslav Borshchev in August. Llontop was clipped by a number of large photographs in that combat and that taking place once more would spell catastrophe in opposition to Ruffy. Llontop is hard sufficient that enjoying beneath 1.5 rounds (+140) is not as interesting as simply taking Ruffy to get the knockout someplace earlier than the ultimate bell.
Viviane Araujo vs. Karine Silva
Battle to go the gap: Sure (-225)
Silva is an efficient finisher with finishes in 17 of her 18 skilled wins however Araujo shouldn’t be straightforward to place away. Araujo has been stopped as soon as in her profession and that got here nicely earlier than her UFC profession. Silva needs to be anticipated to get the win and hand Araujo her second straight loss and fourth in her 5 most up-to-date fights however Araujo is hard and has sufficient methods in her bag to make Silva work for it throughout all three rounds. Silva by choice is +100, which is an interesting line however we’re giving a little bit of a buffer in opposition to an upset by merely taking the combat to go the gap.
Bo Nickal vs. Paul Craig
Below 1.5 rounds (-175)
Nickal is a large favourite heading into this one and for good purpose. He’s the UFC’s hyper-prospect, touted as the way forward for the game and going through a person in Craig who has suffered some brutal losses previously few years. Craig does possess the power to lock anybody in a submission and pressure a faucet, which is why he holds a win over former gentle heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill, so perhaps there’s an opportunity this proves to be a entice combat for Nickal. Nickal ought to run by way of Craig on this combat however we will play it a bit secure by taking the beneath 1.5 spherical in case Nickal’s aggression will get him locked up in a shock Craig submission.
Charles Oliveira vs. Michael Chandler
Over 1.5 rounds (-105)
Each fighters are principally of the “end or be completed” faculty, which is why the combat going the gap is +550. The truth that they’ve already fought as soon as, with Chandler badly rocking Oliveira within the first spherical after which Oliveira rocking and ending Chandler within the second, means they each understand how harmful the opposite man is. I consider that familiarity will lead to a slower first spherical than many anticipate earlier than the motion picks up within the second. Add in that each fighters understand how important a victory is, with a loss being the tip of Oliveira’s probabilities to get again to the title or Chandler’s more and more fading dream of combating Conor McGregor, and I am banking on a sluggish begin earlier than a livid end.
Jon Jones vs. Stipe Miocic
Over 2.5 rounds (+114)
When desirous about this combat, it is onerous to shake this weekend’s different large combat in Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul. Like that unusual boxing match, a variety of this comes right down to how and succesful each fighters are. Is Jones within the temper to go all out like he did in thrashing Ciryl Gane to win the heavyweight title or will we see the extra risk-averse model of “Bones” who regarded to soundly outwork opponents and take the combat the gap? Equally, what does Miocic seem like after being out of motion since March 2021? There are a variety of unknowns heading into Jones vs. Miocic past that Jones is a heavy favourite to get the win. I am leaning towards Jones being extra cautious of Miocic’s energy and all-around skillset than he was of Gane, and Miocic additionally being extra competent on the bottom than Gane if he’s taken down. That ought to result in the combat going previous the midway mark of Spherical 3.
Who wins UFC 309: Jones vs. Miocic, and the way precisely does the combat finish? Go to SportsLine now to get detailed picks and evaluation from the incomparable skilled who’s up over $1,500 on his UFC main-card picks, and discover out.
