UFC 278 heads to Salt Lake City, Utah this weekend and is headlined by a Welterweight title fight between pound-for-pound number one Kamaru Usman and a rampaging Leon Edwards in a rematch years in the making. In the co-main Paulo Costa meets Luke Rockhold and former champion Jose Aldo looks to stop the momentum of fast rising prospect Merab Dvalishvili. We take a look at my three best UFC bets on this weekend’s UFC278 pay-per-view card below.
UFC 278 Preview & Betting Tips
Kamaru Usman vs. Leon Edwards
Both these men have come along way since they last met in 2015 and that fight was on the prelims of a Fight Night card. Kamaru Usman has established himself as the Welterweight king since turning away Tyron Woodley and then going onto beat Jorge Masvidal and Colby Covington twice each and former training partner Gilbert Burns.
Leon Edwards on the other hand has seen Covid derail some of his hype yet the fact is he has won his last nine since losing to Usman. In that run he has beaten the likes of Donald Cerrone, Vicente Luque, Rafael Dos Anjos and Nate Diaz. While some will say Diaz could have finished him realistically that is the only time he has been in trouble and it was because of a momentary lapse due to how easily he was dominating the fight.
Realistically from what we have seen I think it is a tough ask to see ‘Rocky’ upsetting the pound-for-pound king. Usman’s striking has developed to a point where he can more than hang on the feet and has the X Factor of his wrestling prowess. I believe Usman sweeps aside Edwards with relative ease but think the Englishman will be tough enough to hang with the ‘Nigerian Nightmare’ for all five rounds.
Kamaru Usman to Win by Decision
$2 (3 Units)
Marcin Tybura vs. Alexander Romanov
This presents the toughest test to date for Alexander Romanov. The Moldovan is a perfect 16-0 as a pro and has just dominated all foes to date taking them down and strangling them or landing heavy ground and pound. Marcin Tybura is a well-rounded Heavyweight and while wrestling is his strength, he has some sneaky good kickboxing to go with it. I cannot wait for this clash as if Romanov passes this test, it shows he really is a legitimate Heavyweight threat. I have always had a big opinion of Romanov and I won’t be avoiding backing him here just because it is a big step up in competition. I believe once more he bullies his foe down to the mat, beats him up and likely stops him.
Alexander Romanov to Win
$1.30 (4 Units)
Amir Albazi vs. Francisco Figueiredo
I have been waiting for Amir Albazi to return to the Octagon and he does here off a more than one-and-a-half-year layoff. He is one of the Featherweight divisions biggest up and coming threats and I expect him to secure a dominant win come Sunday. Albazi is an elite grappler who can also hold his own on the feet as he showed in his win over Zhalgas Zhumagulov. Figueiredo on the other hand doesn’t have the striking or wrestling advantage and also has shown a tendancy to fade as the fight wears on which can only end poorly for the Brazilian. He gets increasingly outclassed as the rounds wear on. Max 5 stake banker here.
Amir Albazi to Win
$1.35 (5 Units)
