- Israel Adesanya is the +185 favorite to be the UFC middleweight champion at the end of 2023.
- Current champion Alex Pereira is next at +200 odds.
- Pereira ended Adesanya’s reign with a stunning 5th-round knockout win at UFC 281 last month.
Alex Pereira may have the belt right now but oddsmakers believe that Israel Adesanya will get his belt back at the end of 2023.
According to the online betting site SportsBetting.ag, the Last Stylebender is the +185 odds-on favorite to be the UFC middleweight champion on December 31, 2023. Pereira however is very close at +200 odds. When we talk of implied probability, that’s 35.1% from Izzy and 33.33% for Poatan.
Alex Pereira Ends the Israel Adesanya Reign
Alex Pereira ends the Israel Adesanya reign pic.twitter.com/ONEgbNmUY2
— Troydan (@Troydan) November 13, 2022
Pereira stopped Adesanya in the final round of their title fight at UFC 281 last month. Poatan entered the fight as the underdog, with prices ranging from +175 to +260. He was also down 39-37 across the three judges’ scorecards heading to the final round of the bout. However, in what was a tactical blunder, Adesanya chose to go stand and trade with Pereira, and then it happened.
Adesanya closed as the -205 favorite at BetOnline and saw his odds balloon to -1200 at the same sportsbook entering the final round. Down in the scorecards and needing a knockout to win the fight, Pereira unleashed the entire arsenal and somehow landed his dreaded left hook flush on Adesanya’s chin. Just like that, Pereira ended the Adesanya reign.
After the fight UFC President Dana White was already mulling a rematch between the two. White paid tribute to Adesanya’s willingness to take on all comers and hinted that he was willing to pay back the Last Stylebender for being a consummate company guy by giving him a rematch. Nothing is final yet but Adesanya has opened as the -150 favorite in a potential rematch with Pereira hitting the opening boards at +130 odds.
Paulo Costa Says Whitaker Fight was “Fake News”
.@BorrachinhaMMA calls the initially announced fight against Robert Whittaker "fake news" 😬 #TheMMAHour
"I cannot do that fight, fight the No. 1 or No. 2, high-level guy like Whittaker for the same money I’m getting since 2017. Doesn’t make sense.”
▶️ https://t.co/xv7Ie4cYBX pic.twitter.com/myFsyqGQQr
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) December 21, 2022
Former champion Robert Whittaker was rumored to be fighting Paulo Costa at UFC 284 in Perth, Australia on February 12, 2023. However, Costa has since been pulled out of that fight and Whittaker said that the UFC is looking to reschedule him for a fight in March or April 2023. However, no opponent yet has been linked to the Reaper but despite that, he is listed at +700 to be the UFC’s 185-pound champion again at the end of 2023.
Meanwhile, Khamzat Chimaev is next behind Whittaker in the futures odds boards. Chimaev defeated Kevin Holland in a catchweight fight at UFC 279 last September to improve to 12-0 with 11 stoppage victories. Although he is the no. 3 ranked welterweight in the UFC, he was one of the first to call out Pereira after the Brazilian beat Adesanya.
Marvin Vettori and Roman Dolidze are next in the SportsBetting.ag odds board at +1000 odds apiece. Interestingly, former wrestling standout Bo Nickal is next at +1200 odds along with perennial contenders Jared Cannonier and Derek Brunson. Meanwhile, Sean Strickland completes the odds board at +1400 odds.
