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UFC 231: Holloway vs Ortega Betting
UFC 231 takes place on Saturday, December 8, 2018 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. The card airs live on pay-per-view at 10pm EST.
Max Holloway and Brian Ortega are the two best featherweights in the world, and they’re just 26 and 27 years old, respectively. Their headlining matchup - for Holloway’s belt - at UFC 231 is more than just a thrilling pick’em: it’s the official start of a new era and a probable rivalry between two young studs.
For a long time, Jose Aldo ruled the 145-pound class with an iron fist, turning away all challengers with ease. Then Conor McGregor blew everything up and left the division in upheaval. Holloway trucked his way to 12 straight wins to claim the belt and seemingly stabilize a loaded weight class - until the undefeated Brian Ortega smashed Frankie Edgar to emerge as a legit threat to what seemed like the start of a long Holloway reign.
That’s a lot of backstory for an awesome main event. But the co-main has got a sweet storyline too. Valentina Shevchenko is finally fighting for the flyweight title, after inaugural champ Nico Montano kept on failing to get herself into the octagon. The UFC finally had enough of Montano and stripped her. Meeting Shevchenko for the vacant belt will be a familiar foe - former strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk.
Both women are former pro Muay Thai fighters, facing off three times in kickboxing bouts. Shevchenko walked away the winner each time, but Jedrzejczyk seems ultra-confident (big surprise there) that the results will be different in an MMA match. You can argue that JJ doesn’t deserve a title shot coming off two straight losses, but we can all agree that this is far more intriguing than Shevchenko vs. Montano.
Take a look at the scheduled fights below, and make sure to check in during fight week for in-depth betting previews on how to bet online. UFC odds from BookMaker.eu are typically released on Monday before each event - though big fight bookings are usually available much earlier. Live UFC betting is also available to hedge any of your bets as well.
UFC 231 Lineup (Subject to Change)
Main Event, Featherweight Championship - Max Holloway vs. Brian Ortega
Featherweight champion Max “Blessed” Holloway (19-3, 9 KOs, 2 SUBs) will defend his title against No. 1 contender Brian Ortega (14-0, 3 KOs, 7 SUBs) at UFC 231 on December 8, 2018 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. The card airs live on pay-per-view starting 10 p.m. ET following the FS1 prelims. Life as a champion is about to get really tough for Max Holloway. After beating Jose Aldo twice - both times with relative ease - the featherweight champ must now meet a violent jiu-jitsu master with explosive punching power. Worse, he’s got to do it while recovering from mysterious concussion-like symptoms that led to a scary withdrawal from UFC 226. More
Co-Main Event, Women’s Flyweight Championship - Valentina Shevchenko vs. Joanna Jedrzejczyk
Women’s No. 1 flyweight Valentina Shevchenko (15-3, 4 KOs, 7 SUBs) will meet former strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk (15-2, 4 KOs, 1 SUB) for the vacant title at UFC 231 on December 8, 2018 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. The card airs live on pay-per-view starting 10 p.m. ET following the FS1 prelims. For fans of Muay Thai, this Saturday’s matchup between Valentina Shevchenko and Joanna Jedrzejczyk is a dream come true. Both women come from decorated Thai boxing background, competing professionally in the sport and even meeting in pro kickboxing bouts three times. You probably already know by now that Shevchenko won each time. More
Light Heavyweight - Jimi Manuwa vs. Thiago Santos
Rising light heavyweight contender Thiago Santos (19-6, 13 KOs, 1 SUB) will meet veteran gatekeeper Jimi Manuwa (17-4, 15 KOs, 1 SUB) at UFC 231 on December 8, 2018 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. The card airs live on pay-per-view starting 10 p.m. ET following the FS1 prelims. Thiago Santos finds himself starting the light heavyweight title circuit this Saturday in Toronto. Fresh off a thrilling win over Eryk Anders, the Brazilian bulldozer now meets knockout artist Jimi Manuwa on the main card of UFC 231. More
Welterweight - Gunnar Nelson vs. Alex Oliveira
Gunnar Nelson is slightly favored over Alex Oliveira at UFC 231 on Saturday night in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This event is one of five fights on the main pay-per-view card. Oliveira is 19-5-1 in his career, while Nelson is 16-3-1 in his career. There are a total of five fights on the main pay-per-view card at UFC 231, with the headliner a bout between Max Holloway and Brian Ortega. There are also a total of seven fights on the preliminary card with four on FS1 and three on UFC Fight Pass. Let’s look at the bout between Oliveira and Nelson and UFC picks. More
Featherweight - Hakeem Dawodu vs. Kyle Bochniak
Women’s Strawweight - Nina Ansaroff vs. Claudia Gadelha
Strawweight contender Claudia Gadelha (16-3, 2 KOs, 7 SUBs) will meet veteran Nina Ansaroff (9-5, 4 KOs, 2 SUBs) at UFC 231 on December 8, 2018 at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. The card airs live on pay-per-view starting 10 p.m. ET following the FS1 prelims. Claudia Gadelha is in a tough spot. There are moments in every fight where she looks like the best strawweight in the world, but Joanna Jedrzejczyk clearly has her number, while Jessica Andrade absolutely brutalized her. A move up to 125 pounds could be a fresh start, but for now the 29-year old will stay in the deepest division in women’s MMA. Plus, with Rose Namajunas holding the belt, there’s a very good chance that Gadelha could find herself in another title shot. More
Women’s Flyweight - Katlyn Chookagian vs. Jessica Eye
Katlyn Chookagian is favored over Jessica Eye at UFC 231 on Saturday night in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. This event is one of four fights on the FS1 portion of the preliminary card. Chookagian is 11-1 in her career, while Eye is 13-6 in her career. There are a total of five fights on the main pay-per-view card at UFC 231, with the headliner a bout between Max Holloway and Brian Ortega. There are also a total of seven fights on the preliminary card with four on FS1 and three on UFC Fight Pass. Let’s look at the bout between Chookagian and Eye and UFC predictions. More
Middleweight - Eryk Anders vs. Elias Theodorou
LIghtweight - Olivier Aubin-Mercier vs. Gilbert Burns
Light Heavyweight - Aleksandar Rakic vs. Devin Clark
Bantamweight - Brad Katona vs. Matthew Lopez
Welterweight - Chad Laprise vs. Dhiego Lima
Lightweight - Carlos Diego Ferreira - Jesse Ronson
UFC 231 Betting Lines, Predictions and Picks
Holloway had to pull out of his original matchup with Ortega due to mysterious symptoms from a bad weight cut. If you saw the dude in his pre-fight interviews, he was lethargic and slurring his words. The assumption was that he had a mini-stroke - at 26 years old. What’s scary is that doctors never really figured out what the exact cause was.
There’s a very real chance that he’s not the same fighter, and if he’s not 100% the guy that smashed the 145-pound class then the Hawaiian has serious problems. Ortega isn’t only a jiu-jitsu monster, he’s the guy that handed Frankie Edgar his first KO loss. Tread carefully when betting this matchup.
Can Jedrzejczyk finally exorcise her demons against Valentina? On the biggest stage in the world? Judging by the online odds, it’s a definite uphill climb. Shevchenko is a massive favorite here, as she should be. She’s the bigger fighter whose beaten a smaller fighter at her best skill, thrice.
A light heavyweight banger between Thiago Santos and Jimi Manuwa is ripe pickings for a knockout prop bet, or at least taking that the fight doesn’t go to decision. What’s cool here is that Santos sleeps fools with his feet, while Manuwa puts ‘em on ice with his boxing.
Stay Tuned for Fight Odds and Updates
Make sure to check the fight odds at BookMaker.eu for all your available betting options. For pay-per-view cards, odds usually release early for the bigger fights. In fact, you can bet on some fight odds right now. Odds for the entire card are generally available on Monday of fight week.
And during fight week, keep an eye out for our in-depth betting guides that we post during that time as well! You’ll find detailed analyses for fights, common sense betting picks and underdog specials to help you win some cash before the night’s over.
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