Chan Sung Jung vs Alexander Volkanovski Fight Outcome Pick
Betting-wise, this is one of the most lopsided main events in recent times. On the moneyline, the current featherweight title-holder, Volkanovski, is a staggering -750 to win. The challenger, “The Korean Zombie”, is +475 to pull off the upset. At these odds, there’s not much betting value (unless you’re bold enough to take Jung), so we’re instead betting on the Jung vs Volkanovski exact fight outcome prop. Here’s how the best online sportsbooks peg those odds at:
| Outcome |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Jung To Win By Stoppage | +900 | +900 |
| Jung To Win By Decision | +1100 | +1100 |
| Volkanovski To Win By Stoppage | +185 | +185 |
| Volkanovski To Win By Decision | -150 | -150 |
| Draw | +6600 | +6600 |
To be as blunt as possible, the chances of Volkanovski losing outright are incredibly small. The 33-year-old is on an all-time hot streak right now — and that goes for all of MMA, not just UFC. He’s won 20 consecutive fights, with ten of those being in the UFC. And outside one split decision win over Max Holloway, none of Volkanovski’s fights have even been competitive during this streak. He’s every bit deserving of being the No. 3-ranked pound-for-pound fighter after Kamaru Usman and Izzy Adesanya.
So with the betting assumption that Volkanovski retains come UFC 273, does he do so via decision or stoppage? Good question. On one hand, there’s a reason Jung is so beloved by UFC fans and nicknamed “The Korean Zombie” — the guy can flat-out take a beating and come back like nothing. He’s done that his entire career, but he is 35 years old now, and chins are one of the first things to go when fighters get up there in age. By the same token, Jung has been stopped three times in his career so it’s not impossible to put the Zombie down for good.
We’re betting that Jung will be finished before the fifth round ends. When these two featherweights stand up and fight (which should be the bulk of the fight), Volkanovski’s striking skills are far superior. Here’s the evidence: both fighters have had a common opponent in the past 18 months and that’s Brian Ortega. The results of that bout vs. Ortega were polar opposite results — Volkanovski won by unanimous decision and Jung lost by the same. Each of those fights was battled mostly standing up, which leads us to believe Volkanovski will not struggle to piece up Jung.
While seven of Volkanovski’s previous nine wins have come via decision, we think he can get the finish here. His in-ring output is outwardly and we see Volkanovski leveraging that to stop Zombie really late. At this age — and after all the damage he’s accumulated — Jung doesn’t have the chin to withstand five rounds. This is, after all, Korean Zombies first title fight in almost nine years. You know what happened back then? He was TKO’d by Jose Also in four rounds. We could see deja vu happening here against another legendary featherweight in Volkanovski.
Over/Under 4.5 Rounds: Aljamain Sterling vs. Pter Yan
Here’s another championship fight in which the most popular betting sites for UFC have the moneyline as a complete mismatch. Interim bantamweight champ, Yan, is the sizable -450 favorite. Sterling — the “winner” of the first fight between the two — is a +325 underdog. Here again, we’re skipping the moneyline bet in favor of the over/under 4.5 rounds, which is much richer in value. Here are the current odds:
Sterling has become a human punching bag for the UFC fanbase (and likely some bettors) since accepting a disqualification win over Yan the first time these two met in the octagon at UFC 259. Yan was controlling that fight until he threw an illegal knee at the face of Sterling, who some fans believe could’ve continued but instead settled for the DQ (and by rule, becoming the new champion despite not winning by decision or stoppage). After all the vitriol — which was only heightened after Sterling avoided a rematch with Yan right away — we can’t help but think that those events remain in Sterling’s psyche, and in a negative way.
The octagon is not the place you want to step into when you’re not mentally honed in like we believe a frustrated Sterling will be. That could leave him open for a crucial mistake that could stop this fight before the judges' scorecard. We’re betting Yan wins this fight with ease before the 4.5 round mark so bet the under.
Over/Under 1.5 Rounds: Khamzat Chimaev vs. Gilbert Burns
Another fight, another one-sided moneyline. To no one’s surprise, the undefeated UFC prodigy Chimaev is the odds-on favorite to win on the moneyline (-550 to Burns’ +375). We think that line is rather disrespectful to Burns, who is the second-ranked fighter in the welterweight division and someone who has one loss (to Usman) in his last eight bouts. This should be a close contest, which hints at the over 1.5 rounds hitting.
How To Bet On UFC 273
We're extremely — and we mean extremely — confident in out three UFC bets we've predicted above. If you share that confidence, then you can bet on UFC 273 at one of the top-rated sports betting sites underneath. Hurry up and be sure to do so before Saturday's bell time!
