The Land Down Under gets UFC 293 in a card that’s loaded with crowd favorites. It’s also loaded with betting opportunities, which is what we’re focused on. Keep reading to get our expert UFC 293 betting advice on the night’s best fights featuring home-crowd talent!
- What: UFC 293
- Where: Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia
- When: Saturday, September 10
Israel Adesanya vs. Sean Strickland Betting Pick
Australia’s own Adesanya defends his newly won middleweight title against the always-fun Strickland. UFC’s top betting sites aren’t giving Strickland much of a chance to win at +425 odds (Adesanya is -650 on the moneyline). We’re staying far away from that moneyline in favor of the Adesanya-Strickland over/under, which is as follows:
Let’s be honest, Strickland doesn’t deserve a title shot. He’s 14-5 in his UFC career but lost to the top fighters in the division — Alex Pereira and Jared Cannonier, notably. He gets this shot because Dricus du Plessis couldn’t make the fight in time. Still, we’re not complaining because Strickland is one of the most fun fighters in the UFC. He’s going to come in there swinging and press forward without much regard.
That fighting style from the challenger means Adesanya will have ample chances to stop Strickland as he did Pereira last time out. But we should remember, that was Izzy’s first stoppage win in about three years. For all of Adesanya’s superb striking ability, it hasn’t always been on display as of late. In fact, many fans and bettors began to call him “boring” before this series versus his nemesis, Pereira.
Our gut says Adesanya gets him out early and here’s why: it’s a homecoming. There’s zero question Adesanya is one of the UFC’s best showmens and he likely wants to show out for his partisan crowd. If so, the under more than likely hits in this one. Take that bet to the bank!
Alexander Volkov vs. Tai Tuivasa Betting Pick
Two heavyweights will get down in the main event. Tuivasa is also getting a hero's welcome with this fight. However, that means little in the eyes of the bookies who have made Tuivasa a comfortable underdog versus Volkov on the moneyline. Here are the fighter’s odds:
Both of these are classic heavyweights. By classic, we mean punchers that have practically zero takedown ability. We mean, Tuivasa has exactly zero takedowns in his UFC career. Volkov averages 0.51 per fight. So expect to get a rock ’em sock ‘em type contest.
We’re anticipating casual bettors will get behind Tuivasa in this bout. Not just because of the home-crowd advantage, but he’s one of the more likable fighters on the entire roster. Bettors and fans want to see him win. But the reality is Volkov is the better fighter. He lands more strikes per minute than Tuivasa and is also way bigger — Volkov owns a five-inch reach and height advantage. Fade Tuivasa in this one and put money on Volkov to play spoiler.
Justin Tafa vs. Austen Lane Betting Pick
A lot of what we said about the previous fight also applies to this one. It features two heavyweights who are going to stand up and bang — zero time on the ground whatsoever. Tafa is the Australian native in this one. We’re also jumping on the Lane-Tafa moneyline as we’d expect one to be stopped before it’s all said and done. The fight odds are as follows:
Fight fans will remember these two fought a few months ago, but the bout was called off 29 seconds in because of an eye poke. Lane has some natural advantages in this one — height, power, and athleticism all favor of him. We mean, this guy played in the NFL before picking up MMA so you can guesstimate his natural abilities.
To us, this fight is a toss-up. Yes, we get the Tafa home crowd thing, but that alone shouldn’t make him -200 to win. There’s some real betting value in Lane. So for the second fight in a row, we’re betting against the Australian native. Sorry to our Aussie readers, but Lane is the spoiler pick to make.
How To Bet On UFC 293
UFC 293 has a super early start time in the United States due to the massive time-zone difference in Australia. So you’ll want to get your UFC 293 bets early — and not wait til fight day cause you might miss it entirely. We recommend UFC betting at one of the sites below. Per our newest sportsbook reviews, every site listed is the “best of the best” especially when it comes to combat sports.
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