The UFC generally tends to hold two pay-per-view cards in July to celebrate International Fight Week. UFC277 will be the second pay-per-view card for the premier MMA promotion and will take place on July 30 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas.
The UFC has once again put together two championship fights on this stellar card. The Main event will see a much-awaited rematch between new bantamweight champ Julianna Peña and former champ Amanda Nunes who recently hosted the Ultimate Fighting Championship reality TV show.
The second belt will be for an interim championship in the flyweight division and see another rematch between Brandon Moreno and Kai Kara-France. Apart from these two title fights, there are several exciting prelims and Main Card matchups. Our betting experts take a look at the odds for both titles fight, give you their analysis and share their predictions below.
Julianna Peña vs. Amanda Nunes 2
The greatest upset in UFC history and on most MMA betting websites was when Pena defeated Nunes at UFC269 in December 2021. Nunes entered the fight as a heavy betting favourite and a double champ in the bantamweight and featherweight divisions. MMA fans expected another dominant performance from Nunes, who is considered the GOAT of women’s MMA.
Pena told her fans before the fight that she would beat Nunes and become the champ, and she pulled off the biggest win in her career when she outstruck Nunes on the feet, took her down and submitted her.
Nunes claims that she had an off night and is ready to reclaim her belt. She goes into this fight as the underdog with odds of 3.4 while the champ Pena has odds of 1.3. During the first fight, Pena was very vocal in the media and played mind games with Nunes. This time, the champ has preferred to take the quieter approach, and Nunes has been doing all the talking!
Nunes has made significant changes to this fight. She split with American Top Team (ATT) after her loss to Pena and believes she has the right game plan to upset the champ. Pena did well in the first fight because Nunes had no answer for her jab and her determination to keep coming forward. Nunes also struggled with her cardio in the first fight!
Nunes’s best chance of winning will be in the first two rounds, but if it gets past the first two, given the pace that Pena sets, the cardio of Nunes will once again be tested, and Pena will look to win. By submission again! We are going to put our money on Pena for this fight!
Brandon Moreno vs. Kai Kara-France 2
The first time Moreno and Kai fought was during UFC 245, and Moreno won by unanimous decision. A lot has changed for both fighters since then, and they are two of the best flyweight fighters in the world. The UFC decided to make this a 5 round interim championship fight in the co-main event after champ Deiveson Figueiredo injured his hand.
Moreno’s last three fights have been against Figueiredo, and many fans consider Moreno to be the unofficial champ due to some contentious decision-making. Kai gets the chance to not only avenge his defeat against Moreno but also to win the interim championship and set up a fight with the champ Figueiredo.
Moreno goes in as the favourite with odds of 1.5, while Kai is the underdog with odds of 2.7. This fight can end up as the night’s fight as both fighters will not back down and keep coming forward. We will have to agree with the bookmakers and back Moreno to win!
Other Exciting Fights To Watch Out For
Derrick ‘The Black Beast’ Lewis will take on Russian Sergei Pavlovich, who has a 15-1 MMA record. The Black Beast has odds of 1.8, while the Russian is a slight underdog with odds of 2. Don’t expect this heavyweight fight to go the distance. We will back Pavlovich to win as he is the younger fighter and has a Greco-Roman wrestling background.
Magomed Ankalaev will take on veteran Anthony Smith in the light heavyweight division. The winner of this fight could be next in line to fight former champ Jan Blachowicz, and the winner of that fight could be the next title challenger. Ankalaev has a 17-1 record and is the betting favourite with odds of 1.22, while Smith is the underdog with odds of 4.5. We are going to back Ankalaev to win!
Some of the other fights that you should watch out for include a banger in the flyweight division between Alexandre Pantoja and Alex Perez; and a lightweight shown on the prelims between Carlos Diego Ferreira and Drakkar Klose.
