Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic hit our existence, UFC president Dana White said he would be changing the location of the grand event to an island for the contenders to step into the octagon and has been hyping up about the event UFC 251 Jorge Masvidal vs Kamaru Usman for some weeks now. So, the central location for the grand UFC 251 Jorge Masvidal vs Kamaru Usman is the Fight Island which just happens to be Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.
In the main event of the confirmed grand event UFC 251 card, Kamaru Usman looks to defend his welterweight title against the BMF champion Jorge Masvidal. The other most awaited main event sees Alex Volkanovski looking for his first featherweight title defence when he faces Max Holloway in a rematch. The card also will witness the vacant bantamweight title on the line as Petr Yan fights Jose Aldo.
UFC 251 airs live on pay-per-view this Saturday, July 11th, 10 pm Eastern Time.
UFC 251 Jorge Masvidal vs Kamaru Usman: Card and Odds
Kamaru Usman (-300) vs Jorge Masvidal (+240)
Alexander Volkanovski (-220) vs Max Holloway (+180)
Petr Yan (-230) vs Jose Aldo (+190)
Jessica Andrade (+165) vs Rose Namajunas (-195)
Amanda Ribas (-800) vs Paige VanZant (+550)
Volkan Oezdemir (-165) vs Jiri Prochazka (+140)
Elizeu Dos Santos (-105) vs Muslim Salikhov (-115)
Makwan Amirkhani (-195) vs Danny Henry (+165)
Leonardo Santos (-190) vs Roman Bogatov (+160)
Marcin Tybura (-110) vs Alexandr Romanov (-110)
Raulian Paiva (-195) vs Zhalgas Zhumagulov (+165)
Karol Rosa (-220) vs Vanessa Melo (+180)
Martin Day (-190) vs Davey Grant (+160)
Can Masvidal Carry On His Streak at UFC 251 Jorge Masvidal vs Kamaru Usman?
Kamaru Usman (16-1) is undefeated in the UFC grand event and has successfully retained his welterweight title for the first time after his last fight. “The Nigerian Nightmare” hasn’t entered the octagon since UFC 245 where he scored a fifth-round TKO win over Colby Covington to defend the prestigious title. He won the title last March with a dominant performance over Tyron Woodley. Usman has already defeated the likes of Rafael dos Anjos, Demian Maia, and Leon Edwards in his UFC tenure. He has also won The Ultimate Fighter 21.
Jorge Masvidal (35-13), who was the worthy winner of the title, will be getting his shot at the title. He had an incredible 2019 where he knocked out Darren Till and also had the ultimate five-second flying knee KO of Ben Askren and finished the year by beating Nate Diaz to win the BMF title. In his career, he has dominating wins over Donald Cerrone, Ross Pearson, and Michael Chiesa.
As it is well known to us that it doesn’t happen quite often that when the UFC loses the main event, the replacement fight turns out to be better than the original one. The other case that comes to mind is UFC 196 when Nate Diaz stepped in to replace Rafael dos Anjos to battle the legendary Conor McGregor.
When the first fight card was announced after the pandemic break, the main event of UFC 251 Jorge Masvidal vs Kamaru Usman was supposed to be Usman vs his long time teammate, Gilbert Burns. But, the Brazilain tested positive for COVID-19 leaving the UFC to turn back to Masvidal and get a deal done to give him his shot at the title.
Pick: Kamaru Usman (-300)
Is Holloway going to regain his throne at UFC 251 Jorge Masvidal vs Kamaru Usman?
Alex Volkanovski (21-1) is maintaining a very impressive 18-fight winning streak while being 8-0 inside the UFC. Previously, the Aussie beat Max Holloway with a dominant performance to win the featherweight title. During his run, he has impressive wins over Jose Aldo, Chad Mendes, Darren Elkins and Jeremy Kennedy.
Max Holloway (21-5) had a tough 2019 where he went on to have a 1-2. He started out the year losing to Dustin Poirier at UFC 236 for the interim lightweight title. The Hawaiian then returned to featherweight where he defended his belt against Frankie Edgar before facing a defeat against Volkanovski. He has some brilliant wins over Jose Aldo, twice, Anthony Pettis and Brian Ortega.
This is a rematch between these two fighters. In the first fight between them, Volkanovski won four rounds. He had answer and counter for everything Holloway possessed. Yet, the Hawaiian is arguably the greatest featherweight of all-time and is waiting for a comeback in this fight at UFC 251 Jorge Masvidal vs Kamaru Usman.
Pick: Alex Volkanovski (-220)
Some other notable UFC 251 Jorge Masvidal vs Kamaru Usman: Picks
Petr Yan (-230): We might see Petr Yan winning this by KO within four rounds, and it is predicted that he should be around a -350 favourite, so the value is still there to bet him.
Rose Namajunas (-195): As we all know, Namajunas is a far better mixed martial artist and will stand up a dominating fight to the Brazilian to get a decision win.
Amanda Ribas (-800): Ribas should be winning this fight, but there is no way we should lay -800 on her. It is a win-or-lose situation in favour of her with the technique she might have in store for the UFC 251 Jorge Masvidal vs Kamaru Usman
Stay tuned to The Hollywood Tribune for further updates and detailed information about the grand event of UFC 251 after a long wait due to the pandemic situations. Put a big circle on 11th July on your calendars!
