The year 2022 has picked up where 2021 has left off: with underdogs coming through. UFC 270 saw a total of five underdogs emerge including the two headliners in Francis Ngannou and Deiveison Figueiredo as they retained and captured their championship belts, respectively.
Combined with last week’s UFC Fight Night, underdogs have gone 10-11 on the UFC betting lines. We unpack what went down for UFC 270.
Underdogs Take Over UFC 270
Ngannou Continues To Surprise
When Francis Ngannou scares the MMA world, it is usually through his thunderous knockouts. But this time, it was by showing everyone how far he’s come: he can wrestle! The undisputed heavyweight champion unified the titles by edging former training partner Ciryl Gane.
While we predicted the fight to go over the 2.5-round mark, we did so at the thought that Gane (10-1-0) would be the one controlling the action. Instead, it was Ngannou (20-3-0) who would neutralize Gane by wrestling him. “The Predator” was a +120 underdog to win and +1400 to win by decision. This prop would have been the best UFC bet for the evening.
Figueiredo Recaptures Title
When Deiveison Figueiredo was submitted in the summer, fans and bettors soured on him. This is why the now-two-time flyweight champion opened as a +155 underdog and stayed that way. His weight-cutting issues combined with Brandon Moreno’s aura of invincibility turned bettors away from the “God of War.”
Figueiredo (21-2-1), with tutelage from former two-division champion Henry Cejudo, fought smart and edged Moreno (19-6-2) on the scorecards. It was a back-and-forth scrap that saw both men awarded the Fight of the Night bonus for the second time in their trilogy.
Following the fight, Figueiredo immediately called for a fourth fight with Moreno to take place in his home country, Mexico. The online sports betting odds should be closer this time.
More Dogs Take Bite Out of UFC Odds
Ngannou and Figueiredo were the most high-profile underdogs to win in UFC 270. But three other underdogs set the stage with the most notable being Victory Henry, who shocked Raoni Barcelos as the event’s biggest underdog at +350.
Henry (22-5-0) opened at +345 and was bet down likely due to bettors stacking Barcelos (16-3-0) on parlays. That went up in smoke as Henry blitzed the Brazilian to get a clear-cut decision victory.
Elsewhere, Michael Morales emerged as a slight underdog against Trevin Giles. Morales (13-0-0), a UFC newcomer, stayed unbeaten by knocking Giles (14-4-0) out in the first round.
And to open the event, Canadian Jasmine Jasudavicius outclassed Kay Hansen (7-5-0) as a +150 underdog. But unlike the other underdogs, Jasudavicius (7-1-0) was a sharp bet as her line fell from +200 to +150.
Decisions or Quick Finishes Lined UFC 270’s Totals
UFC 270 consisted of ten fights and they either went to the judges or finished in the first round. The round totals went 6-4 in favor of the ‘overs’ thanks to the six decisions, three in the final three fights. Several of these outcomes were unexpected.
Too Tough To Quit
Michel Pereira and Andre Fialho going over 2.5 rounds closed at +110, but this went to a decision. Pereira (27-11) and Fialho (14-4-0) threw bombs throughout the fight but their chins held up.
Quick Taps
On the flip side, Said Nurmagomedov and Cody Stamann, tough grapplers, were supposed to go long. The under 2.5 rounds were lined at +220, making it the most profitable under to bet online at the time. Nurmagomedov (15-2-0) quickly choked out Stamann (19-5-0) in under a minute.
Additionally, anyone who bet Nurmagomedov to win by Round 1 Submission would’ve profited 20 times (+2000).
And during the ESPN+ prelims, Vanessa Demopoulos and Silvana Gomez Juarez cashed under 2.5 rounds bets at +160. Demopoulos (7-4-0) wasted no time and submitted Gomez Juarez (10-4-0) at the halfway mark of the first round.
Next UFC PPV: Adesanya vs Whittaker II
UFC 271 will be your next UFC PPV and will take place on February 12 in Houston, Texas. UFC middleweight champion Israel Adesanya defends his title in a rematch against the man he won it from, Robert Whittaker.
Adesanya (21-1-0) is a -280 favorite while the comeback on Whittaker (23-5-0) is +210 on the BetUS online sportsbook.
