UFC 278 is happening in Utah on Saturday and we picked four of the best fights to include in your parlay.
Headlining the UFC parlay is the welterweight title fight between Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards.
Parlaying is an excellent way to boost payouts and the sportsbook has generous odds available for the pay-per-view event.
Usman vs Edwards
Usman is the headline attraction at UFC 278 and we think he’ll be too hard to beat.
We’re respecting the ability of Edwards, but Usman has been tested against the best in the welterweight division, and with 20 wins and one loss, he’s the testing material.
UFC odds have the champion at -380 to win and that’s a solid parlay inclusion. We’re not prepared to back him to win via decision or knockout, but to win outright looks like a safe bet in the main event.
Edwards believes now is the best time to fight Usman.
“Now is the perfect time to fight. I think those years looking back on it now were blessings in disguise,” Edwards told BloodyElbow.
“It gave me time to hone my skills and polish what I needed to polish. [Usman’s] competed but he’s also been in wars. His body is breaking down and I think now is the perfect time.”
We think those wars help Usman, so include him in parlays.
Pick: Kamaru Usman -380
Costa vs Rockhold
The co-main event between Paulo Costa and Luke Rockhold could go either way, so we’re looking at total rounds markets for the best value.
We expect the fight to go longer than 1½ rounds, which pays -135. All Rockhold needs to do is avoid the early knockout hunting from Costa and this fight should go the distance.
Costa tires easily and Rockhold doesn’t have knockout power, so if there was ever going to be a decision victory on the UFC 278 card, it should be in the co-main event.
Betting online markets have taken most of the money for the over and the odds are good enough to include in UFC 278 parlays.
Pick: Over 1½ -135
Tybura vs Romanov
We think Alexander Romanov is one of the better bets on the card and he could extend his unbeaten streak to 17-0.
The 31-year-old Moldovan faces a tough opponent in Marcin Tybura, but he hasn’t looked like getting beaten since joining the UFC in 2020 and we think he’s looking at a heavyweight title shot in the short future.
“I think that I’m the next generation heavyweight in UFC because I focus on all my skills,” Romanov said. “A lot of guys focus on just striking or just grappling, but I will be a new generation that can use both.”
He still has plenty of upside, and although Tybura has some quality wins on his record, we think he’s a touch below the best heavyweights.
The -380 is a fair price but we’re taking a slight risk and taking the -150 for Romanov to win by knockout or submission. He’s a dangerous fighter and we can’t see this fight going the full three rounds.
Pick: Alexander Romanov by KO -150
Fletcher vs Loosa
AJ Fletcher vs Ange Loosa headlines the early prelims and it’s a fight worth watching.
Fletcher is 9-1 following a loss to Matthew Semeslberger, but that was a tough introduction to the UFC and he should find Loosa much easier.
He’s at a reach disadvantage but Loosa is also coming off a loss and we see more upside with Fletcher.
Fletcher is the -160 favorite and we think those odds could shorten on fight night. Most of the betting support should come for the favorite and he could kick off our parlay with a comfortable decision victory.
Pick: AJ Fletcher -160
