Betsided

UFC 278 Odds: Leon Edwards Big Betting Underdog vs. Welterweight Champion Kamaru Usman

By Reed Wallach

Apr 24, 2021; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Kamaru Usman (Red Gloves) before fighting Jorge Masvidal
Apr 24, 2021; Jacksonville, Florida, USA; Kamaru Usman (Red Gloves) before fighting Jorge Masvidal / Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
facebooktwitterreddit

The UFC heads to Salt Lake City!

Reigning Welterweight champion Kamaru Usman puts his undefeated UFC record on the line in a rematch from 2015 against Leon Edwards as the main event of UFC 278.

Usman won the belt in 2019 and has defended it five times. He is 15-0 with the promotion and will look to keep his ranking as the pound-for-pound No. 1 fighter Saturday night.

Here is the full fight odds for the pay-per-view and our main event preview.

UFC 278 Odds

  • Daniel Da Silva (+158) vs. Victor Altamirano (-205)
  • Jay Perrin (+140) vs. Aori Qileng (-180)
  • Shanna Young (+360) vs. Miranda Maverick (-530)
  • Francisco Figueredo (+310) vs. Amir Albazi (-440)
  • Ange Loosa (+132) vs. AJ Fletcher (-170)
  • Luis Saldana (+255) vs. Sean Woodson (-350)
  • Yanan Wu (+114) vs. Lucie Pudilova (-146)
  • Leo Santos (+240) vs. Jared Gordon (-330)
  • Harry Hunsucker (+520) vs. Tyson Pedro (-900)
  • Marcin Tybura (+340) vs. Alexander Romanov (-500
  • Jose Aldo (-102) vs. Merab Dvalishvili (-125)
  • Luke Rockold (+250) vs. Paulo Costa (-340)
  • Leon Edwards (+285) vs. Kamaru Usman (-400)

Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman Welterweight Championship Prediction and Pick

In 2015, Usman rolled to a decision victory over Edwards, landing six of 13 takedown attempts, amounting nearly 11 minutes of control time and nearly doubling Edwards in significant strikes.

Yes, that fight was just Usman's second UFC fight and the two have evolved, but I believe Usman is a justified massive favorite in this spot. He has taken his game to another level, becoming a more feared striker in addition to maintaining fantastic cardio and grappling prowess.

While not known for his finishing ability, Usman finished the durable Gilbert Burns in 2021 and also violently knocked out Jorge Masvidal in their rematch. Edwards is a skilled striker as well, but I don't see too many avenues to victory. 10 of his 19 wins have come by decision, and with Usmans two inch reach advantage I expect him to be controlling the dance early and often.

Not to mention, I still haven't seen the recent form from Edwards to be confident of his prosepcts of knocking off the champ. While a lot of issues have gotten in the way of Edwards facing other contenders such as Khazmat Chimaev and Masvidal, he still has been relatively inactive. He has fought twice since 2019, one of them being called a no contest due to an eye poke against Belal Muhammad and the other being a decision victory against an over the hill Nate Diaz.

Usman wasn't able to finish Colby Covington, another historically durable fighter, but I believe that his striking is vastly improved and is live to get a finish. +270 for a KO isn't far from being a valuable bet considering Edwards hasn't been in the octagon with as potent of a striker in recent years.

Unfortunately, with the line this wide I don't see a ton of value but I'll be keying in on Usman in parlays, more to come later in the week with my best bets column on Friday.

LEAN: Usman KO (+270), Usman ML in Parlays (-400)

Track all of Reed's bets at Betstamp HERE!

Home/UFC Picks & Predictions