Two of the three biggest local stars are favored to win in the opening odds for UFC 304, which goes down July 27 in Manchester, England.
At the top of the card, Birmingham’s Leon Edwards defends his welterweight title against Belal Muhammad in fight that has seemingly been in the works for several months. Edwards last defended his belt with a one-sided win over Colby Covington this past December, while Muhammad competes for the first time in more than a year after scoring a dominant win over Gilbert Burns back in May 2023 to extend his unbeaten streak to 10 straight.
The opening odds courtesy of Sportsbetting.ag have Edwards listed as a sizable betting favorite to successfully defend his belt in a rematch with Muhammad after their first encounter ended in a no-contest. On that night, an eye poke from Edwards left Muhammad unable to continue past the second round and the fight was stopped.
In the co-main event, Tom Aspinall seeks to avenge the only loss on his UFC record when he faces Curtis Blaydes with his interim heavyweight title on the line. Aspinall didn’t even make it a full minute with Blaydes in their previous fight before the British champion suffered a torn ACL during the first exchange, ending his night in quick fashion.
Now Aspinall looks to settle some unfinished business while Blaydes gets his first crack at UFC gold.
Based on the opening odds, Aspinall is a heavy favorite to win, with Blaydes listed as a hefty underdog ahead of the card in England.
Veteran lightweight Bobby Green also gets his wish with a fight against the always outspoken Paddy Pimblett at UFC 304. He’ll be the favorite to win as well, according to oddsmakers, with Pimblett playing the underdog in his own home country.
The other two UFC 304 main card fights were also announced this past week, with Giga Chikadze taking on Arnold Allen and Manel Kape facing Muhammad Mokaev in a potential No. 1 contender’s bout at 125 pounds. Here are the opening odds for those two fights.
While Kape is favored to hand Mokaev his first professional loss, Arnold opens with heavy odds in his favor for his fight with Chikadze.
Of course, odds can shift in dramatic fashion depending on the money being laid on the favorite or the underdog. With UFC 304 still two months away, it’s likely a few changes will effect the betting odds before these five fights actually take place.
