UFC 267 Odds and Predictions – Blachowicz vs. Teixeira on Oct 30
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will head over to Fight Island in Abu Dhabi once again to host a series of exciting fight cards, starting with UFC 267, which takes place at the Etihad Arena on Oct 30.
UFC 267 features two title fights and several other exciting matchups, including Islam Makhachev vs. Dan Hooker. The Main Event will be headed by UFC light-heavyweight champ Jan Blachowicz, compared to the veteran and number one contender Glover Teixeira. The co-main event will feature an interim title fight between Petr Yan and Cory Sandhagen.
Blachowicz vs. Teixeira
The champ Blachowicz defended his belt in March 2021 when he fought UFC middleweight champ Israel Adesanya who moved up a weight class to challenge Blachowicz. The champ retained his belt by decision and wasn’t really tested by Adesanya.
He will be tested on Oct 30 when he faces the experienced Glover Teixeira. It’s taken Teixeira a long time to work his way up the ladder and get another title shot after his first attempt failed when he fought and lost to champ Jon Jones then.
Blachowicz goes in as a big betting favorite with odds of 1.36, while Teixeira is the underdog with odds of 3.25. This match will feature the striking of Blachowiczagainst the ground game of Teixeira. Blachowicz isn’t bad on the ground, but we believe Teixeira is far superior on the ground.
If Blachowicz can keep the fight standing for 5 rounds, he will end up with a win. If Teixeira can land a few takedowns, he will have the edge. This is a hard fight to call, and we are going to lean towards the veteran Teixeira and back him to win.
Yan vs. Sandhagen
Petr Yan was supposed to fight UFC bantamweight champ, Aljamain Sterling, for the title as their earlier match ended in a disqualification, and Yan lost his belt to Sterling. Yan predicted on social media that Sterling would pull of this fight, and it turns out he was right as Sterling pulled out citing a serious injury.
The UFC decided to bring in Cory Sandhagen and turn this fight into an interim title fight. The former champ Yan goes into this fight as a betting favorite with odds of 1.45, while Sandhagen has odds of 2.80. Sandhagen has great footwork and is a great striker, but we feel whatever Sandhagen can do, Yan can do better.
We believe the speed and cardio of Yan will be a problem for Sandhagen. We back Yan to win the interim UFC bantamweight belt.
Makhachev vs. Hooker
Apart from the Main and co-Main event, the fight that is going to get the most media attention is a lightweight scrap between Islam Makhachev and Dan Hooker. Makhachev has been billed as the heir to former UFC lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov and is a huge betting favorite with odds of 1.18 while Hooker is a massive underdog with odds of 5.0.
Makhachev was supposed to fight former lightweight champ Rafael Dos Anjos who pulled out just a couple of weeks ago due to an injury. The UFC wanted Makhachev to fight on this card and was struggling to find a replacement until Hooker stepped up.
Hooker fought on Sep 25 and defeated Nasrat Haqparast by decision and showcased in that fight that he does have a good ground game. Will Hooker’s ground game be good enough to stop Makhachev who is the best grappler in the lightweight division.
Makhachev’s manager Ali Abdelaziz has appreciated Hooker for stepping up and taking the fight but says Hooker is only doing it for a big payday because there is no way he can beat Makhachev.
Makhachev is unbeaten in the UFC and while his ground game is his biggest asset, he has also improved his striking. He will have a challenge on his hands as Hooker is very tall and an exceptional striker.
However, we are going to back Makhachev to win this one.
More Exciting Fights
The entire card is packed with exciting fights but two fights that you do not want to miss are the return of the wolf Khamzat Chimaev against Li Jingliang and a lightheavyweight fight between Magomed Ankalaev and Volkan Oezdemir.
Chimaev is once again a big betting favorite with odds of 1.38 while the Leech has odds of 3.75. The big question is whether Chimaev’s battle with COVID-19 and his lack of training in the past will slow him down or will he be just as dominant as before. We are backing Chimaev to win here.
Oezdemir was KO’d in his last fight against Jiri Prochazka in July 2020 and will have another tough challenge on his hands when he fights Ankalaev who is a dangerous striker. We are going to back Oezdemir to win this fight.
