by Darren Moore
Champion Kamaru “Nigerian Nightmare” Usman (19-1-0) faces Colby “Chaos” Covington (16-2-0) in a welterweight title fight at UFC 268 at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Saturday, 6 November.
UFC 268: Usman Vs. Covington 2 Start Time
- Date: Saturday, November 6
- Main card: 6pm. PT /9pm ET /2am. BST
- Main event (approx): 9pm PT / 12pm ET / 5am BST
Kamaru Usman vs Colby Covington Preview
The pair previously fought at UFC 245 in December 2019, with Usman making a successful first defense of his newly-won UFC welterweight title by knocking out Covington in the 5th round, after what had been a closely contested war between the two up until that point.
Since the first fight with Covington, the 34-year-old Nigerian has since gone on to record wins over Jorge Masvidal (twice) and Gilbert Burns
The 33-year-old American Covington has only fought once since that loss to Usman, resulting in a late TKO win against Tyron Woodley in September 2020.
In the Fight Result betting with sportsbook Bovada, Usman is the favorite at odds of –300, with backers of Covington able to back their man at +235. Usman has never been taken down in his UFC career, is a fantastic wrestler and his boxing skills have improved since the first fight between the pair.
Rose Namajunas vs Zhang Weili Preview
Also on the card is a co-main event and another title rematch, as strawweight champion Rose “Thug” Namajunas (10-4) takes on former champion Zhang “Magnum” Weili (21-2).
The 29-year-old American Namajunas beat Weili via a knockout in just 78-seconds of the 1st round April this year to win the strap. There is very little to choose between these two in the Fight Result betting with Bovada, with the champion Namajunas at –125 and Weili also at +105.
The first fight in which Namajunas claimed the title from Weili had the feeling of being something of a fluke in ending so quickly, and the 32-year-old Chinese fighter could exact her revenge and reclaim her crown on this occasion.
Justin Gaethje v Michael Chandler Preview
Despite there being two title fights on the card, arguably the most anticipated bout of the night is the lightweight battle between Justin “The Highlight” Gaethje (22-3-0) and Michael “Iron” Chandler (22-6-0).
Gaethje, a former World Series of Fighting lightweight champion, last fought in October 2020, when he failed with his title bid against the defending champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
The 35-year-old Chandler, a former Bellator lightweight champion, also went down to a loss in his last fight, suffering a 2nd round knockout to Charles Oliveira in what was a bout for the vacant title. This promises to be an all-action bout between two explosive American fighters.
The 32-year-old Gaethje is the marginal favorite going into this bout and can be backed at odds of –185 in the Fight Result betting with Bovada, with Chandler available at +150. Those odds narrowly favoring Gaethje could prove to be accurate, with the younger fighter looking to have a marginal edge in this bout.
* UFC 269 odds correct at the time of writing. All betting odds are subject to changes.
Darren lives & breathes sports betting and is always sniffing out his next value bet. His favourite sports to bet on are the NFL, horse racing and UFC but he will bet on anything if he thinks the odds are favourable.
