Second-ranked heavyweight contender Stipe Miocic (14-2) will try to take advantage of an opportunity to win the championship belt this Saturday at UFC 198 in Brazil that was created when former champ Cain Velasquez could not compete against current title holder Fabricio Werdum (20-5-1) in a rematch.
Betting odds at sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark have moved in favor of the challenger Miocic, who opened as a +175 underdog (bet $100 to win $175) and was down to +135 as of Wednesday.
Werdum opened as a solid -225 favorite (bet $225 to win $100) and is only -155 now as he prepares to fight for the first time since upsetting No. 1 contender Velasquez via third-round guillotine choke submission at UFC 188 last June 13.
Velasquez was originally supposed to take on Werdum again in February, but a back injury prevented that from happening. Miocic then was announced as a replacement for Velasquez, although that title bout was later postponed with Werdum also pulling out due to injury.
Miocic earned the title shot with consecutive TKO wins versus top contenders Mark Hunt and Andrei Arlovski over the past year. A former Golden Gloves boxer and collegiate baseball player, Miocic is viewed as one of the most dangerous strikers in the UFC and has backed that up with 10 knockouts among his 14 career wins.
The co-main event will feature a pair of Brazilian middleweights as No. 2 Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza (22-4) takes on No. 3 Vitor Belfort (25-11). The winner could possibly get the next title shot at 185 pounds after champion Luke Rockhold battles Chris Weidman in a rematch at UFC 199 on June 4.
Souza is listed as a -310 favorite against Belfort, who is a +240 underdog despite coming off an impressive win.
Souza was on the wrong side of a controversial split-decision loss to Yoel Romero at UFC 194 on December 12, suffering his first setback in nine bouts. Romero later tested positive for the banned substance ibutamoren used in a supplement and was suspended six months after arbitration, although the fight result was not overturned.
Belfort earlier scored a first-round KO of Dan Henderson in his most recent bout on November 7, beating him for the second time in three fights. Sandwiched between those fights was a first-round TKO loss to Weidman for the middleweight title at UFC 187 last May 23.
And in another notable bout for this weekend, Cris Cyborg is a big -1200 favorite against Leslie Smith (+700). Cyborg will be making her UFC debut at UFC 198, and each of her last nine wins have come via knockout or technical knockout.
UFC 198 gets underway at 10 p.m. ET on Saturday night in Curitiba, Brazil. UFC president Dana White has denied the organization is for sale as it prepares for a pair of big events with UFC 199 in Los Angeles on June 4 and UFC 200 in Las Vegas on July 9.
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