The much anticipated UFC 268 is here and our UFC Best Bets have all of the coverage you need before getting in on the action this weekend.
The bad blood will be settled and only one will come out on top as UFC 268 hosts the Welterweight Title fight between Kamaru Usman and Colby Covington. This will be the second time the two face off the belt, after Usman successfully defended his belt for the first time, against Covington at UFC 245 in 2019.
The action doesn’t stop there, as Rose Namajunas and Zhang Weili face off for the Strawweight Title for the second time this year. This time with the former entering as champion after she knocked the latter out in the opening round of their first bout. Read on below to find out UFC Best Bets for this weekend’s UFC 268!
Justin Gaethje vs Michael Chandler
This is a lightweight bout that could easily end up being fight of the night, or performance of the night for either fighter. Both fighters are coming off losses in their last appearances in the octagon. The tale of the tape is nearly similar between the two fighters as well. Both Justin Gaethje and Michael Chandler weigh in at 155 pounds. Gaethje holds a 2 1/2 inch advantage in leg reach while Chandler holds a one and a half inch advantage in reach. Gaethje also holds a 3 inch height advantage as he stands 5‘11” and Michael Chandler stands at 5‘8“.They both are from the United States Of America as well.
Justin Gaethje is a 10 year veteran of mixed martial arts and a four year veteran of the UFC, having debuted in May of 2017. He possesses excellent technical wrestling skills but over the years has become more of a standup fighter – having recorded 19 of his 22 wins by knockout, with two coming via submission and the last from a decision. In four years in the UFC his record is 5-3 and his overall mixed martial arts record is 22-3. He is a one time Interim Lightweight Champion, having beat Tony Ferguson for the title back in May of 2020 at UFC 249. When he finally got his long awaited title fight he lost to one of the greatest fighters to ever step into the ring, Khabib Nurmagomedov, via a Triangle Choke in the second round.
After a year away from the Octagon, @Justin_Gaethje is back and we can’t wait.
Him versus Michael Chandler is another guaranteed highlight! 🎞pic.twitter.com/46657t5JX0
— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) November 2, 2021
Michael Chandler is a UFC newcomer, having only joined the promotion in January of this year. However do not let that fool you he is a 10 year veteran of Bellator and strike force so he is by no means a slouch. He’s also a multi time Bellator world champion winning the lightweight title on multiple occasions. Overall in the UFC he is 1-1, as he picked up his first loss in his last fight, for the vacant UFC lightweight title, after being knocked out in the second round by Charles Oliveria. Overall in mixed martial arts he holds a record of 22 and 6 in 28 total fights. Much like his opponent he was also an outstanding amateur wrestler before making the transition to cage fighting. Unlike his opponent he’s not purely a knockout fighter he has won several bouts by submission and decision as well.
This fight could easily go either way, it is very possible Gaethje could score an early or late knock out or Chandler could find a way to submit him or take the fight the distance to win by judges decision. In my opinion I believe the first scenario is the most likely as I look for Justin Gaethje to win via knockout and re-insert himself into the lightweight title conversation.
UFC Best Bet: Justin Gaethje (-220)
Method Of Victory: Justin Gaethje By Knockout (+100)
Rose Namajunas (C) vs Zhang Weili (Women’s Strawweight Title)
This is another high profile rematch on the UFC 268 card and this one will be for the Women’s Strawweight Championship. ‘Thug’ Rose Namajunas takes on ‘Magnum’ Zhang Weili. This will be their second fight in a row as the pair faced off in April 2021 for the UFC title, which Namajunas won off Weili. Namajunas holds a 3 1/2 inch advantage in leg reach and a 2 inch advantage in reach and outweighs her opponent by half a pound. She also holds a 1 inch height advantage as she stands at 5 foot 5 inches tall and her opponent Zhang Weili stands 5 foot 4 inches tall. Zhang Weili hails from China, while Namajunas is from the United States of America.
Thug Rose is one of the most dominant mixed martial arts fighters in history and one of the most dominant UFC champions in history as well. This will be her third opponent in a row that she will be fighting back to back with. She beat Joanna Jedrzejczyk twice and split one to one with Jessica Andrade. Namajunas is also the only woman in UFC history to regain a title after losing it. Overall in her MMA career she is 14-4, while in the UFC she is eight and three. The 11 year veteran of mixed martial arts holds a black belt in Taekwondo and Karate, as well as a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. She is really a mixed bag and she is able to win fights by knockout and by submission and has shown multiple times she is able to go the distance in fights.
Magnum Zhang Weili is an eight year veteran of mixed martial arts and a three year veteran of the UFC. Up until her loss to Rose at UFC 261 earlier this year, she was undefeated in the UFC with a record of 5-0. She is a former UFC women’s strawweight champion having won the belt from Jessica Andrade by technical knockout in August 2019. She also holds a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. Her overall record is 21 and 2 in professional mixed martial arts. 10 of those 21 wins came via knock out while seven came by submission and four via decision. She is also the first Chinese and East Asian champion in UFC history.
This fight could go either way as Rose Namajunas has had mixed results facing opponents back to back in the past. It does not change the fact that she is still one of the most dominant women fighters in mixed martial arts history, which is why I think she will beat Zhang Weili by knockout for the second time in 7 months.
UFC Best Bet: Rose Namajunas (-106)
Method Of Victory: Rose Namajunas By Knockout (+320)
Kamaru Usman (C) v Colby Covington (Welterweight Title)
This is one of the most anticipated rematch in UFC history as it is what you would equate to a blood feud. These two fighters absolutely hate each other and their last fight was for the UFC Welterweight title, just like this one is. Usman holds a 1 inch height advantage at 6 foot while Colby Covington is 5 foot 11. They both weigh 170 pounds and both have a leg reach of 41 inches however Usman has a 4 inch reach advantage at 76 to 72 inches. Kamaru Usman is from Nigeria while Colby Covington is a proud patriot of the United States, according to himself.
In their last fight Colby Covington lost and suffered a couple broken bones, as he was knocked out late into the fifth round. He followed that up by knocking out another long time rival, Tyron Woodley in 2020, again in the fifth round. He is one of the most outspoken and controversial UFC fighters of all time. What may be a little known fact is he was on the verge of being cut from the UFC because his pay-per-view fights were not selling well enough, until he publicly supported Donald Trump and the Republican party and fully embraced the MAGA image. Overall his MMA career he holds a record of 16-2 and during his time in the UFC he is 11-2. Up until his loss to Usman back in December 2019 he was on the seven fight win streak. Now he will look to win the UFC welterweight title he failed to capture from Usman back in 2019.
Covington claimed Usman never broke his jaw and the champ fired back 😳 #UFC268
(via @USMAN84kg) pic.twitter.com/K2MX5E7hLp
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) November 2, 2021
The Nigerian Nightmare, Kamar Usman, is one of the most dominant MMA fighters in recent history, holding an overall record of 19 and 1 and a UFC record of 14-0. And, his undefeated streak in the UFC has not exactly come against undeserving fighters as he holds wins over guys like Tyron Woodley, Colby Covington, and most importantly, two victories over Jorge Masvidal. A fighter of his skill, talent, raw enthusiasm and ability to win has not been seen in the UFC in a very long time – not since Conor McGregor‘s rise to the top has a run like Usman’s has been done.
This is easily going to be the best fight of the night and possibly even the best UFC fight of the year. Both of these fighters will walk away from this one with the potential performances of the night awards. In the end I believe that Usman will once again knockout Colby Covington and retain his welterweight title, continuing his absolutely dominant run atop the UFC.
UFC Best Bet: Kamaru Usman (-310)
Method Of Victory: Kamaru Usman By Knockout (+155)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of Fanduel.
