The UFC has big plans for champions Conor McGregor and Holly Holm in 2016, which is one of the reasons they will both be showcased as huge betting favorites at sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark on Saturday’s UFC 196 card in Las Vegas.
McGregor (19-2), the new featherweight champ, was hoping to add the lightweight title to his belt collection until Rafael dos Anjos backed out due to a broken foot. Now, the brash Irishman will take on Nate Diaz (18-10) at welterweight in the main event as heavy minus-380 chalk (bet $380 to win $100).
Diaz was more than happy to get the opportunity to try to slow down the McGregor hype train, jumping at the chance despite fighting on short notice. The Ultimate Fighter 5 winner has been involved in several high-profile bouts in his career and is coming off a surprise win over Michael Johnson as an underdog December 19 at UFC on Fox 17.
Diaz scored an impressive unanimous-decision victory against Johnson to earn this shot against McGregor, and he is a plus-290 dog (bet $100 to win $290) this time around.
McGregor closed out 2015 by handing former featherweight champ Jose Aldo his first loss in more than 10 years via a 13-second knockout at UFC 194 one week earlier. That was his seventh consecutive victory since joining the UFC in 2013 and his sixth finish during that stretch in two rounds or less. He has not suffered a loss since 2010.
For Holm (10-0), her mammoth upset of previously undefeated women’s bantamweight champ Ronda Rousey shocked the MMA world, as fans and bettors alike wondered how that could possibly happen. The former world champion boxer used her superior striking to KO Rousey in the second round at UFC 193 last November 15.
Second-ranked contender Miesha Tate (17-5) is her next opponent in the co-main event. Rousey continues to recover and hopes to return in the second half of the year.
Holm is a large minus-350 favorite against Tate, who is a plus-265 dog, according to oddsmakers, and currently the second-ranked contender behind Rousey. Tate was originally bypassed as the previous top contender to set up the Holm-Rousey matchup, and she will look to prevent the rematch from happening by pulling off an upset of her own.
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