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The champ is a healthy favorite over the last-minute replacement for the UFC 251 headliner.
We now have a new main event for UFC 251, following the unfortunate news that Gilbert Burns was forced out of a welterweight title fight due to a positive COVID-19 test. That replacement will be Jorge Masvidal, and he is a sizeable underdog to Usman according to bookmakers that have already laid down a line on the fight.
According to 5Dimes, Usman is currently a healthy -290 favorite, while the line on Gamebred comes back at +230.
This line is further apart than the Usman-Burns line, which saw Usman sit at around a -200 favorite. That’s not surprising, given the short time to prepare for Masvidal. It is the sixth time in seven fights that Masvidal has come in as an underdog, only being slightly favored over Nate Diaz in their BMF title fight. Usman has been the betting favorite going into all but one UFC fight – his title fight with Tyron Woodley, which of course he won.
UFC 251 is scheduled to go down Saturday, July 11th on Yas Island in Abu Dhabi. Usman vs. Masvidal will be on top (pending a negative COVID-19 test), with two other title fights on the bill as well – Alexander Volkanovski vs. Max Holloway in a rematch for the featherweight title, and Petr Yan vs. Jose Aldo for the vacant bantamweight title.