Less than a month since the last pay-per-view card, the UFC is back for UFC 277 on Saturday, headlined by two title fights in Las Vegas.
In the main event slot, current Women’s Bantamweight Champion Julianna Pena (11-4 MMA, 7-2 UFC) runs it back against former Bantamweight Champion and current Featherweight Champ Amanda Nunes (21-5 MMA, 14-2 UFC).
The co-main event will see two of the top men’s flyweights compete for the interim title. Former Champion Brandon Moreno (19-6-2 MMA, 8-3-2 UFC) will take on Kai Kara-France (24-9 MMA, 7-2 UFC) in a rematch of their own.
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The main card also sees the return of fan-favorite Derrick Lewis, who returns against Sergei Pavlovich. Lewis was knocked out by Tai Tuivasa at UFC 271 and Pavlovich is coming off a win against Shamil Abdurakhimov earlier this year.
Flyweights Alexandre Pantoja and Alex Perez face off on the main card and light heavyweights Magomed Ankalaev and Anthony Smith will bring the action as well.
UFC 277 is a rare second PPV event this month, following UFC 276, which took place in Las Vegas during International Fight Week.
UFC 277 Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds at some of the best sports betting apps for the five fights on the main card for UFC 277.
| FIGHT | DraftKings | Caesars | FanDuel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Magomed Ankalaev vs. Anthony Smith | Ankalaev -500 Smith +400 | Ankalaev -550 Smith +400 | Ankalaev -530 Smith +360 |
| Alexandre Pantoja vs. Alex Perez | Pantoja -180 Perez +155 | Pantoja -170 Perez +145 | Pantoja -170 Perez +132 |
| Derrick Lewis vs. Sergei Pavlovich | Pavlovich -125 Lewis +105 | Pavlovich -125 Lewis +105 | Pavlovich -115 Lewis -111 |
| Brandon Moreno vs. Kai Kara France | N/A | Moreno -210 Kara France +175 | Moreno -220 Kara France +168 |
| Julianna Pena vs. Amanda Nunes | Nunes -265 Pena +225 | Nunes -280 Pena +230 | Nunes -310 Pena +230 |
Main Event Analysis: Pena vs. Nunes 2
Probably the most anticipated women’s MMA match in history, these two bantamweights and fans alike are eager to see what happens when Pena and Nunes meet again.
In their last meeting at UFC 269 in Dec. 2021, Pena shocked the world when she rocked Nunes, taking the fight to the ground, and submitted her, ending Nunes’ long and dominant bantamweight reign.
Since then, the two have been the coaches of the most recent season of The Ultimate Fighter in an attempt to build up the rivalry even more leading up to the rematch.
Now, we’re finally here.
The two haven’t fought anyone else since their last bout against each other. Before fighting Nunes, Pena was 3-2 in her previous five bouts. She scored wins over Sara McMann, Nicco Montano and Cat Zingano. She lost to Germaine de Randamie and Valentina Shevchenko.
Meanwhile, Nunes was on a 12-fight win streak with her last loss coming from Zingano by TKO back in 2014. Nunes’ career has seen finishes over Ronda Rousey, Meisha Tate, Cris Cyborg, Holly Holm, de Randamie, and others. She has also beaten fellow champ Shevchenko by decision twice.
Coming into the rematch, Nunes is the betting favorite in the sportsbooks. Throughout her career, she has used her size and strength to dominate opponents on the feet and with her brutal ground and pound.
But last time, Pena outstruck Nunes while keeping the distance and peppering Nunes with shots.
After this bout, the future of the division is a little tricky. There’s always the chance Shevchenko comes up to try and become a double champion. However, her last fight against Talia Santos was very close. So sticking to flyweight might be the route for Shevchenko for now.
There are other bantamweight challengers in the wings but nobody sticks out above the rest. Ketlen Vieira has wins over Holm and Tate, which may be enough to get a title shot given the twos’ pioneer statuses. Irene Aldana has a win over Vieira but a loss to Holm, so anything could happen later this year.
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Co-Main Event Analysis: Moreno vs. Kara-France 2
Before Pena and Nunes take to the Octagon, another rematch between two of the best flyweights will commence.
Moreno and Kara-France meet again on Saturday night. The two first fought in Dec. 2019 with Moreno winning by unanimous decision at UFC 245.
Since then, both fighters have had successful career paths.
Moreno fought and beat Jussier Formiga and Brandon Royval before fighting current Flyweight Champion Deiveson Figueiredo three times in a row. The Figueiredo-Moreno matchups have ended in a win for each fighter and a draw. So an unprecedented fourth fight between them with a Moreno victory over Kara-France would be warranted.
Kara-France has gone 4-1 since losing to Moreno in 2019. The only loss was to Royval by submission at UFC 253. Kara-France has knockout wins over Rogerio Bontorin and former champ Cody Garbrandt.
Kara-France has top-tier striking abilities from training at City Kickboxing in New Zealand alongside top talent including Middleweight Champion Israel Adesanya.
While Kara-France has 11 knockout wins, Moreno has 11 submission wins and both are typically extremely durable with solid chins.
This matchup can go many ways, but Moreno is the slight betting favorite in most sportsbooks.
Contributed by Gage Miskimen
