Khamzat Chimaev is positioned as the favorite to capture his first UFC championship title.
UFC CEO Dana White recently made the announcement that Chimaev will challenge reigning middleweight champion Dricus du Plessis for the belt. This pivotal main event is scheduled to headline UFC 319, taking place on August 16th at the United Center in Chicago.
According to initial odds released by FanDuel, the challenger, Chimaev, opens as a nearly two-to-one favorite at -194. The champion, du Plessis, is listed as the underdog at +150.
These odds suggest an implied probability of approximately 66 percent for Chimaev to win the fight. A $100 wager placed on Chimaev would result in a total payout of $151.55, while the same $100 bet on du Plessis would return $250 if he is victorious.
Chimaev is coming off what many consider his most impressive career performance, having secured a first-round submission victory over former champion Robert Whittaker at the UFC 308 co-main event last October in Abu Dhabi. This marked “Borz`s” return after more than a year away from the octagon and was only his third fight since September 2022, but the dominant showing was sufficient to earn him the long-awaited championship opportunity.
Du Plessis became the champion by defeating Sean Strickland via decision at UFC 297 in January 2024. He has since defended his title successfully twice, according to the report: first with a stoppage win against Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 this past August, followed by a decisive decision victory in a rematch against Strickland at UFC 312 in February.
