Considered by many to be the best pound-for-pound fighter in the UFC, Jon “Bones” Jones is a perfect 12-0 over his last 12 fights. Jones returns to the Octagon this Saturday night in the main event of UFC 197 against Ovince Saint Preux in Las Vegas, Nevada.
UFC 197 odds, Jones vs. Saint Preux: Jones returns to Octagon as big betting favorite
Jon Jones and Ovince Saint Preux headline a strong card at UFC 197 this Saturday night, with Jones a big betting favorite at the sportsbooks.
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Jones is a -600 favorite over Saint Preux in the main event at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. Jones (21-1 as a professional) dealt with some legal issues outside of the cage in 2015, but the former UFC Light Heavyweight champion hopes to put all of that behind him with a strong performance in UFC 197.
This fight was originally scheduled to be a rematch against Daniel Cormier, but Cormier had to pull out of the fight with an injury.
Saint Preux (19-7) steps in to replace Cormier and could provide an interesting challenge for Jones. Saint Preux is an explosive striker and a quick counter attacker, creating a potential threat should Jones show any rust in his return to action.
But if Jones can weather the early storm and find his rhythm, he should be able to fend off the upset, which would pay +400.
Demetrious Johnson (23-2-1) is one of the top fighters in the MMA, and he’ll put his UFC Flyweight championship on the line against the undefeated Henry Cejudo (10-0). Johnson’s versatility is his greatest strength, and he’ll need it to keep this fight off the mat as Cejudo is an Olympic gold medalist as a wrestler.
Cejudo is a +300 underdog in this match going up against the speedy and athletic champion Johnson (-400). Johnson has won each of his last nine fights.
Leading into that flyweight championship fight is a lightweight bout between Anthony Pettis (-175) and Edson Barboza (+145). Both fighters have four career losses and two losses in their last three fights, setting the stage for an important fight for both as neither wants to pick up another loss and lose any more momentum moving forward.
Yair Rodriguez (-160) vs. Andre Fili (+130) and Robert Whittaker (-335) vs. Rafael Natal (+255) will also be on the card. Rodriguez is 6-1 as a professional and 3-0 in three UFC bouts in his career thus far.
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