UFC 267 takes place on Saturday from Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. The event is the rare “free pay-per-view” airing on ESPN+ for the basic cost of a subscription and will also take place at a fan-friendly time of 2 p.m. ET (prelims at 10:30 a.m. ET).
In the main event, Jan Blachowicz will defend the UFC light heavyweight championship against Glover Teixeira. Teixeira is getting his second crack at the championship, now 42 years old and riding an improbable five-fight winning streak.
For many, there’s no better way to add a little extra spice to a big night of fights than having a little money on the line. With so many intriguing fights on the card and so many close fights, it’s a great card to get in on some of the action.
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Caesars Sportsbook has you covered with every angle of UFC 267 to get in on the action. We’re going to give you a few options to consider with this card from our favorite moneyline play, prop play and parlay play. Let’s take a closer look at those picks now.
Best moneyline pick
Andre Petroski -230 vs. Yaozong Hu (Underdog special: Benoit Saint-Denis +180 vs. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos)
There are only a handful of lines that can be considered “close” on the UFC 267 card and they all feel especially risky on both sides. A -230 favorite isn’t the sexiest of picks, but it still feels like a high-value line. Hu entered the UFC with a 3-0 record, but those wins came against fighters who entered the cage 2-3, 0-0 and 0-1. Hu was signed by the UFC and lost by rear-naked choke against Cyril Asker, leading him to move down to light heavyweight. At 205 pounds, Hu lost a hard-fought decision to Rashad Coulter. He now is trying to drop down to middleweight still seeking his first UFC win. Petroski isn’t great but he has shown the ability to defeat UFC-level opposition and is a proven middleweight, not someone trying to cut down 50 pounds from two fights previously.
If you are desperate to place an underdog bet, Saint-Denis is intriguing as he makes his UFC debut. He’s a perfect 8-0 as a professional and is a stoppage machine. Zaleski dos Santos has some nice Octagon wins on his resume, but Saint-Denis can be an overwhelming force at times and could just get the job done in the first half of the fight.
Moneyline record to date (2021): 3-4
Best prop pick
Khamzat Chimaev vs. Li Jingliang over 1.5 rounds -120
It’s very important to remember that Chimaev has gone through the worst case of COVID-19 we are aware of for any active UFC fighter. He was hospitalized several times and even tweeted that his career as a fighter may be over before Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov tweeted that Chimaev would continue to fight. Add Jingliang’s toughness to the equation and this feels like a fight that is going to require some serious work from Chimaev and won’t allow for his normal steamrolling. Take the over here.
Prop pick record to date (2021): 3-4
Best parlay pick
Andre Petroski -230, Chimaev vs. Jingliang over 1.5 rounds, Lerone Murphy -310 (+248)
We’ve explained the logic behind Petroski and Chimaev vs. Jingliang above. Tying in Lerone Murphy at -310 takes the parlay from +163 to +248, a good jump for the inclusion of such a heavy favorite. Murphy is 10-0-1 as a pro and 2-0-1 in the UFC. He will be fighting Makwan Amirkhani, who is 1-3 in his four most recent fights and has been outstruck in all but two of his 10 UFC fights, though striking isn’t really his game, with 11 submissions in 16 career victories. But we’re increasingly seeing that submission-first attack fail for Amirkhani and it likely will again on Saturday.
Parlay pick record to date (2021): 1-6
Who wins Blachowicz vs. Teixeira? And what other picks do you need to see for a parlay with a payout of better than 9/1? Visit SportsLine now to get detailed top picks on UFC 267, all from the insider who’s up nearly $9,200 on MMA picks in the past year, and find out.
