UFC Vegas 81 Odds, Under Dogs And Best Bets!

Get a detailed breakdown of the betting lines for UFC Vegas 81, which is set to hit UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, this weekend (Sat., Oct. 14, 2023), including best bets, underdogs, favorites and much more!

After seven Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fights in nearly five years, Contender Series graduate, Sodiq Yusuff, looks to finally move into title Featherweight contention this weekend (Sat., Oct. 14, 2023) when he battles Edson Barboza inside UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. UFC Vegas 81 will also host a women’s Flyweight co-feature between Jennifer Maia and Viviane Araujo, as well as Jonathan Martinez vs. Adrian Yanez in what could be a genuinely spectacular Bantamweight battle.

With UFC 294 around the corner, now’s the time to build your pay-per-view (PPV) budget. Let’s start here …

What Went Wrong At UFC Vegas 80?

Mateus Mendonca

I cannot fathom what was going through his head. He had the striking to overwhelm Nate Maness on the feet, but elected to chase hopeless leglocks until Maness beat him halfway to death. My worry was that he’d fade down the stretch, not that he’d remove his own brain to help cut weight.

Johnny Munoz Jr.

I thought he’d have one more good round in him before imploding. Instead, he mentally shut down after eating a good shot early in the second, losing the confidence necessary to land his own strikes and set up his takedowns. Seems like that fragility is unfixable.

What Went Right?

Karolina Kowalkiewicz, JJ Aldrich, Bill Algeo and Joe Pyfer

Algeo had a bit more trouble than anticipated, but the rest did their jobs admirably.

UFC Vegas 81 Odds For The Under Card:

TJ Brown (-205) vs. Darren Elkins (+170)

Battered though he may be, Elkins is an appetizing underdog pick. Brown is a remarkably consistent choke artist with awful takedown defense, giving Elkins everything he needs to grind out another win. Don’t go nuts — Elkins does have a ton of mileage on him — but do be sure to invest.

Tainara Lisboa (-360) vs. Ravena Oliveira (+285)

Skip it. While Lisboa should be several levels above Oliveira, I haven’t found any recent footage of “Kenoudy” and would rather not fly blind when Lisboa is that big of a favorite.

Terrance McKinney (N/A) vs. Brendon Marotte (N/A)

Same deal as the fight above: Marotte’s only fights in the last three years are paywalled, so while McKinney smashes the last version of Marotte I’ve watched, there’s no telling what “The Kid” looks like now.

Melissa Dixon (-148) vs. Irina Alekseeva (+124)

The lines have unfortunately widened since earlier this week, but there’s still value in Dixon. She’s a very capable wrestler with high-level defensive grappling, which was on full display in her win over Olympic judoka Rizlen Zouak. “No Mess Mullins” is admittedly quite hittable, but Alekseeva is too sloppy on the feet to properly capitalize.

Chris Gutierrez (-298) vs. Alatengheili (+240)

Lopsided, but justified. Despite boasting solid wrestling and a thudding right hand, Alatengheili is extremely passive in the cage, which is exactly the wrong approach against a long-range lumberjack like Gutierrez. Plus, Gutierrez was already preparing for a heavy-handed wrestler, so the short notice shouldn’t trip him up too much.

Emily Ducote (-360) vs. Ashley Yoder (+285)

Ducote is better than Yoder in virtually every area of the game; faster, heavier-handed, a superior boxer, and a superior wrestler. There’s a reason Yoder only has one win in her last five fights, and though Ducote’s hit some speedbumps of her own, there’s no shame losing to Angela Hill and Lupita Godinez. Use her to beef up parlays.

UFC Vegas 81 Odds For The Main Card:

Sodiq Yusuff (-166) vs. Edson Barboza (+140)

I really like the line on Edson. Outside of grievous mismatches against the likes of Suman Mokhtarian and Don Shainis, Yusuff never has an easy time in the cage. He’s had to grit out his share of wins even against people he physically outclassed, which isn’t a great sign against a still-dangerous striker like Barboza. Critically, Yusuff’s offensive wrestling is nonexistent, meaning he lacks the tools to exploit one of Barboza’s key weaknesses. Worth a shot, I’d say.

Jennifer Maia (-148) vs. Viviane Araujo (+124)

Hammer that Maia line. She’s coming off of two career-best performances, racking up over 100 significant strikes in each, while Araujo completely imploded against Amanda Ribas. We know that Araujo can’t handle the pace Maia’s been pushing lately, so invest in Maia.

Jonathan Martinez (-112) vs. Adrian Yanez (-108)

Too close to call, especially since we don’t know how Yanez will respond to his first-ever knockout defeat.

Edgar Chairez (-305) vs. Daniel Lacerda (+240)

Still would rather not get involved in this one. They’re both deeply flawed and prone to questionable decision-making.

Christian Rodriguez (-162) vs. Cameron Saaiman (+136)

Rodriguez has the wrestling and striking technique to punish Saaiman’s lapses, but I could easily see Saaiman overwhelming him with activity. Leave it alone.

UFC Vegas 81 Best Bets:

Single bet — Edson Barboza: Bet $80 to make $112
Single bet — Darren Elkins: Bet $60 to make $102
Parlay — Chris Gutierrez and Jennifer Maia: Bet $80 to make $92
Parlay — Melissa Dixon and Emily Ducote: Bet $60 to make $68.40

UFC Vegas 81 is not the prettiest card, but there’s potential for memorable action there. See you Saturday, Maniacs.

Initial Investment For 2023: $600
April Bailout: $400
August Bailout: $500
Current Total: $693.60

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 81 fight card right here, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” matches, which are scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET, then the remaining main card balance (also on ESPN+) at 7 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 81: “Yusuff vs. Barboza” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.

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