In a light heavyweight in the main event, Thiago Santos and Magomed Ankalaev meet Saturday at UFC Vegas 50 — also known as UFC Fight Night 203 — at the UFC’s APEX Facility. Below, we analyze the UFC Vegas 50: Santos vs. Ankalaev odds and lines, with picks and predictions.
The fights can be viewed on ESPN+ with the prelims starting at 4 p.m. ET and the main card starting at 7 p.m. ET.
Santos snapped a three-bout losing skid with a unanimous-decision win over Johnny Walker last time out in the Fight Night main event Oct. 2. Three of his last four fights have gone the distance after three consecutive KO/TKO wins.
Ankalaev lost his UFC debut after getting tapped by Paul Craig on St. Patrick’s Day in 2018. He has rattled off seven straight victories, including three unanimous-decision wins and four KO/TKOs, since that defeat. His last two fights have gone the distance, including last time out against Volkan Oezdemir at UFC 267 Oct. 30.
Watch this card with ESPN+ by signing up here.
UFC Vegas 50 Santos vs. Ankalaev: Odds and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 8:22 a.m. ET.
- Fight result (2-way line): Santos +420 (bet $100 to win $420) | Ankalaev -650 (bet $650 to win $100)
- Will the fight go the distance? (Yes +102 | No -140)
[tipico]
UFC Vegas 50 Santos vs. Ankalaev: Odds, lines, predictions and picks
Records: Santos (22-9-0) | Ankalaev (16-1-0)
Fight result (2-way line or money line)
Ankalaev (-650) will cost you six and a half times your potential return if you just want to be the favorite straight up, and that’s never a recommended play. That’s just way too expensive for not much of a return. Instead, get a little more specific.
Ankalaev has picked up a pair of unanimous-decision victories in his last two outings and has gone the distance in three of his past six fights overall. Santos has gone the distance in three of his past four bouts. Take ANKALAEV BY POINTS (+130) in the METHOD OF VICTORY for a much, much better value.
Over/Under (O/U)
Playing Ankalaev on points also means that YES (+102): FIGHT TO GO THE DISTANCE is a very good play. We haven’t seen a lot of finishes for either of these fighters lately. You needn’t even pick a winner with this wager, you just need it to go all the way to the judges — and that’s happening in this main event.
Visit MMA Junkie for more fight news and analysis.
Bet legally online with a trusted partner: Tipico Sportsbook, Sportsbook Wire’s official sportsbook partner in CO, NJ and soon IA. Bet now!
If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, access all of our content at SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW. Please gamble responsibly.
Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and us on Facebook.
Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA).
[lawrence-newsletter]
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=2559]