Dana White’s Contender Series takes place Tuesday, July 16 at UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The offshore sportsbooks recently opened up the betting odds for the full card, and here they are.
Dana White’s Contender Series 20 Opening Odds
Antonio Arroyo -205
Stephen Regman +175
Armando Villarreal -250
Ode Osbourne +210
Don’tale Mayes -175
Ricardo Prasel +150
Kevin Syler -170
Lance Lawrence +145
Brendan Allen -250
Aaron Jeffery +210
And here are my initial thoughts on the Dana White’s Contender Series 20 Opening Odds:
- The main event is a middleweight bout between Arroyo (8-2) and Regman (9-3). The 30-year-old Arroyo has won four straight fights including a victory over Diego Henrique on last year’s Contender Series Brazil. The 27-year-old Regman has also won four straight fights, all by finish, including a knockout of Contender Series alum Will Santiago in his last fight. There’s a good chance there’s going to be a finish in this fight as both guys tend to stop their opponents in their victories. Based on the opening odds there was more value on Regman as a dog. Early action has come in on the dog, making this a near Pick ’em fight at the books, which seems more reasonable than the opener.
- Next up is a bantamweight bout between Villarreal (5-1) and Osbourne (7-2). The 29-year-old Villarreal has won three straight fights in LFA. The 27-year-old Osbourne has also won three straight fights on the regional circuit. Villarreal has fought better competition and should be favored, but the line feels like it opened a bit high in his favor, and the early action was on Osbourne as a dog.
- We then have a heavyweight matchup between Mayes (6-2) and Prasel (10-1). The 27-year-old Mayes has won three straight fights since being finished by Allen Crowder on the first season of Contender Series. The 29-year-old Prasel won his last fight after his first pro loss in RIZIN. Both guys are good prospects in the heavyweight division, but Mayes has the edge in experience. This is his third time on the Contender Series, and likely his last chance to make it to the UFC, so I’m expecting a great performance by him here.
- The featherweights are in action as Syler (8-0) takes on Lawrence (5-0). The 28-year-old Syler is undefeated through the first eight fights of his career since making his pro MMA debut in 2014. The 25-year-old Syler is also undefeated through the first five fights of his MMA career. Both guys are undefeated so we don’t truly know their weaknesses yet. I tend to lean towards Syler due to having more experience, and the early action has come in his way.
- And finally, kicking off the card are the middleweights as Allen (11-3) takes on Jeffery (6-1). The 23-year-old Allen has won three straight fights and enters this contest as the LFA middleweight champion. He’s fought quite a high level of competition for such a young fighter, including previous experience against Eryk Anders in a loss. The 26-year-old Jeffery has won four straight fights and has been finishing most of his opponents during his win streak. However, his level of competition is undoubtedly inferior to who Allen has fought so far. Allen is the clear favorite to win this fight, and not surprisingly the early action has come in on him, steaming him up to a -500 favorite since the opener.
