PFL 2019: Week 5 takes place Thursday, July 25 at Ocean Resort Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The offshore sportsbooks recently opened up the betting odds for the full card, and here they are.
PFL 2019: Week 5 Opening Odds
Akhmed Aliev -285
Chris Wade +205
Lance Palmer -600
Luis Rafael Laurentino +400
Rashid Magomedov -620
Nate Andrews +410
Gadzhi Rabadanov -350
Daniel Pineda +250
Loik Radzhabov -140
Ylies Djiroun +100
Andre Harrison -120
Movlid Khaibulaev -120
Islam Mamedov -1500
Yincang Bao +700
Alex Gilpin -135
Freddy Assuncao -105
Alexandre de Almeida -160
Peter Petties +120
Jeremy Kennedy -180
Steven Siler +140
Natan Schulte TBD
Jesse Ronson TBD
And here are my initial thoughts on the PFL 2019: Week 5 Opening Odds:
- The main event is a lightweight bout between Aliev (18-4) and Wade (15-5). The 29-year-old Aliev is currently riding an eight-fight win streak which includes notable victories over ex-UFC fighters Diego Brandao, Efrain Escudero and Ivan Jorge. In his PFL debut, Aliev finished Carlos Silva via TKO. The 31-year-old Wade is 3-2 in PFL and is coming off of a decision win over Nate Andrews, with his only two losses in the promotion coming against Natan Schulte. Wade is an effective wrestler who knows how to grind his opponents out, but Aliev is a dynamic talent who finishes fights. Look for Aliev to win this fight, and the question is does he do so by knockout or by decision.
- Next up we have last season’s featherweight winner Palmer (18-3) against one of the surprises of this year’s tournament Laurentino (34-1). The 34-year-old Palmer won last season’s tournament with a decision win over Steven Siler. This year, he defeated Alex Gilpin in the first round. The 26-year-old Laurentino has won three straight fights since his lone career defeat which snapped a 31-fight win streak. In his PFL debut, he pulled off a huge upset with a knockout win over Jeremy Kennedy. Palmer’s wrestling skills are phenomenal and as last year’s tourney winner he deserves to be favored here. But after seeing Laurentino finish Kennedy, I wouldn’t write him off so soon, and at these inflated odds for Palmer it might be a dog-or-pass situation. I certainly don’t think betting heavy against Laurentino is a good idea.
- Another lightweight bout sees Magomedov (23-3-1) take on Andrews (15-2). The 35-year-old Magomedov is 3-1-1 in PFL and defeated Loik Radzhabov in this year’s opening round. He lost to Natan Schulte in last year’s lightweight finals in what was a big upset. The 35-year-old Andrews had his nine-fight win streak snapped with a decision loss to Wade in his PFL debut this year. Unfortunately for Andrews, he’s been given another tough matchup here against Magomedov. Look for the Russian to control the fight and win another decision like always.
- Another fight of note sees quality featherweights Harrison (21-1) and Khaibulaev (14-0) collide. The 31-year-old Harrison is 7-1 overall in PFL/WSOF, with his lone loss coming against Palmer last year. That was his first career defeat, and he bounced back with a decision over Peter Petties in the opening round of this season’s tournament. The 28-year-old Khaibulaev brutally knocked out Damon Jackson in just 10 seconds in his PFL debut in what was an eye-opening performance. Harrison’s wrestling is incredible, but Khaibulaev’s KO over Jackson showed he’s extremely dangerous. No wonder it’s a Pick ’em.
- Like most PFL cards, there are plenty of intriguing matchups on the path to $1 million dollars. The majority of heavy favorites should win their fights, but time and time again we’ve see big favorites go down in PFL. There will definitely be at least a few underdogs that pull off the upset, but it’s hard to know just who those dogs will be. Do your research, pick your spots, and good luck with your bets for this card.
Editor’s note: Jesse Ronson is now fighting Natan Schulte after their original opponents Carlao Silva and Ramsey Nijem missed weight. The article will be updated when odds are released for the new bout. Also, the Gadzhi Rabadanov vs Daniel Pineda fight is cancelled after Rabadanov missed weight.
