Dana White’s Contender Series 29 takes place on Tuesday, August 18 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The offshore sportsbooks recently opened up the betting odds for the main card, and here they are.
Opening Odds For Dana White’s Contender Series 29
Josh Parisian -115
Chad Johnson -115
Cheyanne Buys -225
Hilarie Rose +185
Louis Cosce -175
Victor Reyna +145
Matt Dixon -210
Orion Cosce +170
Kenneth Cross -140
Kevin Syler +120
Here are my initial thoughts on the Opening Odds For Dana White’s Contender Series 29:
- In a heavyweight fight between two guys with serious knockout power, Parisian and Johnson opened as a Pick ’em. Parisian (12-3) is a guy who I believe is a UFC-caliber heavyweight. He had a great knockout win over Greg Rebello on the second season of the Contender Series but for some reason, the promotion passed on him. Since then, Parisian is 5-1 on the regional scene and is riding a five-fight win streak right now. As for Johnson (6-1), he has won all six of his pro victories by knockout. However, he was knocked out just two fights ago by a journeyman fighter. At the weigh-ins, Parisian came in at 265 with Johnson at 215. I think the 50lbs weight advantage is huge for Parisian, and I think he scores a knockout here.
- In a women’s strawweight bout, Buys (4-1) takes on Rose (4-1). Buys has experience fighting for both LFA and Invicta while Rose has been fighting for CES. Both women are on quite a roll and I expect the winner of this bout to get signed to the UFC. My lean is towards Buys as I believe she has fought a better level of competition, but it should be a competitive fight.
- In a welterweight bout, we have Cosce (6-0) against Reyna (11-4). Cosce has won all six of his pro fights by stoppage while Reyna is more experienced, having fought on the Contender Series last year and losing to Miguel Baeza. Cosce is the favorite here because he’s an undefeated prospect but Reyna has fought a high level of competition and has plenty of experience. At the opening dog odds, my lean would be towards Reyna. The winner of this bout could very well earn a UFC deal.
- In another welterweight bout, Dixon (9-0) takes on Cosce (6-0). Both guys have had plenty of experience in a short amount of time against a surprisingly decent level of competition. It’s hard to fade either guy here considering they are both unbeaten and generally finish their fights. Dixon has fought slightly better competition so I lean towards him but it’s a close fight and probably a bit closer than the odds indicate. Again, I could see the winner of this fight being signed by the UFC.
- And finally, we have a lightweight bout between Cross (10-3) and Syler (10-0). Cross was supposed to fight two weeks ago but his opponent missed weight and now this original matchup is back together. Cross carries a four-fight win streak into the bout while Syler is undefeated, including a win on DWCS last year. This should be a very competitive fight but I would lean towards Syler as a dog here.
