UFC 258: Usman vs Burns takes place on Saturday, February 13 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. The offshore sportsbooks recently opened up the betting odds for the event, and MMAOB staff writer Adam Martin takes a look at the opening odds below.
UFC 258 Odds
Kamaru Usman -225
Gilbert Burns +190
Maycee Barber -130
Alexa Grasso +110
Kelvin Gastelum -190
Ian Heinisch +165
Chris Gutierrez -190
Andre Ewell +165
Julian Marquez -185
Maki Pitolo +160
Bobby Green -300
Jim Miller +250
Rodolfo Vieira -400
Anthony Hernandez +300
Belal Muhammad -350
Dhiego Lima +285
Mallory Martin -125
Polyana Viana +105
Ricky Simon -300
Brian Kelleher +240
Gabe Green -145
Phil Rowe +125
Miranda Maverick -225
Gillian Robertson +190
Here are my initial thoughts on the UFC 258 Opening Odds:
- The main event sees UFC welterweight champion Kamaru Usman (17-1) puts his belt on the line against Gilbert Burns (19-3). This should be an incredible fight to determine who the best 170lbs fighter in the world is. Usman has gone undefeated since joining the UFC in 2015, going a perfect 12-0 and seemingly taking over Georges St-Pierre’s spot as a dominant welterweight champion. In Usman’s last fight, he dominated Jorge Masvidal via unanimous decision at UFC 251, and he knocked out Colby Covington prior to that at UFC 245. As for Burns, he has won six straight fights including four in a row at welterweight. When Burns moved up to 170lbs a few years ago, no one could have expected he would become the No. 1 contender at welterweight so quickly, but he’s done just that. In his last two fights, Burns dominated two veterans in Tyron Woodley and Demian Maia. That’s why I think he’s a wild card in this fight. As good as Usman has looked lately, Burns has arguably looked just as good, and I think he has a better shot of beating Usman than the opening odds are indicating.
- The co-main event features a pair of women’s flyweights as Maycee Barber (8-1) takes on Alexa Grasso (12-3). Barber was quickly emerging as a contender at 125lbs but she suffered a one-sided loss to Roxanne Modafferi in her last fight at UFC 246. After taking over a year off of active competition, she returns to the cage this weekend against Grasso. Though she was a top prospect herself just a few years ago, Grasso has struggled in the UFC with a 4-3 overall record. She did move up to 125lbs in her last fight and beat Ji Yeon Kim, so she wil look to build on that performance here against Barber. It’s a close fight as the Pick ’em odds suggest.
- Another big fight on the card is a middleweight bout between top-15 ranked Kelvin Gastelum (15-6, 1 NC) and Ian Heinisch (14-3). Gastelum has struggled as of late with three straight losses, but he lost to top-10 fighters, so it’s hard to get a read on if he has truly declined or if he’s just beating fighter superior competition. As for Heinisch, he is coming off of a knockout win over Gerald Meerschaert and has a 4-2 overall record in the UFC. Gastelum is the more experienced fighter in the UFC but considering his recent form, Heinisch has to be live here.
