The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is live on Pay Per View this Saturday, May 23rd at 10pm ET with a pair of title fights. Preceding the five fight PPV main card, the preliminary action will be live on FOX Sports 1 at 8pm ET and UFC Fight Pass at 6:30pm ET prior to that. If interested in wagering on this PPV fight card, all betting lines will be made available at Several Bookmakerss. Getting things started on Pay Per View will be previous UFC flyweight title challengers Joseph Benavidez and John Moraga, who are expected to set the tone on the main card with a barn-burner. This is a big fight for both 125-pounders, as an impressive win could mean another crack at the division’s gold. I think another title shot for the victor could be a reality, if he delivers a great performance and the winner of Dodson vs Makovsky delivers a lackluster one. Benavidez and Moraga both currently ride two-fight winning streaks and look to make it three in a row on Saturday night. Benavidez opened as a big -505 betting favorite, with Moraga being a +335 underdog. Action has come in on “Joe B” and betting lines are currently -700/+500. Next up on the main card is a heavyweight contest between an ex-champion and a rising star, as former UFC Heavyweight Champion Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski takes on the Hawaiian, Travis “Hapa” Browne. This is a fight that is expected to deliver, and not many expect it to go the full three round distance. “Pitbull” is now 2-0 in his second stint with the UFC, with a controversial split decision over Brendan “Big Brown” Schaub and a first round knockout of Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva. He now aims to make it three straight on his road towards achieving a dream of once again wearing UFC gold around his waist. Standing in his way is the Hawaiian, who found success with a first round TKO over the aforementioned Brendan Schaub since changing training camps from Jackson-Winklejohn MMA in Albuqurque, NM to the Glendale Fighting Club in Glendale, CA, where he has been sharpening and honing his striking skills under the tutelage of coach Edmond Tarverdyan. Browne is eager to make it two in a row against his former training partner, as he has his sights set on UFC gold. Arlovski opened as a +285 underdog in this match-up, with Browne being a -405 betting favorite. Action has since come in on Browne, bringing betting lines to a current +380/-475. Donald Cerrone was set to take on Khabib Nurmagomedov to determine the number one contender at 155-pounds, but unfortunately the injury bug struck once again, forcing the Dagestani fighter to be removed from the card. To replace him on short notice, the promotion made the decision to go with Johm Makdessi, who scored a first round TKO over UFC newcomer Shane Campbell at UFC 186 just a few weeks ago. This fight is a very quick turnaround for Makdessi, who hopes to string a pair of wins together and climb his way up the division’s ladder. A win over Cerrone would undoubtedly be the biggest of his professional mixed martial arts career. While a win over Makdessi probably won’t be the most notable of Cerrone’s career, it will earn him his first ever shot at the UFC Lightweight title, in a rematch with current Champion Rafael dos Anjos. Cerrone opened as a -305 betting favorite in this contest, with Makdessi being a +225 underdog. The public has since backed “Cowboy” and moved betting lines to their current -600/+450. A year and a half in the making and continously delayed due to injuries, the UFC Middleweight title fight between challenger Vitor Belfort and defending Champion Chris Weidman is finally about to take place in the co-main event of the evening. Belfort looks to dethrone the Champ, who looks to stay undefeated as a professional mixed martial artist. The veteran opened as a +325 underdog in this contest, with the Champion being a -475 favorite. Action has since come in on the Champ, bringin betting lines to their current +415/-525. After the incident with now-ex UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon “Bones” Jones forced the UFC’s hand to strip him of his title, Daniel “DC” Cormier was the main benefactor, as he was selected to replace him in a fight against Anthony “Rumble” Johnson in a battle scheduled for five-rounds of action that will determine the UFC’s next 205-pound Champion. Some fans are disappointed with the change of events, while others find this new main event match-up to be more intriguing. Cormier opened as a -140 favorite in this contest, with the return on “Rumble” being +110. There has since been some back and forth action, and current betting lines for the main event title bout now rest at -130/+110.
