UFC 278 Final Faceoffs, Odds, & Full Card Preview

UFC 278 is right around the corner, and MMA News is here to get you primed for all the action with the final faceoffs, odds, and full-card preview.

UFC 278 takes place from tomorrow night, Saturday, August 20, 2022, from the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah. The event will be headlined by pound-for-pound king Kamaru Usman looking to remind Leon Edwards and the rest of the welterweight division that they are still very much experiencing a real-time Nightmare.

In the co-main event, two men who could have solely focused on male modeling in another life but have instead committed to bruising the appearances of others in this one, Paulo Costa and Luke Rockhold will take center stage.

Both men are convinced that it will be a catwalk, but only one will strut up the rankings by night’s end by stepping over their battered adversary.

If you’ve missed any of the fight week festivities, you can get all caught up to speed with our UFC 278 coverage right here.

Of particular note, earlier today, the official weigh-ins took place, and earlier this week, our staff turned in their expert picks for the main card.

Additionally, the UFC has provided a fight-by-fight preview for the entire UFC 278 lineup, which you can find right here. Finally, you can find our own snapshot preview along with the betting odds and final faceoffs down below.

Daniel da Silva (+145) vs. Victor Altamirano (-170)

Daniel da Silva and Victor Altamirano will both be pursuing their first UFC victory at UFC 278. Which flyweight will secure their spot in the UFC at the possible promotional demise of the other?

Aoriqileng (-135) vs. Jay Perrin (+115)

After losing his first two UFC bouts, Aoriqileng was able to bounce back with a TKO victory over Cameron Else last April. He is the very slight favorite to make it two in a row over Jay Perrin, who is 0-1 in the promotion.

Francisco Figueiredo (+395) vs. Amir Albazi (-510)

In an early sleeper fight on the UFC 278 lineup, the 14-1 Amir Albazi will try to extend his UFC record to 3-0 when he takes on Deiveson Figueiredo’s younger brother Francisco, who is 2-1 in the UFC after submitting Daniel da Silva by kneebar last April. Albazi will come in as one of the biggest favorites of the night at -510.

AJ Fletcher (-159) vs. Ange Loosa (+139)

Two young and very athletic welterweights will be competing here, with both men looking to get back in the win column after losing their most recent bouts. In Fletcher’s case, he dropped his 0 to Matt Semelsberger in March. He will enter this fight as a small betting favorite to rebound here in Utah.

Sean Woodson (-350) vs. Luis Saldana (+285)

Sean Woodson enters this fight as the sizable -350 favorite. It bears mentioning that Woodson was once upset as the night’s biggest favorite when he lost to Julian Erosa two years ago at UFC on ESPN 12.

That was Woodson’s only loss, and he was able to rebuild faith with his backers by putting together two straight wins after his loss to Erosa. Opposite him will be Luis Saldana, who has more than two times as many professional fights as Woodson and is 2-1 in the UFC after earning his contract through Contender Series.

Leonardo Santos (+215) vs. Jared Gordon (-255)

UFC vet Jared Gordon has earned his spot as a betting favorite in this bout by winning three of his last four fights, At 18-5, Gordon has the exact same professional record as his opponent Leonardo Santos. However, Santos has lost back-to-back fights, first to Grant Dawson followed by a loss to Clay Guida.

Marcin Tybura (+275) vs. Alexander Romanov (-325)

If you are among those late to the party about the 16-0 Russian heavyweight Alexander Romanov, one quick way to get acquainted with his prospect status is by observing the fact that he is a comfortable -340 favorite over proven veteran Marcin Tybura.

Romanov is currently ranked #13, and despite getting such high respect from the betting community and pundits, he is planning to take his time toward the UFC championship. Will he take the next step with a win over former UFC headliner and #11-ranked Marcin Tybura?

Tyson Pedro (-800) vs. Harry Hunsucker (+500)

Tyson Pedro will enter this bout as the largest favorite of the night at a whopping -800. This is despite losing two of his last three fights. That said, this will be Harry Hunsucker’s first outing at 205. He is currently 0-2 in the UFC being stopped in the first round both times and has a pedestrian professional record of 7-5.

All things considered, another loss for Hunsucker here could spell the end of his UFC run while breathing more life into Pedro’s re-amped charge.

Wu Yanan (-101) vs. Lucie Pudilova (-119)

In what was a late addition to the UFC 278 main card, Wu Yanan will be taking on Lucie Pudilova in a bout originally slated for the prelims.

Many fans found this bout to be a questionable replacement for Tybura/Roman’v’s main card slot given the fact that Wu is on a three-fight losing streak and neither fighter is ranked, but nevertheless, these two ladies will have an opportunity to show why they were handed the PPV spotlight when they enter the Octagon tomorrow night.

The tension has already gotten off to an early start between these two ladies as you can see from their faceoff below.

José Aldo (+124) vs. Merab Dvalishvili (-144)

In a bout that no doubt has championship implications, José Aldo will be taking on the hard-charging Merab Dvalishvili. With a win, the #3-ranked Aldo could easily find himself in the driver’s seat towards a second crack at bantamweight gold, while a win for Dvalishvili could do the same or, at worst, put him within arm’s reach of his first championship opportunity.

The odds on this one are super thin, with the Georgian being a small -144 favorite with the comeback on Aldo being +124.

Paulo Costa (-370) vs. Luke Rockhold (+305)

A well-rested and rejuvenated Luke Rockhold will return against Paulo Costa in the co-main event. Former foe of Rockhold, Michael Bisping, has shared some inside information on Rockhold’s training camp that may be concerning for those siding with Rockhold to emerge victorious tomorrow night.

That would be the minority group, though, as Costa is currently the strong -370 favorite. Costa has promised that Rockhold’s chin will be tested and he also stated during the pre-fight press conference that he will retire ‘Old Man Rockhold.’

Meanwhile, Rockhold has exuded confidence throughout fight week and has shared his assurances that he will have no issue in disposing of the ‘mentally weak’ Paulo Costa.

Kamaru Usman (-345) vs. Leon Edwards (+285)

In our main event, two fighters who some believe are the two best welterweights on the planet will go at it when #1 pound-for-pound fighter Kamaru Usman faces Leon “Rocky” Edwards. If you missed their first fight, you can check that out to gauge both athletes’ evolution right here.

And if you missed it, you can see here how Michael Bisping hyped up his compatriot Edwards ahead of the PPV via BT Sport. Edwards has done his job “hyping” the event himself with some light trash talk, calling Usman delusional and also implying that he has evolved into an egomaniac.

Usman has responded to this narrative and had time to address Edwards directly and vice versa during the UFC 278 pre-fight press conference. Ultimately, both men are purists at heart and prefer to do their talking inside the Octagon. And in the final faceoffs, they both got one final look at their target.

Be sure to keep it locked right here on MMANews.com for full coverage of UFC 278, not to mention PFL 9 and BKFC 27 on what is sure to be an action-packed Saturday night to say the very least!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *