UFC Predictions: Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski Prediction & UFC 294 Picks
Makhachev vs. Volkanovski Prediction & UFC 294 Picks Prediction & UFC 294 Picks
- ⭐ Islam Makhachev to win on points (+175) at Caesars
- ⭐ Fight to go the distance between Usman and Chimaev (+150) at DraftKings
- ⭐ Islam Makhachev to win via submission (+275) at FanDuel
What a crazy few weeks in the buildup to UFC 294 it has been.
Two late changes to the two fights at the top of the bill has turned UFC 294 into arguably the most intriguing pay-per-view of the year, and we’ve rounded up all the UFC odds from the best online betting sites and put together our UFC predictions once more.
Despite the changes, the UFC odds for this weekend still keep Khamzat Chimaev and Islam Makhachev as the favorites, but you’ll no doubt find some UFC 294 picks that go against the sportsbooks - Makhachev is +275 to beat Alexander Volkanovski via submission at FanDuel.
Here, we’ll take an in-depth look at the UFC odds for the main event and briefly take on the thrilling co-main event too.
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Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski UFC Odds, Details & Form
One of the UFC’s biggest-ever fights gets a rematch in the main event, while arguably the most intriguing middleweight fight of all time takes place in the co-main. Don’t forget, the main card starts early in North America.
- 🏟 Location: Etihad Arena, Yas Island/Yas West United Arab Emirates
- 📅 Date: Saturday, October 21tst, 2023
- 🕙 Time: 2:00 pm ET
- 🥊 Main Event: Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Volkanovski
- 🔥 Top Favorite: Islam Makhachev to win via submission (+275) at FanDuel
- 📊 Fighter Stats: Islam Makhachev
24-1 | Alexander Volkanovski 26-2 - 📺 TV Channel: ESPN + PPV
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Islam Makhachev Form Prior to UFC 294
Makhachev is no doubt on his way to establishing himself as the best lightweight of all time, and should he beat Volkanovski for the second time, he perhaps surpasses his training partner and UFC Hall of Fame inductee, Khabib Nurmagomedov, in that debate.
The Russian has lost just one fight in his career by losing to Adriano Martins on his second UFC appearance in 2015. Since then, however, he has gone on to win 12 fights in a row and put himself up into third in the UFC pound-for-pound rankings with an argument to be the #1 fighter on earth.
Makhachev has done most of his work via submissions by securing 11 of his 24 wins in this manner, including a sensational arm-triangle choke over the best BJJ practitioner in the game, Charles Oliveira, where he won the vacant lightweight title.
Further wins over Arman Tsarukyan, Thiago Moises, Dan Hooker, Bobby Green and his recent win over Volkanovski has undoubtedly put him as the best lightweight in the world and in truth, it’s tough to see how anyone beats him.
Alexander Volkanovski Form Prior to UFC 294
From the best lightweight in the world to the best featherweight of all time, Volkanovski. The Australian first won the title back in back in December and he now has the second longest win streak in UFC featherweight division history (11).
Volkanovski is without question the best to ever do it at 145 lbs. He has beaten the featherweight GOAT in the eyes of many, Max Holloway, three times, while the champion has also beaten legendary names like Jose Aldo, Brian Ortega and Jung Chan-sung.
Most recently, Volkanovski made easy work of Yair Rodriguez down at featherweight with a TKO in the third round.
This also brought the 35-year-old up to third in the most significant strikes landed in UFC featherweight history (1320) alongside having the highest striking differential in UFC featherweight history (3.03).
Volkanovski also looked excellent in his loss to Makhachev, and some people believe he won the fight. This is debatable, however, but he undoubtedly won at least two rounds and proved why he is one of the best ever by stepping up a whole weight class and looking far from out of place.
Makhachev vs. Vokanovski UFC Best Bets
We’ve put together the UFC 294 best bets and our UFC 294 picks for this weekend after searching around for the best UFC odds.
UFC Best Bet #1: Islam Makhachev to win on points (+175) at Caesars
The first fight between Makhachev and Vokanovski ended with the former winning on points. Some will argue that Volkanovski did enough to win the fight, but we disagree.
Makhachev landed 60% significant strikes compared to Volkanovski's 48%, while also completing four takedowns from his total nine attempts. This also saw the lightweight king have seven minutes and 37 seconds of control time.
With little time to prepare for this fight for the contender, there is a huge case for the fight going the exact same way as the first one.
⭐ UFC Picks: Islam Makhachev to win on points (+175) at Caesars
UFC Best Bet #2: Fight to go the distance between Usman and Chimaev (+150) at DraftKings
Steering away from the main event for just a moment, we cannot give you our UFC 294 picks and not discuss the mouthwatering co-main event.
In reality, outside of the title fights at middleweight, this fight between the former champion and the unstoppable Chimaev is arguably the biggest bout at 185 lbs in recent times. This is a division that has been dominated by Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira in the past few years, but with the former losing his title recently and the latter moving up to light heavyweight, this fight is as big as it gets.
This will be Usman’s debut at middleweight, but for a man of his size and strength, this move up in weight should be no issue. In fact, we wouldn’t be surprised if Usman walks around at 200 lbs+ outside of fight camps.
However, no man has come close to beating Chimaev so far in his career and he could well be on his way to greatness. On the other hand, Usman is already an all-time great of the game and perhaps the best welterweight we’ve ever seen.
With these factors in mind, we can’t call this fight and our Usman vs. Chimaev prediction heads towards the fight going the distance, mainly because it is a three-round battle.
⭐ UFC 293 Picks: Fight to go the distance between Usman and Chimaev (+150) at DraftKings
UFC Best Bet #3: Islam Makhachev to win via submission (+275) at FanDuel
Our top pick for this fight is for Makhachev to win via submission, just as he has done 11 times from his 24 wins, including that famous win over Oliveira.
Although he never officially completed a submission attempt against Volkanovski, by having almost eight minutes of control time and completing four takedowns, it's clear to see what Makhachev was trying.
Volkanovski is no doubt going to be weaker in this fight than the previous, simply due to his lack of a training camp. Considering this, the control time and takedown attempts from Makhachev likely sees him rack up a few submission efforts as well.
⭐ UFC Picks: Islam Makhachev to win via submission (+275) at FanDuel
Why Islam Makhachev Will Win by Submission at UFC 294
As a legend in the combat sambo world, Makhachev has now secured 46% of his 24 wins via submission. Now, up against a fighter he has already beaten and on short notice, we likely see the champion get #12 in this regard.
The superior strength and cardio could be too much for Volkanovski, no matter how great he is. Simply put, coming into this fight off of two weeks notice against someone of Makhachev’s caliber is too risky, and we can see nothing but the champion getting his hands on the featherweight king and locking in a submission.
Islam Makhachev vs. Alexander Vokanovski UFC 294 Predictions & Final Thoughts
You will no doubt find a bunch of different UFC 294 picks and UFC 294 predictions this weekend, given the unpredictable nature of things and because of how much has changed in the past two weeks.
However, we think the sportsbooks have this one right and that Makhachev will get the job done. He won the first fight against Volkanovski, and given how the latter has taken the fight on such short notice, there is not much to suggest he is better this time around.
We think the superior cardio because of a planned fight camp will be the difference here, so we expect Makhachev to get a submission in once more.
UFC Best Bet: ⭐ Islam Makhachev to win via submission (+275) at FanDuel
As we look forward to another UFC Fight Night, there's another exciting development for sports betting enthusiasts. Back in September, Kentucky launched online sports betting, paving the way for the emergence of new sports betting apps in Kentucky. This opens up a new realm of opportunities for fans and bettors alike. Stay tuned for more updates on this front.
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