Get pumped, MMA fans, as UFC 268 is finally here late on Saturday. With the event all set to take place on November 6th, fans can’t wait to see the second battle between Colby Covington and Kamaru Usman. Furthermore, there are several other exciting showdowns for fans to enjoy. In this article, we have futures picks for UFC 268, which will be one special night for everyone to watch and savor. The action takes place from the iconic Madison Square Garden in New York City.
In the main event, Usman faces Covington once more on Saturday night. The two welterweight superstars are ready to duke it out once more. In the meantime, there has been a considerable amount of sniping between the two combatants. There have been accusations of ducking and avoiding this inevitable collision course. Usman has been fighting in various formats since 2012.
For Usman, he enters this meeting with Covington on an 18 match winning streak. As for Covington, he’s 16-2-0 in his career. On paper, these two are not as evenly matched up as they may look. The last time we saw Usman get into the octagon was April 24th, as he went head-to-head with Jorge Masvidal. This was a quick fight as the Nigerian ended this bout just 62 seconds into Round 2 via a knockout.
| UFC 268 Odds -- Main Card |  |  |  |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colby Covington | +255 | +257 | +250 |
| Kamaru Usman | -315 | -307 | -325 |
| Zhang Weili | -120 | -120 | -115 |
| Rose Namajunas | -110 | +100 | -105 |
| Frankie Edgar | +140 | +148 | +140 |
| Marlon Vera | -170 | -173 | -170 |
Now, he enters this next meeting with Covington brimming with confidence. The chances this fight goes the distance seems to be low. Both fighters dislike each other. Usman feels there is a “mutual respect” though.
As for the Las Vegas sportsbooks, Usman has been given -307 UFC odds, while Covington is listed at +257. This tells you that Usman is, even more, a favorite to have his hand raised for a second time between these two fighters.
For those that forget the first time around between Usman and Covington, the Nigerian fighter known as the “Nigerian Nightmare” kept landing power shots. Those significant strikes took a huge toll on Colby Covington. Connect rates for Usman was a good deal greater when compared to Covington.
Usman was landing more than 50% of his strikes in the middle rounds as well. It seemed like only a matter of time before this UFC 245 fight was going to end. Sure enough, the Nigerian forced a late fifth-round TKO stoppage of Covington due to the volume of punches. Simply, Usman’s attack was just too great to be handled.
Covington claimed all sorts of things including the fact that Usman was ducking him and could not beat him in a fair fight. Also, the California native could barely muster an offensive from Round 3 on. There might be a repeat the second time around once Usman saps the energy out of Covington — who has not fought in more than 13 months.
Even with Usman seeing his odds go up to -257 for Saturday night, take the Nigerian champion to defend his welterweight crown once more over Covington. Take the pick to the bank!
In a matchup that likely will feature some fireworks, Rose Namajunas will upend Zhang Weili when they get it on. As most fans know, these two faced off previously, but things ended dramatically. That’s because Namajunas connected on a brilliant head kick no one saw coming.
Even now, Weili still is in disbelief over how things ended. To lose in such a brutal and fast way gave the Chinese fighter no time to react. However, that is how fast both fighters can strike. The difference is Namajunas has shown the ability to strike more often.
The two have not had to exchange barbs on social media. If you check Twitter, their highlights alone show the firepower that both combatants possess. This makes UFC 268 even more exciting for fans to watch. Weili wants to end this fight before Namajunas has a chance to finish her. Expect the bout not to make it to the scorecards as both fighters want to show they can finish the other off.
Per Vegas, the fight is nearly even, as Namajunas holds +100 odds. Weili is a very slight favorite of sorts with -120 odds. While Weili is in theory the better fighter, her opponent is the more opportunistic of the two even at great risk. We’re slugging with Namajunas as our pick. Do you agree? Kindly come check out our UFC betting sites and get a wager in.
Last but not least, Frankie Edgar is also favored to beat Marlon Vera at UFC 268 in a bantamweight bout. While this fight won’t have the same kind of electricity as the main event and the ladies’ fight, you have to believe Edgar and Vera are going to want to put on a show. No one wants to see a boring fight that holds no interest.
According to the Vegas oddsmakers, though, the expectation is that Ankalaev will cruise to a nice victory over Oezdemir come next month. Edgar holds -170 odds, with his opponent being given +140 odds. Those odds seem to be a little low recording yet another win. With Edgar’s big power, he’s always a threat for a knockout.
Now under the big stage of New York City and a UFC 268 showcase, this is only going to urge Edgar to keep the pressure going in the division with an impressive win. He wants to keep working his way up the ranks (8th currently). What better way than beating a hard-charging opponent in Vera (ranked 13th) at UFC 268 and making easy work of the Ecuadorian? We believe Edgar will make this happen, as Edgar is our pick to win on Saturday night.
