UFC Vegas 90 Odds, Under Dogs And Best Bets!

Yet another Middleweight main event graces UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada, this weekend (Sat., April 6, 2024) when Chris Curtis steps up on short notice to rematch old rival (watch highlights), Chris Curtis, streaming live on ESPN+. UFC Vegas 90 will also host a showdown between struggling Featherweights Alexander Hernandez vs. Damon Jackson, as well as French Featherweights prospect Morgan Charriere’s clash with fast-rising Jose Mariscal.

Brackets busted? Let’s see if we cant recoup some losses …

What Went Wrong at UFC Atlantic City?

Jamall Emmers

Well, I did say the guy finds ways to lose. He fell apart under Nate Landwehr’s pressure significantly more quickly than I anticipated, though (watch it).

Erin Blanchfield

Man, I really thought her pressure would be enough to wear down Fiorot and open up opportunities for takedowns, especially after Fiorot’s downright skeletal look at the weigh-ins. Unfortunately, Fiorot’s physicality and gas tank combined with Blanchfield’s complete inability to vary her entries to produce a one-sided slog.

Bill Algeo

No argument on the stoppage here — he was doing the chicken dance for like 20 seconds and eating every single right hand Kyle Nelson sent his way.

What Went Right?

Ibo Aslan, Dennis Buzukja, Caolan Loughran, Chidi Njokuani, Jacob Malkoun and Nursulton Ruziboev

I won’t pretend I saw Malkoun’s technical knockout coming or that Aslan and Njokuani lived up to expectations, but we take wins where we can get them.

UFC Vegas 90 Odds For The Under Card:

Alex Morono (-298) vs. Court McGee (+240)

Morono may be on the way out, but McGee seems like the more thoroughly cooked of the two after back-to-back brutal knockout losses. McGee lacks the overwhelming athleticism that Joaquin Buckley used to dismantle Morono and the raw power that let Santiago Ponzinibbio fell “Great White,” leaving him at the mercy of a more active and effective striker with the grappling skills to avoid a grind.

Norma Dumont (-175) vs. Germaine de Randamie (+145)

Honestly, a flyer on de Randamie makes sense. Though she’s coming off a lengthy layoff, she’s got noteworthy height and reach advantages, enough firepower to crack Dumont’s iffy chin, and significantly more experience against high-level opponents.

Victor Hugo (-122) vs. Alatengheili (+102)

Alatengheili has it in him to pull this upset thanks to his power and wrestling skills, but he’s also so passive in the cage that I’m not comfortable recommending a bet on him.

Piera Rodriguez (-155) vs. Cynthia Calvillo (+130)

Skip it. We don’t know how Rodriguez will look after her first-ever defeat and Calvillo was surprisingly competitive against Lupita Godinez last time out.

Jean Matsumoto (-185) vs. Daniel Argueta (+154)

Leave this one alone. Though Matsumoto comprehensively out-classes Argueta on the feet, his takedown defense isn’t impenetrable and Argueta is tough enough to weather the storm and turn things into a slog.

Dylan Budka (-148) vs. Cesar Almeida (+124)

Do not pass up Almeida as the underdog. His standup is levels above Budka’s and his takedown defense is sufficiently stout to keep it in his wheelhouse. That’s not even mentioning the fact that Budka took this bout on relatively short notice.

Melissa Mullins (-360) vs. Nora Cornolle (+285)

No reason not to put Mullins in a parlay. She’s too easy to hit, but she’s also levels above Cornolle on the mat. Indeed, getting taken down five times and controlled for eight minutes by Joselyne Edwards is a bad look.

UFC Vegas 90 Odds For The Main Card:

Brendan Allen (-198) vs. Chris Curtis (+164)

My immediate instinct is to recommend a bet on Curtis to repeat his earlier success, but Allen’s recent form blows Curtis’ out of the water. Curtis proved completely ineffectual against both Nassourdine Imavov and Jack Hermansson, giving Allen an obvious roadmap to follow to victory. Still, Curtis is dangerous enough that betting on Allen at these odds isn’t recommended, either.

Alexander Hernandez (-205) vs. Damon Jackson (+170)

Both of these men are way too hit-or-miss to justify a bet.

Morgan Charriere (-122) vs. Jose Mariscal (+105)

On the one hand, Mariscal exceeded my expectations quite a bit against Trevor Peek and Jack Jenkins. On the other, Charriere has held his own against top-notch opponents like Paul Hughes and seems to be coming into his own after years of inconsistency. Taking the late notice into account, there’s enough going the way of “The Last Pirate” to merit a bet.

Ignacio Bahamondes (-345) vs. Christos Giagos (+275)

Bahamondes clearly needs to make some major adjustments if he wants to live up to his considerable potential — someone with his physical gifts shouldn’t be getting consistently boxed up by smaller men. That said, I still trust him in this matchup because he’s the more durable of the pair and by far the busier striker. Giagos isn’t as technically adept a striker as John Makdessi or Ludovit Klein and lacks the wrestling to bring his ground game to bear, leaving him little choice but to engage in a fire fight he can’t win.

Valter Walker (-340) vs. Lukasz Brzeski (+270)

Walker is admittedly a bit of a lumbering oaf who’s feasted on smaller opponents, but he’s also a very competent wrestler with a great chin. Karl Williams used those same traits to thoroughly overpower Brzeski when they fought — and with the added bonus of Brzeski’s chin failing him in two straight fights — “The Clean Monster” is a valid investment even at these odds.

Charlie Campbell (-205) vs. Trevor Peek (+170)

Though Campbell’s knockout loss to Chris Duncan gives me pause, so does Peek’s uncharacteristically muted performance against Mohammad Yahya. Without that sheer berserker aggression, Peek’s at the mercy of a taller, rangier, more technically-adept striker with comparable if not greater power. In short, a moderate bet on “The Cannibal.”

UFC Vegas 90 Best Bets:

• Single — Germaine de Randamie: Bet $40 to make $58
• Single — Cesar Almeida: Bet $50 to make $62
• Parlay — Melissa Mullins and Morgan Charriere: Bet $50 to make $66.25
• Parlay — Ignacio Bahamondes and Charlie Campbell: Bet $45 to make $41.35
• Parlay — Alex Morono and Valter Walker: Bet $60 to make $53.70

Remember: We’ve got just this one more APEX mess until UFC 300. See you Saturday, Maniacs.

Initial Investment For 2024: $600
Current Total: $542.71

LIVE! Stream UFC Vegas 90 On ESPN+

EXCITING MIDDLEWEIGHT MATCHUP! Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) returns to its APEX venue in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sat., April 6, 2024, with an action-packed, five-round main event featuring No. 7-seeded 185-pound contender, Brendan Allen, running it back with No. 14-ranked Chris Curtis. “Action Man” — who is filling in for the “freak” injured Marvin Vettori — scored an upset win over Allen back in 2021 (watch it). In UFC Vegas 90’s ESPN+-streamed co-main event, former Featherweight hopeful, Alexander Hernandez, looks to get back on track at the expense of dangerous Octagon veteran, Damon Jackson.

Don’t miss a single second of face-punching action!

Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Vegas 90 fight card right here, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” matches, which are scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. ET, then the remaining main card balance (also on ESPN+) at 10 p.m. ET.

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Vegas 90: “Allen vs. Curtis 2” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.