UFC on FOX 25 odds: Latest Vegas lines and betting guide for 'Weidman vs Gastelum'

One captured The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) middleweight crown. The other was the UFC middleweight champion.

Following brutal beatings of Tim Kennedy and Vitor Belfort, Kelvin Gastelum (the former) will face his stiffest test yet this Saturday night (Jul7 22, 2017) when he takes on Chris Weidman in the latter’s native Long Island.

The UFC on FOX 25 fight card will also feature a duo of wrestler battles in Dennis Bermudez vs. Darren Elkins and Gian Villante vs. Patrick Cummins, plus a bantamweight brawl between Jimmie Rivera and Thomas Almeida.

Everything but the Fight Pass portion is free, but that’s no excuse not to make some money on the side.

Here’s how.

What Went Wrong at UFC Fight Night 113?

Radda radda eye pokes radda radda.

Underdogs:

Lyman Good (-220) vs. Elizeu Zaleski Dos Santos (+180)

Ryan LaFlare (-170) vs. Alex Oliveira (+150)

Chase Sherman (-220) vs. Damian Grabowski (+180)

Jeremy Kennedy (-220) vs. Kyle Bochniak (+180)

Brian Kelleher (-220) vs. Marlon Vera (+175)

Timothy Johnson (-220) vs. Junior Albini (+180)

Shane Burgos (-320) vs. Godofredo Pepey (+260)

Chris Wade (-270) vs. Frankie Perez (+230)

Thoughts: Ryan LaFlare, come on up. You’re the undercard pick for the week.

Alex Oliveira is entertaining as all get out, but he’s a fundamentally flawed fighter who’s relied on overpowering physicality to cover his weaknesses. At welterweight, that advantage no longer exists. While he packs heavy hands, he relies on his wrestling when the going gets tough, a nonviable strategy against a grappler of LaFlare’s caliber. I fully expect LaFlare to grind Oliveira into the dirt, so bank on it.

Main Card:

Kelvin Gastelum (-180) vs. Chris Weidman (+168)

Dennis Bermudez (-250) vs. Darren Elkins (+210)

Gian Villante (-115) vs. Patrick Cummins (-105)

Jimmie Rivera (-175) vs. Thomas Almeida (+155)

Thoughts: Dennis Bermudez and Thomas Almeida bring the violence in very different ways, but they’re both quality investments.

Bermudez has what I used to call “Eddie Alvarez Syndrome,” wherein he’ll get dropped hard early and then, if he survives, cruise along without issue. Jorge Masvidal used to have this bad. Luckily, Elkins is not a hard puncher and his key attribute, his endless cardio, won’t make much of a difference considering that Bermudez starts in fifth gear and doesn’t slow down until he’s unconscious. Bermudez is the physically stronger man, the better grappler, and the better striker; that wasn’t enough to save Mirsad Bektic, of course, but Bermudez should take this.

Jimmie Rivera is a beast, no doubt, but there are very few bantamweight strikers I’d pick to defeat “Thominhas.” Unless you can plug him early the way Cody Garbrandt did, he’s more or less unstoppable once he gets past that initial slow start. While Rivera’s learned to sit down on his punches and do real damage lately, I don’t think he has enough firepower to put Almeida away before the Muay Thai combinations start flowing.

Best bets for UFC on FOX 25:

Parlay-Ryan LaFlare and Dennis Bermudez: $40 to make $48.80

Single bet-Thomas Almeida: $40 to make $62

There are a couple fights here you really, really don’t want to miss.

MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC on FOX 25 fight card on fight night (click here), starting with the Fight Pass "Prelims" matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. ET, then the remaining undercard balance on FOX at 6 p.m. ET, before the FOX main card start time at 8 p.m. ET.

Initial Investment For 2017: $200 (+$100 infusion)

Current Total: $119.16