Jon Jones will make his long-awaited return to the octagon on Saturday when he takes on Alexander Gustafsson as a minus-275 main event favourite on the UFC 232 odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Plagued by an array of legal troubles and failed drug tests, Jones has fought just four times in the five years since claiming a controversial unanimous decision win over Gustafsson at UFC 165. However, he remains undefeated in 14 octagon appearances ahead of Saturday night’s bout at The Forum in Inglewood, California.
Jones returns to action after serving a 15-month suspension that he received after being flagged for a doping violation in the wake of his third-round knockout over Daniel Cormier at UFC 214 as minus-325 chalk on the UFC odds. The failed test also resulted in Jones being stripped of a UFC title for the third time.
But despite his lengthy absence and continued setbacks, the two-time former champion remains ranked as the No. 1 contender in the UFC light heavyweight division.
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Capable of finishing opponents with both devastating striking power and by submission, “Bones” has gone the distance with regularity in recent contests, with four of his past five fights getting decided by the judges starting with his September 2013 win over Gustafsson in Toronto as a minus-800 betting favourite.
Pegged as a plus-215 underdog for Saturday’s rematch, Gustafsson has struggled at times since his loss to Jones. Gustafsson has fallen to defeat in three of his past six outings, including a split decision loss to Cormier as a plus-230 bet in his most recent bid for the UFC light heavyweight crown at UFC 192.
However, he has rebounded with wins in his past two clashes, including a fifth-round knockout of Glover Teixeira on minus-300 odds at UFC Fight Night 109 to maintain the No. 2 spot in the UFC division rankings.
Earlier on Saturday, the UFC women’s featherweight title will be on the line as champion Cris Cyborg clashes with reigning UFC women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes as a strong minus-260 favourite.
A dominant striker, Cyborg has claimed 17 of her 20 career wins by KO or technical knockout (TKO) including a first-round TKO win over Yana Kunitskaya as huge minus-900 chalk earlier this year at UFC 222. A plus-200 underdog on Saturday, Nunes has won seven straight fights, but has seen her past two title defences go at least four full rounds.
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