The UFC light heavyweight title will be up for grabs on Saturday night when champion Jan Blachowicz takes on Glover Teixeira in the UFC 267 main event as a -300 betting favourite on the UFC odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
Blachowicz rides a five-fight win streak, capped by a unanimous decision win over Israel Adesanya at UFC 259 that improved his professional MMA record to 28-8, going into Saturday night's fight at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
A native of Poland, Blachowicz has emerged as a dominant force in the UFC, earning the win in nine of his past 10 contests, and is currently No. 7 on the UFC's pound-for-pound rankings. The 38-year-old has demonstrated impressive punching power while finishing opponents in five of his past seven outings, including a stunning second-round TKO victory over Dominick Reyes at UFC 253 that earned him the UFC light heavyweight championship.
Set as the +235 underdog at online betting sites, Teixeira will be gunning for a sixth straight win. Holder of the UFC record for the most all-time submissions in light heavyweight action, the 41-year-old has finished opponents in four of his five recent victories, capped by a third-round submission win over Thiago Santos at UFC Vegas 13. Saturday's matchup also marks Teixeira's second bid for the UFC light heavyweight crown after he suffered a unanimous decision loss to Jon Jones at UFC 172 back in 2014.
Earlier in the evening, the interim UFC bantamweight title will be on the line as Petr Yan takes on Cory Sandhagen as -230 chalk. Yan is set to make his first appearance since losing the UFC bantamweight crown after being disqualified for delivering an illegal knee to the head of Aljamian Sterling at UFC 259. A rematch with Sterling was in the works before the new champion was forced to withdraw due to a neck injury, setting the stage for Yan's battle with Sandhagen for the interim title.
Sandhagen will be looking to rebound from a narrow split decision loss to TJ Dillashaw three months ago at UFC Vegas 32, and will enter the octagon sporting +185 odds. That defeat came on the heels of a pair of highlight reel victories over Frankie Edgar and Marlon Moraes that earned Sandhagen two Performance of the Night bonuses.
Elsewhere on the UFC 267 odds for Saturday, rising star Islam Makhachev looks for a ninth straight win as he battles fellow lightweight Dan Hooker as heavy -575 chalk. As well, Alexander Volkov is listed as a big -300 favourite in his heavyweight clash with Marcin Tybura.
