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UFC 278 Prelims & Early Prelims Odds, Predictions & Picks
Written by: Devon Platana
Last Updated:
Read Time: 5 minutes
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UFC 278 is taking over Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah on Saturday, Aug. 20. Fans are anticipating many of the main card matches, including the UFC Welterweight Championship main event between Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards.
Having said that, the main card isn’t where all of the action is at. There are also several promising fights on the preliminary and early prelims cards that offer many betting opportunities for MMA enthusiasts.
UFC 278 Preliminary Card and Odds (Odds as of Friday, Aug. 19)
The UFC 278 odds listed below are via BetOnline Sportsbook.
Heavyweight: Marcin Tybura (+300) vs. Alexander Romanov (-430)
Marcin Tybura (22-7) was on quite the role before, winning five straight fights before losing to Alexander Volkov by unanimous decision at UFC 267. While the three-time ‘Performer of the Night’ has shown flashes of brilliance, he’s in tough against his UFC 278 opponent.
Alexander Romanov has been an unstoppable beast, going a perfect 16-0 to begin his MMA career. The powerful Moldovan has overpowered and outclassed every opponent placed in front of him and should have no issue continuing his momentum this weekend.
A straight-up bet doesn’t have much value here, so look for a Romanov KO/TKO win.
Prediction: Romanov via KO/TKO (+155)
Lightweight: Leonardo Santos (+255) vs. Jared Gordon (-300)
Leonardo Santos (18-5-1) was showing off a lot of promise with a 12-3-1 stretch over 16 fights. Unfortunately, he’s suffered back-to-back losses since then, losing to Grant Dawson (by KO) and Clay Guida (by submission).
Meanwhile, Jared Gordon (18-5) is also looking to bounce back after Dawson forced him to submit back in April. He won three fights in a row before that, so time will tell if he can get back there by taking advantage of Santos’ slump.
I’m going with the odds here and backing Gordon. However, I think he’ll need to go the distance to get the victory.
Prediction: Gordon via Decision (+125)
Featherweight: Sean Woodson (-390) vs. Luis Saldaña (+280)
Sean Woodson is off to a solid 9-1 start to his MMA career, going 4-1 in UFC ahead of the upcoming pay-per-view. After submitting to Julian Erosa, Woodson has won back-to-back fights, with his most recent victory coming by TKO over Collin Anglin.
Meanwhile, his opponent, Luis Saldaña (16-7), enters UFC 278 after beating Bruno Souza by unanimous decision five months ago. Nevertheless, he’s the heavy underdog here for a reason and I don’t think Saldaña will give Woodson much of a challenge.
Prediction: Woodson via KO/TKO (+190)
UFC 278 Early Preliminary Card and Odds
Welterweight: A.J. Fletcher (-166) vs. Ange Loosa (+130)
A.J. Fletcher (9-1) enjoyed a perfect start to his MMA career before losing to Matthew Semelsberger unanimously in his last outing. He’s become more of a submission artist as his career has gone on, though, earning four of his last five wins by submitting his opponents.
While Ange Loosa (8-3) has also been impressive at times, he hasn’t been able to consistently win fights lately. Despite going the distance in each of his last five outings, he’s only 2-3 over that stretch, which makes him vulnerable for a hungry opponent like Fletcher.
Even though this fight will be close, I expect Fletcher to emerge as the victor at UFC 278.
Prediction: Fletcher via Decision (+170)
Flyweight: Amir Albazi (-530) vs. Francisco Figueiredo (+360)
Amir Albazi (14-1) is the heavy favorite ahead of his UFC 278 bout. It’s certainly hard not to like his odds considering that he’s only lost once in his career and is 2-0 since arriving at UFC. With the ability to do it all, he should give Francisco Figueiredo (13-4-1, 1NC) one of his toughest challenges yet.
Speaking of Figueiredo, the 32-year-old has seen some mixed results lately, going 2-1-1 in his last four fights. Though he’s been impressive at times, Figueiredo just hasn’t shown the same dominance as Albazi.
Keeping that in mind, give me Albazi winning here.
Prediction: Albazi Outright (-530)
Bantamweight: Aori Qileng (-162) vs. Jay Perrin (+126)
After his UFC career got off to an 0-2 start as a flyweight, Aori Qileng (23-11) moved back to the bantamweight division, rebounding with a TKO win over Cameron Else back in April. He also enters UFC 278 being 6-0 in his last six bantamweight scraps.
Aori will have his hands full with Jay Perrin (10-5), another hungry competitor hoping to bounce back. Perrin had his two-fight winning streak snapped with a unanimous decision loss to Mario Bautista towards the start of the year, needing a solid effort to get back in the win column.
I like Aori more than Perrin based on the former’s recent bantamweight performances. Look for the “Mongolian Murderer” to pick up the win here.
Prediction: Aori Outright (-162)
Flyweight: Daniel Lacerda (+138) vs. Victor Altamirano (-178)
Daniel Lacerda (11-3) enters UFC 278 as the slight underdog after losing back-to-back fights. He first suffered a second-round TKO loss to Jeff Molina before succumbing to Francisco Figueiredo’s kneebar just 1:18 into the first round at UFC on ESPN 35.
Victor Altamirano (10-2) must take advantage of his opponent’s recent losses this weekend. While “El Magnifico” also lost his last fight, it was only by split decision. Furthermore, he had racked up four consecutive wins before that.
Momentum is on Altamirano’s side here and I think he’ll make quick work of a slumping Lacerda.
Prediction: Altamirano Outright (-178)
UFC 278 Event Details
When is UFC 278?
UFC 278 will take place on Saturday, Aug. 20, 2022.
Where is UFC 278?
UFC 278 will take place at Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah.
What time does UFC 278 start?
- UFC 278 Early Prelims Start Time: 6 p.m. ET
- UFC 278 Prelims Start Time: 8 p.m. ET
- Start Time of UFC 278’s Main Card: 10 p.m. ET
How can I watch UFC 278?
The early prelims will be available on UFC Fight Pass, while the prelims will be available on both ESPN and ESPN+, and the main card will be available via pay-per-view (which can be ordered through the ESPN+ app).
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Devon is a Master of Journalism graduate who joined the sports betting world in 2020. His favorite leagues to cover are the NHL, NBA and NFL, and has a soft spot for fantasy football specifically. Outside of sports, he enjoys the finer things in life like pasta, live music and getting even more tattoos.
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