UFC Champion Dominates Usman vs Edwards Betting Odds

UFC 278 is stacked with high-profile fights and Usman vs Edwards betting odds are heavily in favor of the welterweight champion.

Considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the business, Kamaru Usman is the -400 favorite to beat 19-3 Leon Edwards in a five-round fight.

Edwards Comes Out Swinging

We firmly believe Usman has a significant advantage and that shows with UFC 278 betting odds; however, Edwards laid down the gauntlet with a war of words at the press conference.

He believes Usman’s body is breaking down and also believes he’s had a better training camp.

“All I’ve been doing is training,” Edwards told CBS Sports. “The Khamzat Chimaev fight (that was canceled three times), for example, that’s three camps. I’ve done many camps and improved leaps and bounds. Now is the perfect time for us to fight. I think those years, looking back on it now, were blessings in disguise.

“It gave me time to hone my skills and polish what I needed to polish, while he’s competed – but he’s also been in wars. His body is breaking down, and I think now is the perfect time.”

The +300 favorite is confident of a win following a five-round decision win over an aging Nate Diaz at UFC 263 in June last year. It wasn’t the best display of fighting, but he stuck it out with a proven UFC legend.

He has had four canceled fights over the last three years, so he’s lacking octagon time. Despite Usman vs Edwards betting odds suggesting he has little chance to win, there is always the chance of an upset.

Edwards has beaten the likes of Rafael dos Anjos, Gunnar Nelson, and Donald Cerrone, so he’s been mixing it with a variety of quality fighters. If he wants to beat Usman, he’ll need to elevate his game to another level.

Invincible Usman

Since winning the welterweight belt, Usman has looked impenetrable and the 35-year-old should be confident of retaining his belt.

For those who bet on UFC fights, Usman has been an excellent bet throughout his impressive career and there is no logical reason to back against the favorite.

He scored a decision win over Colby Covington at UFC 268, which followed a knockout win over Jorge Masvidal. We’re not sure what part of that showed that his body was breaking down, but the overwhelming favorite looks set to retain his belt.

The Nigerian-born fighter also has wins over Masvidal, dos Anjos, and Covington, so they have fought similar opposition. To the credit of Edwards, Usman, despite having the belt, hasn’t looked any more impressive in beating the same opponents.

That could concern the Usman vs Edwards betting odds favorite, but his confidence is hard to shake. He has focused on talks about fighting Conor McGregor and also fighting boxers such as Jake Paul and Canelo Alvarez.

He wouldn’t want his focus to stray away from Edwards, otherwise, he could suffer only his second career defeat in Salt Lake City on Saturday.

Usman by decision is -120 and by knockout is +240. Usman often fights smart and doesn’t always engage, so the champion to win by decision or Edwards to win by knockout would be a good betting strategy.