Opening betting odds for Dricus du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya UFC 305 clash unveiled

The opening betting line for the upcoming Dricus du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya UFC title clash is out.

Du Plessis will make his first UFC middleweight title defense against the former titleholder Adesanya to headline UFC 305 in Perth. The August 17 pay-per-view marks the return of Adesanya after falling to Sean Strickland at UFC 293 last year.

Du Plessis captured the UFC middleweight title by defeating Strickland by split decision at UFC 297. He is unbeaten in his UFC tenure and has won 9 consecutive fights overall.

Adesanya hinted at a potential multi-year hiatus after the loss to Strickland. But, he’s returning quicker than originally anticipated for a chance to dethrone du Plessis.

Israel Adesanya opens up as a slight favorite over Dricus du Plessis

According to the sportsbook BetOnline, the opening UFC 305 odds have the returning Adesanya as a slight betting favorite.

Courtesy of BetOnline @BetOnline_ag, opening line:

Dricus Du Plessis +119
Israel Adesanya -139#UFC305 pic.twitter.com/LFEnCWnxBq

— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) June 17, 2024

It’s important to note that the betting line is expected to shift dramatically in both directions ahead of fight night.

Du Plessis and Adesanya’s bad blood began when the South African titleholder claimed he was the UFC’s first African fighter, despite Adesanya being born in Nigeria. Adesanya moved to Auckland, New Zealand at the beginning of his combat sports career.

The remarks badly irked Adesanya, who had a heated face-to-face with du Plessis at UFC 290, just minutes after du Plessis defeated Robert Whittaker by TKO. They were expected to fight at UFC 293, but du Plessis couldn’t make the quick turnaround.

Adesanya is one of the greatest middleweights in UFC history after a long, decorated run as the promotion’s middleweight titleholder. He’s also the first two-time UFC middleweight champion after losing, and then recapturing the belt against Alex Pereira.

Adesanya is no stranger to being a betting favorite ahead of fight night, but du Plessis will enter Perth with a chip on his shoulder. One of the summer’s most anticipated clashes is expected to be fireworks.