Petr Yan re-opens as betting favorite over Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259

UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan re-opened as the betting favorite over Aljamain Sterling for their upcoming title bout at UFC 259.

Yan and Sterling were previously slated to fight at UFC 256 in December, but the fight had to be rescheduled for March 6 at UFC 259. The betting odds for the contest previously opened with Yan as a -185 betting favorite and Sterling as a +160 betting underdog. Now that the betting odds have been released, Yan is still favored to win the bout, only not as much this time around. Check out the opening odds for UFC 259’s Yan vs. Sterling (via BestFightOdds).

UFC 259: Blachowicz vs. Adesanya: Aljamain Sterling (+125) vs. Petr Yan (-145) https://t.co/AGDq0A2p0f #ufc259 @PetrYanUFC

— BestFightOdds (@BestFightOdds) January 8, 2021

UFC 259 Odds

Petr Yan -145
Aljamain Sterling +125

Yan opened as a -145 betting favorite this time around. That means a $145 bet would win $100. As for Sterling, he re-opened as a +125 betting underdog. That means a $100 bet would win $125. The fact Yan opened as a smaller favorite this time around indicates that the books took some early money on Sterling for the previously-scheduled bout at UFC 256.

Yan (15-1) is the UFC bantamweight champion. The 27-year-old Russian has been in the UFC in 2018 and he’s racked up a perfect 7-0 record in the Octagon so far. Some of his most notable victories include Jose Aldo, Urijah Faber, Jimmie Rivera, and Douglas Silva de Andrade. Yan has only lost once in his entire MMA career and he has won 10 straight fights dating back to 2016.

Sterling (19-3) is the No. 1 contender in the UFC bantamweight division. The 31-year-old American is 11-3 overall in the UFC with victories over the likes of Cory Sandhagen, Pedro Munhoz, Cody Stamann, Brett Johns, Renan Barao, and Johnny Eduardo. He has won his last five fights in a row dating back to 2017 and earned his title shot against Yan after going on that winning streak.

Who do you think wins at UFC 259, Petr Yan or Aljamain Sterling?