The UFC returns to the high altitude of Salt Lake City, Utah this weekend with one of the best lineups of the year with UFC 291. The card will be headlined by a clash between Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje for the recently vacated “BMF” title. This will be the second meeting between the two fighters, and not only will the winner have the “BMF” belt wrapped around their waist tomorrow night in Utah, but they will also find themselves firmly back in the title picture in the lightweight division. The stakes are also high in the co-main event, with Alex Pereira making his light heavyweight debut against former division champion Jan Blachowicz. While nothing has been announced officially, the winner of this matchup has a solid chance to compete for the vacant UFC Light Heavyweight title later in the year.

The weigh-ins saw two fighters miss weight: Vinicius Salvador and Michel Pereira. Salvador missed the flyweight limit by 2.5 pounds; however, his fight will proceed with CJ Vergara after he forfeited 20% of his purse to Vergara. Pereira missed the welterweight limit by 3 pounds, and after several hours of negotiating between the two fighters’ camps, it was announced during the ceremonial weigh-in show that the fight would not proceed. That leaves 11 fights currently scheduled for the event.

My favorite picks on this card are Alex Pereira, Gabriel Bonfim, Matthew Semelsberger, and Roman Kopylov. My favorite potential betting upsets on this card are Derrick Lewis and Tony Ferguson. For the main event I’m picking Dustin Poirier, and to find out more of my thoughts on that one, check out my WagerWire article with my prediction and favorite bets for Poirier vs Gaethje 2. Some of my favorite bets for this card are Alex Pereira ML and to win by KO/TKO in R2/R3, Bonfim to win inside the distance, Semelsberger by KO/TKO, and Kopylov by KO/TKO in R2/R3. I also sprinkled on the ML and KO/TKO props for Lewis and Ferguson in their respective fights.

If you enjoy our website, please make sure to follow us on social media and tell other MMA fans about OddSmokerMMA so we can continue to grow! All of your continued love and support is very much appreciated!

Powered by WagerWire

My articles are now available on the WagerWire Community page and under the WagerWire tab at the top of our website for quick access! Be sure to check out all of the other amazing content creators that are part of the WagerWire community.

Make sure to download the new WagerWire app on your phone and become a beta user on the app that will change sports betting forever! Easily add all of your sportsbooks to one convenient dashboard and keep track of all your betting action with the best community in sports betting! You’ll also eventually have the ability to buy/sell bets straight through the app, so check it out now!