UFC 287 Fight Card: PPV Schedule, Odds and Predictions for Pereira vs. Adesanya 2
Israel Adesanya and Alex Pereira will write the next chapter of their fierce rivalry at UFC 287 with the highly anticipated rematch serving as the main event from the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.
Adesanya and Pereira have already met twice in the kickboxing ring and once in the UFC cage. Pereira owns a 3-0 record, giving him a decided advantage in their series.
However, Adesanya's impressive reign as middleweight champion nearly guaranteed he would be getting a rematch when he eventually lost the belt. His performance against Pereira was deserving of one anyway.
Much like their second kickboxing match, Adesanya was winning the fight going into the fifth round before the moment the Brazilian landed a left hook to knock him out.
So here we are for the second time in the UFC, with The Last Sylebender looking to avenge his only loss in the middleweight division.
Here's a look at that fight and what else is on tap for a promising pay-per-view card.
UFC 287 Fight Card, Schedule and Odds
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Main Card (ESPN+ PPV at 10 p.m. ET)
Alex Pereira (c) +120 vs. Israel Adesanya -140: for middleweight championship
Gilbert Burns -450 vs. Jorge Masvidal +360
Rob Font +155 vs. Adrian Yanez -180
Kevin Holland -230 vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio +195
Raul Rosas Jr. -240 vs. Christian Rodriguez +200
Preliminary Card (ESPN/ ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET)
Kelvin Gastelum -140 vs. Chris Curtis +120
Michelle Waterson-Gomez +140 vs. Luana Pinheiro -165
Gerald Meerschaert +155 vs. Joe Pyfer -180
Karl Williams -410 vs. Chase Sherman +330
Early Prelims (ESPN+, UFC Fight Pass at 6 p.m. ET)
Cynthia Calvillo +230 vs. Loopy Godinez -275
Ignacio Bahamondes -365 vs. Trey Ogden +300
Steve Garcia +160 vs. Shayilan Nuerdanbieke -190
Jaqueline Amorim -265 vs. Sam Hughes +225
Odds via DraftKings Sportsbook
Adesanya vs. Pereira 2
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The series between Adesanya and Pereira has been fascinating to this point. If you were to add up the number of minutes that Adesanya has beaten Pereira during their three fights, The Last Stylebender would hold a sizable lead.
Yet his record remains 0-3.
The first kickboxing fight went to a decision, and it was a hard-fought bout between the two. However, the last kickboxing match and their first MMA fight were nearly identical. Adesanya was winning and controlling the fight until he wasn't.
Pereira struck quickly both times and ended things with a left hook.
That explains why Adesanya is a slight favorite despite never winning against the Brazilian. He theoretically should have won one by now. But he hasn't.
At a certain point, there should be concern that Pereira simply has his number. Adesanya is a confident fighter and is clearly the better striker against virtually everyone he faces.
But Pereira is different. Even when Adesanya is getting the better of the exchanges, he has stayed in the fight long enough to land the fight-changing strike.
Don't count it out from happening again.
Prediction: Pereira via fourth-round TKO
Burns vs. Masvidal
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This is the last stand of Jorge Masvidal. The 38-year-old will get to fight in front of a hometown Miami crowd for the first time since 2010 in what could be his last fight.
Masvidal has already hinted at retirement with a loss against Burns. Gamebred has now lost three in a row. Although they were against top competition in Kamaru Usman (twice) and Colby Covington, those losses will make it difficult to get back in the title picture.
The UFC isn't setting him up with an easy homecoming fight, though. Gilbert Burns has proved himself as a top welterweight. His only losses in the last five years have come against Khamzat Chimaev and Usman.
Burns is a bad matchup for Masvidal because he not only has the wrestling chops to force Masvidal to spend much of his time on defense, but he has the punching power to make him regret standing and trading with him.
Fighting that way is in Masvidal's DNA. He's made a career out of being an action fighter that is always going to make things entertaining.
The problem is that if Masvidal does have some success in the stand-up, it has to result in a nearly instant knockout. If it doesn't, Burns just falls back on his wrestling and muscles his way to a victory.
Prediction: Burns via decision
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Yanez vs. Font
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Adrian Yanez has the opportunity to be one of the biggest winners on the card. The 29-year-old is an ascendant talent at 135 pounds and has the potential to make a name for himself in a loaded division.
In Font, he gets an opponent with some name recognition in the lead-in bout to Masvidal-Burns, which means this should be the most exposure he's had in his young career.
Font is a strong boxer, but that's Yanez's strength, too. So the up-and-comer is getting a spotlighted opportunity to play to his strengths and pick up a win against a well-known opponent who is 35 years old.
That's a lot playing in Yanez's favor. He has yet to lose in the UFC, but this is still his best opponent to date.
Font is going to make this one exciting. It should be noted that he's never been knocked out, so that might be the most compelling point of this fight.
Yanez would love to be the first to get that knockout win over Font, but that's going to be difficult to do.
Prediction: Yanez via decision
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