With the year drawing to a close, UFC is saving some of its best for last. The promotion's final PPV of 2021 sees some of its biggest stars and rising challengers take the Octagon with hopes of ending the year on a high note. No one is looking for a capstone to the last 12 months more than Dustin Poirier, who could earn his third win of 2021 and first undisputed championship if he bests Charles Oliveira in the main event of UFC 269 from Las Vegas.
Plus, former bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt is back in his flyweight debut against Kai Kara-France in a featured bout. Garbrandt, 30, is 1-4 since claiming the 135-pound title in 2016. And another rising star in the bantamweight division "Suga" Sean O'Malley is back when he opens up the PPV against divisional newcomer Raulian Paiva. O'Malley is 4-1 with four knockouts since returning to the Octagon in March 2020.
For many, there's no better way to add a little extra spice to a big night of fights than having a little money on the line. With so many intriguing fights on the card and so many close fights, it's a great card to get in on some of the action.
Caesars Sportsbook has you covered with every angle of UFC 269 to get in on the action. We're going to give you a few options to consider with this card from our favorite moneyline play, prop play and parlay play. Let's take a closer look at those picks now.
Can't get enough boxing and MMA? Get the latest in the world of combat sports from two of the best in the business. Subscribe to Morning Kombat with Luke Thomas and Brian Campbell for the best analysis and in-depth news, including a complete preview of UFC 269 live from Las Vegas below.
Best moneyline pick
Josh Emmett -180 vs. Dan Ige
Emmett is not only the better overall fighter heading into this fight but is also the better fighter at imposing his will on the flow of the fight. Look at the fighters' performances in the five most recent fights. Emmett has four wins, three by knockout and a well-earned decision against Shane Burgos. Mixed in is a KO loss to Jeremy Stephens, but that is Emmett's lone stoppage loss in his career. Ige, on the other hand, is 3-2, with one knockout win and two by split decision, in addition to two decision losses. You could argue relative strength of schedule is roughly equal in those five-fight runs. Ige is a fun fighter, but Emmett is relentless, and it's easy to see him simply overwhelming Ige in this one.
Moneyline record to date (2021): 4-5
Best prop pick
Dominick Cruz vs. Pedro Munhoz to go the distance: Yes -175
Cruz has 16 career fights that have taken place under either the UFC or WEC banner. Only five of those fights have not gone the distance. He also was out of action from December 2016 to May 2020 and in his two fights since returning was stopped by strikes once by one of the best fighters in the sport (Henry Cejudo) and won a split decision. Munhoz is much more in line with fighters who go the distance against Cruz than anything. Munhoz is also on a four-fight run of fights going to decision. There are a lot of factors pointing to this being a fight that goes all 15 minutes before the decision is left up to the judges and the -175 line feels lower than it should be.
Prop pick record to date (2021): 3-6
Best parlay pick
Sean O'Malley -310, Amanda Nunes via KO/TKO/DQ/Sub -333 (-128)
It's been a rough year for us in the ol' Best Bets column and we're not taking any huge swings with our last parlay of the year. The criticism of O'Malley being fed soft touches is valid. He's promoted like a top 10 fighter but is not booked to fight men who are at that level. That continues on Saturday night when he faces Raulian Paiva, who isn't a bad fighter, but he has only fought at bantamweight once since joining the UFC roster and that was a majority decision win over Kyler Phillips. O'Malley is bigger, stronger and more dynamic. This should be his fight to lose. Nunes is just being fed the next available opponent at this point in her career and the only way she can really impress is to score finishes. Pena has been stopped in 21% of her career fights (three times in 14 bouts) and those weren't against the greatest woman ever in the game.
Two safe picks to get near even money is a parlay you should be able to get behind.
Parlay pick record to date (2021): 1-8
Who wins Oliveira vs. Poirier? And what other picks do you need to see for a parlay with a payout of better than 8/1? Visit SportsLine now to get detailed top picks on UFC 269, all from the insider who's up nearly $9,200 on MMA picks in the past year, and find out.
