- Andrei Alovski has opened as the -190 betting favoite against Jake Collier.
- Arlovski replaced Justin Tafa who backed out from a fight against Collier due to undisclosed reasons.
- Arlovski and Collier will fight at UFC on ESPN 35 on April 30th.
Former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski has opened as the betting favorite against Jake Collier in their UFC on ESPN 35 bout.
The best UFC betting sites opened Arlovski at -190 while listing Collier as the +165 bottom dog:
UFC Fight Night: Font vs. Vera:
Andrei Arlovski. (-190)
Jake Collier (+165)https://t.co/K6ARN9utqQ @Jakecollier88— BestFightOdds (@BestFightOdds) April 10, 2022
Collier was originally scheduled to meet Justin Tafa but the latter withdrew from the April 30 event due to undisclosed reasons. Arlovski fought just last February but willingly took the fight on short notice when it was offered to him.
Arlovski Wins Third Fight in a Row
UFC 271 results: Andrei Arlovski wins third fight in a row with split decision over Jared Vanderaa (@DamonMartin) https://t.co/n1QPjIpw0x pic.twitter.com/F2xQtlIY8u
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) February 13, 2022
Arlovski looked on his way to retirement after losing 10 fights during a 16-fight stretch from 2016 to February 2021. But since getting submitted by Tom Aspinall at UFC Vegas 19, the Belarusian Pittbull has won three straight fights. In his most recent Octagon outing, Arlovski edged out Jared Vanderaa via split decision at UFC 27 last February 12th.
The 43-year old Arlovski is the second-oldest fighter in the UFC, behind Aleksei Oleinik. He won the UFC heavyweight title by defeating Tim Sylvia at UFC 251 but lost it back to Sylvia three fights later. Arlovski left the UFC in 2008 and returned in 2014. Overall, he has a record of 33-20 with 17 knockouts and 3 submission victories.
This marks the second straight bout where Arlovski has seen the plus-money sign next to his name. The Belarusian Pittbull was the -185 betting favorite against Vanderaa. Prior to that, Arlovski was the +120 underdog against Chase Sherman and the +115 bottom dog against Carlos Felipe.
Collier Finishes Chase Sherman With Rear-NakedChoke
UFC Vegas 46 video: Jake Collier bloodies Chase Sherman, finishes with rear-naked choke in first round (@DamonMartin) https://t.co/gJXtLW9qRI pic.twitter.com/opzqq7f0PU
— MMAFighting.com (@MMAFighting) January 16, 2022
Collier also heads to this bout coming off a victory. In his most recent outing, the 33-year old from St. Louis, Missouri finished Chase Sherman via rear-naked choke at UFC Vegas 46. The win continued a pattern where Sherman has alternated between a loss and win since joining the UFC in 2014.
A former heavyweight champion at the Resurrection Fighting Alliance promotion, Collier started his MMA career fighting for the likes of Rumble Time Promotions, Fight Me MMA, and Cage Championships before joining the UFC. Known as the “Prototype”, Collier owns a record of 13-6 with five knockouts and four submission wins.
Collier will be the betting underdog for the 8th time in 11 UFC bouts. Although he was the -140 betting favorite when he beat Sherman, Collier was the betting underdog in the six fights prior to that on. His current opening price of +165 is his second-longest UFC odds ever, after the +170 price which he opened with against Carlos Felipe, a fight he lost via split decision.
