UFC 305 - Du Plessis vs Adesanya Betting Tips
Dricus Du Plessis makes the first defence of his Middleweight title at UFC 305 in Perth against former champion Israel Adesanya.
The pair have a long standing rivalry steeping from their African heritage.
Meanwhile it's Australia vs New Zealand in the co-main event as former Flyweight title challengers Steve Erceg and Kai Kara-France look to earn another shot at the belt.
Tip 1 - Adesanya Vs Du Plessis - Fight to go the distance - no @ 8/11
Israel Adesanya and Dricus Du Plessis collide here in what could be an all out war.
In a rare flat performance, Adesanya was consistently pushed back and ultimately outclassed by Sean Strickland when losing the title at UFC 293 last September.
Fast forward to January this year and Du Plessis was the one pushing the pace to the American when taking the title from him by split decision.
Questions about the South African’s cardio have proved unfounded and Du Plessis will once again bring an unrelenting pace of striking and grappling in his first title defence.
The 31-year-old now stands at 7-0 in the UFC with four KO/TKOs and one submission putting away the likes of Robert Whittaker, Darren Till and Derek Brunson.
Adesanya has knockout power with five KO/TKOs from his 13 UFC wins, but at times as champion he has proved to be more defensive.
If Adesanya brings the challenger mindset to this one alongside Du Plessis’ constant pushing forward we could see this one end in a stoppage.
Tip 2 - Steve Erceg to beat Kai Kara-France by Submission @ 15/2
Australian Steve Erceg has had an incredible rise in the UFC and he now faces Kai Kara-France.
The 29-year-old fought for the Flyweight title last time out at UFC 301 in May, pushing Alexandre Pantoja close in what was only his fourth outing in the promotion.
This fight will be his third in 2024, it was only March when he knocked out Matt Schnell to get the title shot.
Erceg is tall for the division with good hands and strong grappling skills.
Kara-France is also a former title challenger, losing his shot at the vacant title when he was stopped in the second round by Brandon Moreno at UFC 253 in 2022.
That was the start of a two fight skid for the 31-year-old, who also lost a split decision to Amir Albazi last June.
Injuries have kept the New Zealander’s activity to a minimum in the past couple of years, but when he is on song Kara-France is an all-action fighter with power in his hands, as shown by first round finishes of Cody Garbrandt and Rogério Bontorin in 2021.
Although he is good in scrambles, Kara-France can be susceptible to strong grapplers and this is where Erceg could have success.
The Australian has six submission wins from nine victories on the regional scene and could well get his first inside the Octagon here.
Tip 3 - Carlos Prates to win by KO, TKO or DQ - 23/25
Li Jingliang vs Carlos Prates is a potential fight of the night contender.
Veteran Jingliang returns to the Octagon after nearly two years out, having not fought since 2022 after suffering a spine injury as he prepared to face Michael Chiesa.
The 36-year-old is 11-6 in the UFC but is 3-3 in his last six losing a split decision to Daniel Rodriguez in his last fight at UFC 279.
Jingliang has eight wins by KO/TKO with finishes of Muslim Salikhov, Santiago Ponzinibbio and Elizeu Zaleski.
Carlos Prates has gone 2-0 in the UFC with back-to-back finishes since making his debut in February.
The 30-year-old finished Trevor Giles with a straight left in the second round on debut before stopping Charles Radtke in round one with knee to body in June.
The Brazilian is 19-6 as a pro and is riding a nine fight win streak, with all of them finishes.
Prates has an eight inch reach advantage here where he has exploited his long arms to good effect so far in the UFC; ultimately his momentum and accuracy could be the key to victory here against an opponent coming back after a long lay-off.