Former featherweight champion and #1-ranked contender Alexander Volkanovski will tangle with #3-ranked contender Diego Lopes for the vacant featherweight title in the main event at UFC 314. The five-round title fight will take place on Saturday, April 12, at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida.
Volkanovski (26-4-0) has dropped three of his previous four fights, including a pair of lightweight title fight setbacks to Islam Makhachev. The veteran Aussie fighter suffered a second-round knockout loss to Ilia Topuria at UFC 298 last year to lose the featherweight belt.
Lopes (26-6-0) has won five consecutive fights since losing his UFC debut in 2023. The Brazilian scored a unanimous decision win against Brian Ortega seven months ago at UFC 306.
In the co-main event, #7-ranked Michael Chandler (23-9-0) and #12-ranked Paddy Pimblett (22-3-0) will collide in a lightweight clash. Chandler lost a unanimous decision to Charles Oliveira at UFC 309, while Pimblett posted a triangle choke submission victory against King Green at UFC 304.
Volkanovski (-135) is the favorite to claim the vacant featherweight title against Lopes (+110), per BetMGM, one of the best UFC betting sites. The Australian is the top contender who successfully defended the featherweight belt five times during his title reign. Still, Lopes is #3-ranked and has notched five straight wins en route to his first UFC title fight.
Volkanovski is a well-rounded combatant with a background in Muay Thai who favors powerful kicks and an effective overhand right. The 36-year-old has finished 52 percent of his fights with knockouts, 36 percent via decisions, and 12 percent by submissions.
A skilled counter-striker who throws a large volume of punches with good accuracy, the Aussie connects on 6.16 significant strikes per minute with a 56 percent striking accuracy. Volkanovski is also a capable wrestler who averages 1.78 takedowns per 15 minutes and thwarts 70 percent of takedown attempts from opposing fighters.
A supremely confident fighter, Volkanovski will ride into UFC 314 with a belief he is unstoppable.
"I don't believe anyone can beat me," Volkanovski told Niko Pajarillo of Fox Sports Australia. "The only person that I can see giving me a tough fight for five rounds is Islam Makhachev, as in the first one, as you've seen. Everyone else has just got a puncher's chance. That's just how I always look at it. I truly believe that, and that's the confidence I have in myself. No one can beat me."
Lopes has a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu background and is skilled at taking down opponents to win fights via submissions or ground and pound. The 30-year-old is adept at transitioning between stand-up and ground combat and has ended 12 fights by submission, 10 with knockouts, and four via decisions.
The Brazilian contender, who resides in Mexico, has a takedown accuracy of 40 percent and averages 2.76 submissions per 15 minutes. Lopes lands 4.2 significant strikes per minute with a 53 percent striking accuracy while absorbing 4.11 significant strikes per minute.
Although Lopes did not expect to fight in the main event despite a five-fight win streak, he is excited about the opportunity to capture a UFC belt.
"I'm a little bit surprised," Lopes said recently on 'The Ariel Helwani Show.' "I was sure I would fight for a title in my next fight, but I'm surprised I'm fighting for a vacant title this time, so I'm very excited about the opportunity.
"I think now Alex is going to be better
Betting Pick: Alexander Volkanovski
Betting odds for this featherweight championship fight are live on trusted and well-known NY sportsbooks, including BetMGM and DraftKings, which have pegged Volkanovski as the favorite. The most common bet type for this UFC fight is the money line, a wager on who will win the fight outright.
Considering how the Australian will be stepping into the octagon for the 10th consecutive time with a title at stake, Volkanovski is the favorite to capture the vacant featherweight belt. However, the Brazilian challenger has won five straight fights, including an impressive unanimous decision win over Brian Ortega at UFC 306. Volkanovski is our pick to win the matchup, and a $100 wager on the reigning champion at odds of -135 would net a total payout of $174.07.
If you feel confident that Lopes will deal Volkanovski his third setback in a row, a $100 wager at odds of +110 would earn an expected payout of $210.
The Over/Under bet is another popular type, where you wager on the number of rounds the fight will last. Given that Lopes is headlining a UFC event for the first time, while Volkanovski has not had a non-title fight since 2019, we do not expect the fight to go the distance. Thus, betting Under 3.5 rounds could be a winning pick.
The five-round featherweight championship fight will take place on Saturday, April 12, at the Kaseya Center in Miami, Florida. UFC fans in New York can watch the fight live on ESPN+ pay-per-view.
#1-ranked contender Alexander Volkanovski is the favorite to capture the vacant featherweight title against #3-ranked Diego Lopes at UFC 314. Volkanovski is a -135 betting favorite, while Lopes is a +110 underdog, per BetMGM.
A pair of lightweight contenders, #7-ranked Michael Chandler (23-9-0) and #12-ranked Paddy Pimblett (22-3-0), will butt heads in a tantalizing co-main event. Other matchups on the main card include a featherweight clash pitting #13-ranked Bryce Mitchell (17-3-0) and unranked Jean Silva (15-2-0), and former Bellator featherweight and lightweight champion Patrício Pitbull (0-0-0-) will make his UFC debut in a featherweight encounter against former interim UFC featherweight champion Yair Rodríguez (16-5-0).
Bets can be placed during the fight as it is happening with live UFC odds that are constantly changing based on what's happening real-time inside the Octagon. The most popular types of in-play bettings are moneyline wagers representing the odds for who will win the fight outright. Other live betting types include the method of victory and how long the fight will last.
Mixed martial arts fans can place various bets on this exciting featherweight title fight at BetMGM, a popular sportsbook in New York.
