Written by Khamzat Chimaev | Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
Khamzat Chimaev is favored to win his first UFC title.
On Tuesday, UFC CEO Dana White announced that Chimaev will challenge Dricus du Plessis for the middleweight title in the main event of UFC 319, which takes place Aug. 16 at United Center in Chicago.
According to FanDuel, the challenger opens as a nearly two-to-one favorite at -194, while the comeback on the middleweight champ du Plessis is +150.
Implied odds give Chimaev a 66 percent chance of winning the fight. A $100 wager on Chimaev returns $151.55, while the same wager on du Plessis returns $250.
Chimaev is coming off of the most impressive performance of his career, submitting Robert Whittaker in the first round of the UFC 308 co-main event this past October in Abu Dhabi. It was the first appearance in over a year for “Borz,” and just his third fight since September 2022, but it was enough to earn Chimaev his long-awaited championship opportunity.
Du Plessis captured the title with a decision win against Sean Strickland at UFC 297 in January 2024 and has since defended the belt twice with a stoppage win over Israel Adesanya at UFC 305 this past August, and a lopsided decision win in a rematch with Strickland at UFC 312 in February.