This weekend, Manchester, England, will host UFC 304 at the Co-op Live arena, marking the promotion’s return to Manchester for the first time since 2016. The event promises a night of high-stakes rematches and thrilling bouts, headlined by a welterweight title clash and an interim heavyweight championship bout.
The main event features UFC Welterweight Champion Leon Edwards defending his title against Belal Muhammad. This bout is a rematch of their March 2021 encounter, which ended in a no-contest due to an accidental eye poke by Edwards. Since then, Edwards has claimed and defended the welterweight title, while Muhammad has climbed the ranks with victories over top contenders like Vicente Luque and Gilbert Burns. This fight is pivotal for both athletes: Edwards aims to solidify his reign, while Muhammad seeks redemption and his first UFC title.
In the co-main event, interim heavyweight champion Tom Aspinall faces Curtis Blaydes. Their first bout in July 2022 ended abruptly when Aspinall suffered a knee injury just 15 seconds into the fight. Aspinall, fighting on home soil, looks to avenge that loss and prove his dominance in the heavyweight division. Blaydes, a perennial contender, aims to capture his first UFC gold after a recent TKO victory over Jailton Almeida.
The main card also includes a featherweight showdown between Arnold Allen and Giga Chikadze and a lightweight clash with fan-favorite Paddy Pimblett taking on Bobby Green. Each of these fights has significant implications for the respective divisions and promises to deliver action-packed moments.
The preliminary card, broadcast on ESPN2 and ESPN+, features notable matchups such as Nathaniel Wood vs. Daniel Pineda and Molly McCann vs. Bruna Brasil. The early prelims, available on ESPN+ and UFC Fight Pass, include promising bouts like Oban Elliott vs. Preston Parsons, a flyweight bout featuring rising star Muhammad Mokaev against Manel Kape, and Mick Parkin vs. Lukasz Brzeski.
With a great fight card comes money to be made, we take a look at the top betting underdogs for this weekend’s stacked UFC Vegas 304 fight night event.
Here are the UFC Odds, courtesy of BetOnline.Â
UFC Vegas 304 Top Betting Underdogs
Belal Muhammad: +210
Oban Elliott: +120
Manel Kape: +135
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Belal Muhammad (+210) vs. Leon Edwards
Belal Muhammad is finally getting his long-awaited UFC title shot after campaigning for it for quite some time now while dominating some of the top fighters in the division during his rise to become the No. 1 contender.
Now, Muhammad will be looking to make it 10 wins in a row and become the next UFC welterweight champion when he steps into hostile territory to take on England’s own Leon Edwards this weekend in Manchester, England at UFC 304.
In this matchup, we are going to see two completely different fighters than we saw during this first encounter which ended abruptly due to an eye poke. Both Muhammad and Edwards have gotten exponentially better over the years which will make this fight highly competitive.
Muhammad will need to push the pace and make this a gritty and ugly fight that’s where he will have the advantage. He has the cardio to push a hard pace for the full 25 minutes and that could be the difference in this fight.
We’ve seen Edwards fade as the fight moves to the championship rounds and it will be up to Muhammad to push him to the brink of exhaustion with his forward pressure, mixing in his combinations, and landing takedowns. Muhammad is better than many people give him credit for and he has the tools to not only get the win but dominate and become the next undisputed welterweight champion.
Oban Elliott (+120) vs. Preston Parsons
Oban Elliott comes into his second UFC fight riding a seven-fight unbeaten streak and he has a most recent victory against Val Woodburn in his debut fight. The fighter from Wales is as well-rounded as they come showing the ability to strike and grapple with the best of them. However, in his Contender Series fight he leaned on his grappling to secure his contract with the UFC while showcasing his striking in his debut fight against Woodburn.
In this matchup, Elliott gets to take on the super-tough Preston Parsons who’s gameplan is to put on a grappling pace that Elliott will not be able to match. Elliott’s ground game is very underestimated and he can grapple with some of the best or at least reverse positions and get back to his feet which will be his recipe for success in this fight. As long as Elliott doesn’t spend long periods on his back, he should be able to scramble back to his feet to outwork Parsons as he fades to get his second win inside the Octagon and his eighth win in a row.
Manel Kape (+135) vs. Muhammad Mokaev
Manel Kape was on the brink of a No. 1 contender fight against Matheus Nicolau until he had to withdraw from the bout after missing weight for the second time in his UFC flyweight career and then getting injured after getting rebooked in April. Now, it looks as if the UFC is giving him the chance to right his wrong when he steps in there to take on the undefeated Muhammad Mokaev at UFC 304.
Kape has shown in his six fights with the UFC that he is one of the most dangerous flyweights the UFC has ever seen. Next to Figueiredo who’s no longer in the flyweight division, Kape possesses the most power we’ve ever seen at 125 lbs. His flying knee knockout of Ode Osbourne was one of the all-time knockouts that we’ve witnessed in the division’s inception. Now, Kape looks to prove that he’s best in the division when he takes on grappling ace Muhammad Mokaev.
These two have a ton of bad blood between them with some altercations outside of the Octagon which certainly will spill over into this fight. Kape is one that fights well with emotion as that helps ramp up his intensity which spells bad news for Mokaev. This fight is going to come down to Kape keeping the fight on his feet and if he’s able to do that it should be his fight to lose as Kape should outstrike him to a decision victory or a potential big knockout.
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