This weekend is one of the rarer ones where the UFC doesn’t have any events scheduled. However, the mixed martial arts action will return on Saturday, Feb. 5 with UFC Vegas 47, live from the Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada. While the card itself is still taking shape, it’s already been confirmed that a middleweight bout between Jack Hermansson and Sean Strickland will headline the night.
BetOnline already has the latest odds heading into the UFC Vegas 47 main event, giving us a better idea of who’ll likely walk out victorious. Both men are inside of the top 10 when it comes to the promotion’s middleweight rankings, so a victory is crucial when it comes to a potential future championship match.
Here’s a look at the odds heading into Hermansson vs Strickland.
UFC Vegas 47 Odds: Jack Hermansson vs Sean Strickland
Odds via BetOnline as of Friday, January 28
- Record: Jack Hermansson (22-6-0) vs. Sean Strickland (24-3-0)
- Moneyline: Hermansson (+180) vs Strickland (-210)
- Total Rounds: 3.5 — Over (-155), Under (+125)
- Method of Victory: N/A
Check BetOnline.ag next week for the latest odds and prop bets.
UFC Vegas 47 Odds: Strickland Favored in Vegas
At -210 odds, Strickland is currently BetOnline’s favorite to win the UFC Vegas 46 event. This comes as the 30-year-old is riding the hottest streak of his UFC career.
After joining the UFC as a middleweight in 2014, Strickland quickly made the transition to the welterweight division in just his second fight with the promotion. He didn’t find too much success there, going 5-3 in his eight welterweight fights. He switched back to middleweight in October 2020 and hasn’t looked back, going 3-0 since then. He also scored a catchweight victory over Brendan Allen over that stretch, however, Strickland’s most recent victory came via unanimous decision over Uriah Hall in July 2021.
There are a couple of factors that go into Strickland being the favorite at UFC Vegas 47. For starters, he’s the super standing striker in the fight, averaging 5.45 significant strikes per minute on 40% accuracy. Meanwhile, Hermansson strike defense only clocks in at 55%.
Another thing that goes in his favor is that BetOnline is favoring a longer fight at -155 odds, which suits Strickland more than his opponent. The average length of his fights is 13:01 and he’s won 83% of his fights that have gone the distance. Meanwhile, Hermansson’s average fight time is 9:24 and he has a slightly worse 71% win percentage when his fights are decided by decision.
At the end of the day, Strickland has a lot going for him heading into UFC Vegas 47 and only time will tell if he can continue his rise up the middleweight rankings.
Hermansson Looking for Consistency
At 33 years old, Hermansson is still looking for his first UFC Middleweight Championship match. He’s the No. 6-ranked fighter in the division, so a win over Strickland at UFC Vegas 47 would help him out a lot.
Having said that, Hermansson has been inconsistent in his last several fights. After going 7-2 to start his UFC career, the Swedish fighter has gone 2-2 over his last four bouts. The problem there is that his two losses came against fighters — Marvin Vettori and Jared Cannonier — who rank ahead of him. While Strickland does rank one spot below him, it’s clear that Hermansson needs to prove that he can hang with the best that the middleweight division has to offer.
Hermansson does have the momentum that came from beating Edmen Shahbazyan, by unanimous decision, in his last fight on May 22, 2021. He hasn’t seen consecutive wins in nearly three years, so it’s key for him to ride his current success into Las Vegas next week.
It’s certainly an uphill battle for Hermansson, especially with Strickland having not lost a fight in almost four years. With that being said, stranger things have happened in the octagon before and it’ll be interesting to see if Hermansson finds a way to shock the crowd as the +180 underdog.
