Charles Oliveira and Dustin Poirier are regarded as among the most well-rounded fighters in professional mixed martial arts. They will meet on Saturday in the main event of UFC 269 as Oliveira defends the lightweight title against Poirier, the No. 1 contender who also is a former interim champion. The main UFC 269 fight card is set for 10 p.m. ET from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Oliveira is a grappling specialist who holds a UFC record of 14 submission victories, while the versatile Poirier has 10 knockouts in the promotion, including two against Conor McGregor in 2021.
Poirier is a -160 betting favorite (risk $160 to win $100), while Oliveira is priced at +140 in the latest Poirier vs. Oliveira odds from Caesars Sportsbook. In the co-main event, women’s bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes (-800) takes on rising contender Julianna Pena (+575). Before locking in any picks of your own for UFC 269: Oliveira vs. Poirier, make sure you check out the MMA picks and betting advice from red-hot SportsLine expert Kyle Marley.
Marley won the first-ever “ToutMaster” UFC betting contest sponsored by MMAOddsBreaker and appears regularly on multiple MMA betting and daily Fantasy shows. He watches every single fight for every professional MMA card and does extensive research before each event.
Over the past 34 months, $100 bettors who have followed Marley’s picks are up more than $13,000. The accomplished MMA analyst has now connected on 42 of his last UFC 70 main-event selections, a stretch that includes a streak of five straight underdogs in 2020.
At UFC 268, his winners included calling Rose Namajunas (-105) to win her rematch against Weili Zhang (-115) for the women’s strawweight title in the co-main event. Anyone who has followed Marley is way up. You can only see Marley’s MMA picks at SportsLine.
UFC 269: Oliveira vs. Poirier expert preview
Oliveira (31-8-1) has been on the UFC roster for more than 11 years, but many MMA observers are just becoming familiar with him. This is in large part because the Brazilian fighter keeps a relatively low profile away from the cage and doesn’t engage in self-promotion or trash talk on social media. What’s more, he had mixed results until his recent nine-fight winning streak.
Oliveira split his first four UFC fights, with losses against journeymen Jim Miller and Donald Cerrone. He struggled against upper-tier competition for most of his career before stepping up his dedication and commitment to the sport.
His career resurgence reached a pinnacle in May, when he outclassed former Bellator champion Michael Chandler for the vacant title and won a UFC crown in his first title bout.
There are many observers who believe Poirier is the only active lightweight who is capable of dethroning Oliveira. The Louisiana native passed on the opportunity to fight for the title in May, opting for a massive payday in a trilogy with McGregor while allowing Chandler to take the opening.
However, the top-ranked Poirier has long insisted that his career wouldn’t be complete without a UFC title and insists this is the most important fight of his career. His lone defeat in the last 10 appearances came against Khabib Nurmagomedov, who retired last year as an undefeated champion. You can only see who to back at SportsLine.
Top UFC 269 predictions
We’ll share one of Marley’s UFC 269 selections here: He is siding with Bruno Silva (-350) to get the best of Jordan Wright (+290) in a battle of middleweight prospects.
Silva (21-6) is a power puncher who caught the attention of UFC brass while dominating opponents in promotions such as M-1 Challenge and Immortal FC. The 32-year-old Brazilian has stopped his first two UFC opponents and is coming off a third-round stoppage of fellow prospect Andrew Sanchez in October.
Wright (12-1-1) is noted for his versatility and athleticism. The 30-year-old Texan has won to of his first three UFC appearances, including a first-round stoppage of Jamie Pickett in May.
“Silva has a big power edge and I see him being the one pushing forward and throwing bombs. I think he lands a big one early and finishes this fight,” Marley told SportsLine.
How to make UFC 269 selections
Marley also has strong picks for Oliveira vs. Poirier every other bout on the UFC 269 card. He’s also backing a fighter who is “levels ahead of their opponent” to emerge with a dominant victory. Those expert MMA picks are only available at SportsLine.
Who wins Oliveira vs. Poirier? And how exactly does each fight end? Visit SportsLine now to get detailed picks on every fight at UFC 269, all from the incomparable expert who’s up more than $13,000 on MMA in the past 34 months, and find out.
UFC 269 odds, fight card
Charles Oliveira (+140) vs. Dustin Poirier (-160)
Amanda Nunes (-850) vs. Julianna Pena (+575)
Geoff Neal (-110) vs. Santiago Ponzinibbio (-110)
Kai Kara-France (+105) vs. Cody Garbrandt (-125)
Raulian Paiva (+250) vs. Sean O’Malley (-300)
Josh Emmett (-165) vs. Dan Ige (+145)
Dominick Cruz (-105) vs. Pedro Munhoz (-115)
Augusto Sakai (-110) vs. Tai Tuivasa (-110)
Jordan Wright (+290) vs. Bruno Silva (-350)
Andre Muniz (-150) vs. Eryk Anders (+130)
Erin Blanchfield (+120) vs. Miranda Maverick (-140)
Alex Perez (-320) vs. Matt Schnell (+260)
Ryan Hall (-210) vs. Darrick Minner (+180)
Randy Costa (-190) vs. Tony Kelley (+170)
Gillian Robertson (-360) vs. Priscila Cachoeira (+300)
