The middleweight championship will be on the line when Dricus Du Plessis of South Africa faces Nigerian Israel Adesanya in the main event of the UFC 305 fight card on Saturday starting at 10 p.m. ET from RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. Du Plessis is the middleweight champion and ranked No. 11 in the UFC men’s pound-for-pound rankings. He earned his title in January with a split decision win over Sean Strickland at UFC 297. Adesanya comes into the match at No. 2 in the UFC middleweight rankings.
Adesanya is a -130 favorite (risk $130 to win $100), while Du Plessis comes back at +110 in the latest UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya odds. Also on the main UFC 305 card is a flyweight bout between Kai Kara-France (+190) and Steve Erceg (-230). Before locking in any UFC 305 picks, make sure you check out the MMA predictions and betting advice from 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.
Since 2018, $100 bettors who have followed Marley’s picks are up nearly $22,000. The accomplished MMA analyst has provided consistent winners for SportsLine members for the past four years. His accomplishments include hitting five consecutive main-event underdog winners in 2020 following the UFC’s brief pause in action because of the pandemic. The last card he went 7-3. Anyone who has followed him is way up.
Now, with UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Israel Adesanya in sight, Marley has studied the UFC 305 card from top to bottom and revealed his top picks and best bets. You can only see Marley’s MMA picks and analysis at SportsLine.
UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya preview
Du Plessis has been dominant for nearly six years. He has not suffered a loss since being knocked out in the third round of Poland’s KSW 45 for the welterweight championship in October 2018. He is 9-0 since, including five wins by knockout, two by submission and two by decision. He earned Performance of the Night with a second-round knockout of Robert Whittaker on July 8, 2023, at UFC 290 in a UFC middleweight title eliminator match.
Du Plessis began his professional career in July 2013, when he made his middleweight debut. In that match, he took down Tshikangu Makuebo by TKO at EFC 21 in Gauteng, South Africa. He went 4-0 before suffering his first loss in August 2014 at EFC 33 for the EFC middleweight championship. He lost by submission to Garreth McLellan at 2:12 of the third round. For his career, Du Plessis has posted a 21-2 mark, with 10 wins by submission, nine by knockout and two by decision.
Adesanya has also seen a lot of success in his career, which began in March 2012. He went 11-0 before signing with UFC in December 2017. In his first UFC bout at UFC 221, he registered a second-round TKO over Rob Wilkinson and earned Performance of the Night. In April 2019, he won a unanimous decision over Kelvin Gastelum to win the interim UFC middleweight championship. He also earned Fight of the Night honors.
He twice defended the UFC middleweight title, before making his light heavyweight debut, losing to Jan Blachowicz by unanimous decision in March 2021. He successfully defended his UFC middleweight championship three times, before losing by TKO to Alex Pereira at UFC 281 in November 2022. He regained the title by knocking out Pereira in the second round at UFC 287 in April 2023, before losing the title to Strickland at UFC 293 in September 2023. Adesanya is 24-3 in 27 career matches, including 16 wins by knockout and eight by decision. See all of Marley’s UFC 205 picks here.
Top UFC 305 expert predictions
One of Marley’s top UFC 305 picks: He is backing Jair Rozenstruik (-192) to defeat Tai Tuivasa (+160) in a battle of heavyweights on the main card.
Rozenstruik, 36, is ranked 12th among UFC heavyweights, and is coming off a TKO win over Shamil Gaziev at UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Gaziev on March 2. He has had a solid career so far, registering a 14-5 overall mark. He is known for his power and has 13 wins by knockout and one by decision. He won his first 10 bouts after turning pro in 2012.
The 31-year-old Tuivasa is looking to snap a four-bout losing streak after starting his career 14-3. In March of this year, he suffered a technical submission loss in the first round to Marcin Tybura at UFC Fight Night: Tuivasa vs. Tybura. He began his professional mixed martial arts career in July 2012, winning his first nine matches. Of his 14 wins, 13 have come by knockout and one by decision.
“Tuivasa needs a KO to win this fight in my opinion,” Marley told SportsLine. “Neither guy has a wrestling/grappling game, and Rozenstruik is the much more well-rounded striker. I’ll take Rozenstruik to get the KO, but if it goes to the cards then I think he would win every round.” See who else to pick here.
How to make UFC 305 picks
Marley has strong picks for UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya and every other bout on the UFC 305 card. He’s also backing a fighter who will “avoid the early danger and get a TKO at some point.” Marley’s expert picks and analysis are only available at SportsLine.
Who wins UFC 305: Du Plessis vs. Adesanya, and how exactly does each fight end? Visit SportsLine now to get detailed picks on every fight at UFC 305, all from the incomparable expert who’s up nearly $22,000 on MMA since 2018, and find out.
UFC 305 odds, fight card
See full UFC 305 picks, predictions, best bets here.
Israel Adesanya (-130) vs. Dricus Du Plessis (+110)
Steve Erceg (-230) vs. Kai Kara-France (+190)
Mateusz Gamrot (-285) vs. Dan Hooker (+230)
Jair Rozenstruik (-192) vs. Tai Tuivasa (+160)
Carlos Prates (-270) vs. Li Jingliang (+220)
Junior Tafa (-112) vs. Valter Walker (-110)
Josh Culibao (-175) vs. Ricardo Ramos (+145)
Luana Santos (-155) vs. Casey O’Neill (+130)
Jack Jenkins (-600) vs. Herbert Burns (+440)
Tom Nolan (-1050) vs. Alex Reyes (+675)
Kenan Song (-230) vs. Rick Glenn (+190)
Stewart Nicoll (-218) vs. Jesus Aguilar (+180)
