UFC 319 Fight Night: Du Plessis vs. Chimaev - Odds, Predictions & Picks

• Du Plessis defends his Middleweight Championship against the undefeated Chimaev.

• Lerone Murphy faces  Aaron Pico in a Featherweight title eliminator.

• Geoff Neal and Carlos Prates' match-up is shaping up to be an outright brawl in the Welterweight division.

UFC 319: Du Plessis vs. Chimaev Odds

Odds for this event are provided by the FanDuel Sportsbook. Place your bets at FanDuel and get $300 in Bonus Bets with a winning wager.

UFC 319: Du Plessis vs Chimaev - Picks & Predictions

(C) Dricus Du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev - Middleweight Championship

• Our pick: Khamzat Chimaev (-260) at FanDuel

Lerone Murphy vs. Aaron Pico - Featherweight Division

• Our pick: Lerone Murphy (+158) at FanDuel

Geoff Neal vs. Carlos Prates - Welterweight Division

• Our pick: Carlos Prates (-265) at FanDuel

Jared Cannonier vs. Michael Page - Middleweight Division

• Our pick: Michael Page (-196) at FanDuel

Tim Elliot vs. Kai Asakura - Flyweight Division

• Our pick: Kai Asakura (-340) at FanDuel

Dricus Du Plessis vs. Khamzat Chimaev - Middleweight Championship

The main event of UFC 139 sees Middleweight champion Driscus Du Plessis defend his belt in a much-anticipated bout against the Russian Khamzat Chimaev, a fight that’s shaping up to be one of the events of the year. 

Driscus ‘Stillknocks’ Du Plessis has shown he has everything it takes to be an undisputed champion ever since he defeated Sean Strickland for the title in January 2024. He’s defended his crown twice since, submitting Israel Adesanya in August 2024, before receiving a unanimous decision in a rematch against Strickland in Sydney in February. However, in Chimaev, he’s potentially facing his most formidable opponent so far. 

Khamzat Chimaev has been a force to be reckoned with since his winning debut in the UFC back in 2020. Undefeated in his mixed martial arts career to date, he has long been compared to countryman and UFC legend Khabib Nurmagomedov due to his relentless grappling ability. 

He showed this in his last bout against Robert Whittaker in Abu Dhabi last October, when submitting his opponent with a rear-naked choke in just one round. There’s no doubt that Du Plessis is a step up, but this should prove to be an absolutely fascinating match-up. 

We’ve got the challenger taking this one, and you can bet on Khamzat Chimaev with -215 odds at FanDuel today.

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Lerone Murphy vs. Aaron Pico - Featherweight Division

The context of this bout has rather changed with the withdrawal of second-ranked Featherweight Mosvar Evloev due to injury, with this fight acting as a potential platform for a title shot against current champion Alexander Volkanovski. Instead, seventh-ranked Lerone Murphy steps in to face Aaron Pico in a bid to boost his own ranking. 

Murphy steps into this one on very short notice, but we doubt that will affect the Englishman’s confidence at all. The Manchester native has been undefeated in his martial arts career to date, with the only blot on his copy so far being a draw against Zubaira Tukhugov on his UFC debut in 2019. Six of his eight fights since then have gone the distance, and it will be interesting to see if he can show a more clinical edge here. 

Arron Pico is making his debut in the Ultimate Fighting Championship after a good run in Bellator over the past eight years. This is a step in class for the American, though he arrives at this fight having sealed back-to-back victories by knockout punches. A powerful striker, there’s no doubting that he can cause Murphy problems, but this is a difficult first outing in the UFC. 

Although Pico is a worthy contender, we’ve got Lerone Murphy leaving victorious, and you can place bets on him at +114 with FanDuel at the time of writing.

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Geoff Neal vs. Carlos Prates - Welterweight Division

Both Geoff Neal and Carlos Prates are renowned strikers, so fans of all-out brawling should love this Welterweight bout. 

There is a reason that Geoff Neal holds the moniker ‘Handz of Steel’, with some seriously dangerous fists. Indeed, 10 of his 16 professional victories have come by knockout, including most recently against Rafael Dos Anjos last October. Sitting just outside the top 10 Welterweight rankings, he will be hoping to continue his momentum. 

Carlos Prates suffered his first defeat for six years when on the wrong side of a unanimous decision to Ian Machado Garry in April. He had won each of his last 10 fights by knockout prior to that, however, and can’t be discounted here with something to prove. 

Carlos Prates is the favorite to win this one, sitting at -265 at FanDuel today.

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Jared Cannonier vs. Michael Page - Middleweight Division

This face-off is most certainly a question of which experienced fighter will leave with their head held high, as both men have lengthy and inspiring careers.

Jared ‘The Killa Gorilla’ Cannonier was electric in his previous fight against Gregory Rodrigues back in February 2025. He was able to defeat his much larger opponent after getting Rodrigues against the cage and finishing him off with a series of right-hand punches. Once again at UFC 319, he finds himself outsized in the octagon, and we’re eager to see how he fares against Michael ‘Venom’ Page.

Page built a name for himself in Bellator, with just three career defeats to date and two victories from his first three fights in the promotion. His most recent fight saw him hand a first career loss to Shara Magomedov by unanimous decision, and he’s likely to fancy his chances with a significant height advantage on his side. 

We’ve got Michael Page coming out on top, and he is the current favorite on FanDuel with -186 odds.

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Tim Elliot vs. Kai Asakura - Flyweight Division

The first fight in the main card of UFC 319 sees a battle for flyweight dominance.

A veteran in this sphere, Elliot has built a fine reputation for himself across his 16-year career to date. He is excellent on the mat and has submitted his opponents seven times during his career, favoring a triangle choke. It was by this method that he defeated Su Mudaerji in his latest outing in December, making ‘The Tibetan Eagle’ tap in the first round. He is coming up against one of Asia’s biggest stars in this one, so it might be a struggle to replicate that performance.

Kai Askaura has had one fight in the UFC so far, and it came in the deep end, losing by submission to Alexandre Pantoja in a title fight. Many were dubious about UFC president Dana White’s decision to hand Askaura a title shot in his first outing, though, due to the fighter’s stardom in his native home of Japan, this will likely prove to be a wise business decision. With that in mind, he will be eager to redeem himself against his veteran opponent. 

Bookmakers are expecting Asakura to leave victorious, and you can follow suit and place bets on him with -340 odds at FanDuel.

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How to Watch UFC 319: Du Plessis vs. Chimaev

• Location: United Center, Chicago, United States

• When: Saturday, Aug 16

• Time: 10:00 PM ET

• How: ESPN, ESPN+, Disney+