For many MMA fans, fight night wouldn't be complete without a UFC 294 parlay bet or two to sweat.
UFC 294 takes place on Saturday afternoon at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Following prelims on regular ESPN+ (10 a.m.), the five-fight main card kicks off on ESPN+ PPV at 2 p.m. ET ($79.99).
With 13 fights in all, UFC 294 parlay betting options are plentiful for fight day. And I've put together a traditional parlay, as well as a same game parlay (SGP), below for the event.
Let's dig into those UFC 294 parlays for the Makhachev vs Volkanovski 2 pay-per-view event.
UFC 294 Parlay
First, let's start with an all-violence parlay for UFC 294.
It's a three-legger with a trio of fighters I expect to win via stoppage – either by knockout or submission.
This one is available at DraftKings (don't forget you can place your UFC 294 bets with our DraftKings promo code).
Parlay Leg 1: Shara Magomedov by KO or submission (-135)
We may look back on Shara Magomedov’s debut price tag and see the great value there was to be had, especially when it comes to the price of him finding a finish. Only one opponent of his in 11 professional fights has managed to see the scorecards.
While Bruno Silva is no slouch, and though he obviously carries dangerous punching power, his durability seems to be waning at age 34 with plenty of damage taken in the rearview mirror.
This fight seems destined to be played out on the feet, ultimately turning into a firefight.
Give me the younger, more explosive prospect at this price tag.
Parlay Leg 2: Nathaniel Wood by KO or submission (+200)
Other than landing one big fight-ending shot, Muhammad Naimov is drawing thin in this spot against the much more well-rounded and experienced Nathaniel Wood. Skill for skill, Wood has Naimov covered virtually everywhere.
I love the "double chance" inside-the-distance price for Wood because he has the ability to dictate where the fight takes place. I expect him to take the path of least resistance in the early stages of this bout to ensure he can tire out Naimov and drain his power.
Wood clearly has the weaponized cardio to find a finish at any stage of the 15-minute contest.
Parlay Leg 3: Trevor Peek by KO or submission (-135)
While it’s extremely unlikely Trevor Peek is going to find a submission victory on Saturday, we only have to pay pennies on the dollar to include the sub to go along with the prospect of hammerfirst knockout blows (the likely path).
You can count on Peek to go for the finish right from the opening bell. This fight is lined to not go the distance at -400 for a reason. Any fighter who doesn’t seem to take damage well is going to be tested against Peek for however long the fight lasts.
I am willing to bet Peek bounces back from a loss that has aged quite well and stops Mohammad Yahya on Saturday.
UFC 294 All-Violence Parlay: +809 at DraftKings
UFC 294 Same Game Parlay
Same-game parlays are a great way to correlate fight results to extract the most value for a bettor. That is exactly what we will be doing in the UFC294 main event rematch of Islam Makhachev vs Alexander Volkanovski. Let’s dive in to this option at DraftKings.
The first fight between these two champs earlier this year played out much closer than most experts expected. Volkanovski’s legendary well-rounded skill set translated extremely well to lightweight after he had a full camp to prepare for champion Makhachev.
This time around, he has already hinted at trying to take a more aggressive approach in the early going, which is likely a byproduct of a short training camp.
If Volkanovski does come out aggressively, he will almost assuredly find himself on his back at least once in the first frame of the fight. In their first fight back in February, Round 5 was the only round in which Makhachev did not find at least one takedown. For this reason, a round 1 takedown, and most fight takedowns should be in the corner of the lightweight champion.
While Volk’s cardio has also proven to be elite, it’s fair to again question if this fight is going to go the distance if he does approach things differently or tires out ever so slightly. For that reason, I will only comfortably play over 8.5 minutes.
Makhachev knows what to expect this time around, and we shouldn’t read too much into Volkanovski dropping him in the first bout. I do not necessarily think it is going to happen again just because it happened a single time.
For that reason, neither fighter being knocked down due to a strike is well worth the boost of value it creates in this SGP.
This is a tall task for Volk on short notice, and I do not believe his chances have increased. If he over-commits on his strikes, it is simply a path for Makhachev to get this fight to the mat even more easily.
Behind his grappling, I see this fight playing out similarly before a finish in Rounds 3-5 gets the lightweight champ's hand raised once more.
- Islam Makhachev Moneyline (3way)
- Most takedowns – Makhachev
- 1+ Makhachev total takedowns Round 1
- Tie – Most knockdowns
- Over 8.5 minutes
