{"id":29451,"date":"2026-06-10T06:20:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T18:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.tab.co.nz\/punters\/?p=29451"},"modified":"2026-06-10T08:16:45","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T20:16:45","slug":"ufc-freedom-250-preview-tips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.tab.co.nz\/punters\/2026\/06\/ufc-freedom-250-preview-tips\/","title":{"rendered":"UFC Freedom 250 | Preview & Tips"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The president of the United States decided he wanted his favourite sport to take place at the most famous house in the world so that is now happening.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is no hiding the fact that UFC president Dana White is one of Trump\u2019s most supportive people and he has pulled off one of the biggest sporting events in history on the White House lawn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not only an epic location but a truly great card, and although it will take place on a Monday for us Aussies, it simply can not be missed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve taken a look at the entire main card below and offer my best betting plays.<\/p>\n\n\n

\n
\n
\n \n
\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n
\n
Illia Topuria<\/div>\n
vs<\/div>\n
Justin Gaethje <\/div>\n
Lightweight Title Bout<\/div>\n
Illia Topuria To Win In Round 4, 5 or by decision @ $4.80<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n

17 professional fights for 17 wins and 15 finishes.<\/p>\n

UFC titles in two separate weight classes and knock outs wins over Alex Volkanovski, Max Holloway and Charles Oliveira.<\/p>\n

Illia Topuria has built an impressive fighting CV and there is no doubting he is the biggest star in the sport which is only going to shine brighter after such an event like this.<\/p>\n

Undisputed UFC gold has always been the ultimate goal for Justin Gaethje and whilst he has won the interim lightweight title twice, he has also failed twice to achieve that ultimate success.<\/p>\n

When he started his MMA journey he had never trained boxing which is a difficult piece of information to absurd when you consider his fighting style.<\/p>\n

An accomplished wrestler when he was younger, he has been in some of the most brutal scraps we have seen in UFC history.<\/p>\n

While he has taken a more thought out approach in recent years, he absolutely understands his best pathway to victory is to engage his opponent with viscous leg kicks and pressure.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately he faces the new breed of mixed martial arts and Illia Topuria not only has brutal power himself, a very good ground game, but he has an extremely good fighting IQ.<\/p>\n

And it\u2019s that IQ that has me believing that the Spaniard will take his time to work Gaethje out in the opening rounds.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\n Bet Now<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n \n
\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n
\n
Alex Pereira<\/div>\n
vs<\/div>\n
Ciryl Gane<\/div>\n
Heavyweight Interim Title Bout<\/div>\n
When Will The Fight Finish? Round 1,2 or 3 @ $1.77<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n

Alex Pereira entered the UFC partly because Israel Adesanya was so dominant at Middleweight and the organisation was looking for a fight they could sell.<\/p>\n

He\u2019d knocked Izzy out in Glory during his kickboxing days so he earned a contract based purely off that.<\/p>\n

Dana White and his fellow matchmakers couldn\u2019t have envisioned the next few years going any better.<\/p>\n

Not only did we get two epic fights between the old rivals but Alex Pereira quickly became one of the biggest stars in the sport.<\/p>\n

On Monday, on the White House lawn, he will attempt to create UFC history by becoming the first fighter to win UFC titles in three separate divisions.<\/p>\n

The man standing in his way is Ciryl Gane, who in just three years of making his MMA debut, was UFC interim heavyweight champion.<\/p>\n

With just two losses on his record, one to Jon Jones and the other to Francis Ngannou, he is not only one of the bigger specimens in the division, he is agile as well.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s that movement that gives him a big advantage in this fight because the ones that stand in front of Pereira are the ones that end up waking up on the canvas not knowing what happened after a brutal left hook lands.<\/p>\n

I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if Gane shoots in the early rounds.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\n Bet Now<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n \n
\n <\/span>\n
\n
Sean O\u2019Malley <\/div>\n
vs<\/div>\n
Aiemann Zahabi<\/div>\n
Bantamweight Bout<\/div>\n
Sean O\u2019Malley By KO\/TKO @ $2.85<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/span>\n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n

Once the biggest star in the sport, Sean O\u2019Malley had four consecutive title fights and went 2-2.<\/p>\n

Both losses came against Merab Dvalishvili and he was submitted in their most recent encounter.<\/p>\n

Sugar bounced back against Song Yadong earlier this year however it was the third time in four fights that the judges were needed to decide the winner which is rare considering 12 of 19 of his wins have been by knockout.<\/p>\n

Aiemann Zahabi lost two of his first three UFC fights but has since gone unbeaten in seven straight fights.<\/p>\n

This includes wins over Jose Aldo, Chito Vera and Pedro Munhoz but includes just two by knockout.<\/p>\n

At 38 years of age, he is closing in on the top of the division and a win would likely give him a title shot.<\/p>\n

I\u2019d like to see O\u2019Malley back to his brutal best where he works out his opponent early and capitalises with his combination punches.<\/p>\n

And I\u2019ve got a feeling this sort of occasion and setting is exactly what he thrives in.<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\n Bet Now<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n \n
\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n
\n
Josh Hokit<\/div>\n
vs<\/div>\n
Derrick Lewis<\/div>\n
Heavyweight Bout<\/div>\n
Derrick Lewis By KO\/TKO @ $4.75<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n

I\u2019m not sure there is a more exciting fighter in the UFC at the moment than Josh Hokit.<\/p>\n

Or a weirder one.<\/p>\n

Undefeated in nine professional MMA fights, he won a UFC contract through Dana White\u2019s Contender Series in 2025 and has won all three fights since.<\/p>\n

He didn\u2019t beat anyone of note in those first two wins but it was his most recent win in April against Curtis Blaydes that has people believing he is a genuine threat in the division.<\/p>\n

In a fight of the year contender it broke the record for most combined significant strikes in UFC heavyweight history with 351 of which he landed 177.<\/p>\n

But he faces a man that has more knockouts than anyone in the history of the UFC.<\/p>\n

Derrick Lewis extended that record with a first round KO against Tallison Teixeira in Nashville last year but was beaten by Waldo Cortes Acosta in January.<\/p>\n

We know his style and I can\u2019t imagine him reinventing anything at 41 years of age and he comes into this fight as a large underdog.<\/p>\n

I like those odds<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\n Bet Now<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n \n
\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n
\n
Mauricio Ruffy <\/div>\n
vs<\/div>\n
Michael Chandler<\/div>\n
Lightweight Bout<\/div>\n
Ruffy By Decision or Chandler by Points @ $4.10<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/use><\/svg><\/span>\n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n

Putting together an 8-1 record in the Brazilian regional scene which included eight KOs, Mauricio Ruffy won his first three fights in the UFC.<\/p>\n

This included a brutal spinning heel kick KO in the first round against Bobby Green.<\/p>\n

He suffered his first loss against BSD but bounced back with a second round TKO win over Rafael Fiziev in February.<\/p>\n

Michael Chandler spent a lot of time on the sidelines waiting for his fight against Conor McGregor that never eventuated.<\/p>\n

This had to have taken a toll on a fighter that prides himself on being active and a supreme athlete.<\/p>\n

At 40 years of age and having won just once in his last six fights, it\u2019s tough to see him winning although I do think he is a knockout chan<\/p>\n

\t\t\t\n Bet Now<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/section>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The president of the United States decided he wanted his favourite sport to take place at the most famous house in the world so that is now happening. There is no hiding the fact that UFC president Dana White is one of Trump\u2019s most supportive people and he has pulled off one of the biggest sporting events in history on the White House lawn. It\u2019s not only an epic location but a truly great card, and although it will take place on a Monday for us Aussies, it simply can not be missed. I\u2019ve taken a look at the entire…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":336,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[578],"hub_post_cat":[],"class_list":["post-29451","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ufc","tag-ufc-tips"],"acf":{"md_tip_date":"","md_tip_date_end":"","md_market_url":"","tip_date":"10\/06\/2026","event_country":"New Zealand"},"yoast_head":"\nUFC Freedom 250 | Preview & Tips - TAB NZ Punters Lounge<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.tab.co.nz\/punters\/2026\/06\/ufc-freedom-250-preview-tips\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"UFC Freedom 250 | Preview & Tips - TAB NZ Punters Lounge\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The president of the United States decided he wanted his favourite sport to take place at the most famous house in the world so that is now happening. 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