UFC 279

UFC 279 Shuffles the Deck

In a surprise course of events during the past 24 hours, the UFC has shuffled the top three fights on its "UFC 279" card just a day before the scheduled pay-per-view event.

Khamzat Chimaev vs. Nate Diaz and Li Jingliang vs. Tony Ferguson were expected to top the bill.

Now, Nate Diaz will face Tony Ferguson in the Main Event of the Saturday night show in Las Vegas. Diaz's original opponent, Khamzat Chimaev, missed his weight by a whopping 7.5 pounds during Friday's morning scale tipper, coming in at 178.5 pounds for a 171-pound-limit bout. Diaz understandably decided not to fight such an overweight opponent. Diaz vs. Ferguson will be a five round duel.

In the co-headliner, Chimaev will take on Kevin Holland. Holland's original opponent was set to be Daniel Rodriguez.

The fight preceding the main card will now be Li Jinglian facing Daniel Rodriquez.

Confused?  See, we told you the deck was shuffled -- big time.

Here's a look at the odds on UFC 279 at SPREADS.CA:

UFC 279 happens today on Sept. 10th. Prelims take place starting at 6:15 om EDT. The main card goes live at 10:00 pm EDT. Ferguson and Diaz should make their ways to the octagon at the T-Mobile Arena at around 12:15 am EDT, depending on how long the undercard fights last.

In Canada, pay-per-view is available on TSN, Bell, Rogers, Shaw, Eastlink and UFC PPV on UFC Fight Pass.

Prediction (powered by Pointspreads.ca):

We're picking Ferguson to defeat Diaz. Despite his wretched 0-4 recent run, he has the better overall record in the UFC when it comes to wins when it counts. Diaz is a popular fighter, but has a very mediocre record. His UFC win percentage is a very average .577. Meanwhile, Ferguson has a decent .750 win record. When you look at all their MMA fights, Ferguson has the edge. Ferguson is a small favourite -- a 1.00 wager returns 1.71.

In the other matches, Chimaev should easily defeat Holland, while Rodriguez wins a close decision vs. Rodriquez in the prelim.