Tony Ferguson’s hopes of becoming the UFC lightweight champion have been put on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the veteran can claim the division’s interim title when he squares off against Justin Gaethje on Saturday, May 9 in the main event of UFC 249. The main UFC 249 fight card is scheduled to get underway at 10 p.m. ET from VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville. Ferguson (26-3) was set to challenge Khabib Nurmagomedov before the reigning champ was replaced in early April due to travel issues.


The last 10 fights involving Gaethje (21-2) have ended in knockouts, with the former World Series of Fighting champion winning eight of them. His last three victories haven’t gone past the first round. Ferguson is a -190 favorite (risk $190 to win $100), while Gaethje is a +160 underdog according to the latest Ferguson vs. Gaethje odds from William Hill. In the co-main event, Henry Cejudo (-240) defends his bantamweight title against two-time former champion Dominick Cruz (+200). Before making any UFC 249 picks, make sure you see the latest UFC predictions from SportsLine MMA analyst Brandon Wise.

A CBS Sports editor specializing in MMA, Wise has been dissecting the sport for five years. He specializes in picking main-card fights for UFC, which has enabled him to be profitable every year. Wise went a perfect 5-0 at UFC 239 and 4-1 at UFC 245. He also nailed Khabib Nurmagomedov’s destruction of Conor McGregor in 2018, Stipe Miocic’s upset of Daniel Cormier and Max Holloway’s downfall in 2019. Across UFC 247 and UFC 248, Wise went 7-3 with his main-card picks, returning healthy profits for anyone following them.

Wise also nailed the main event of UFC 248 in March, telling SportsLine members to expect middleweight champion Israel Adesanya (-275) to retain his title against Yoel Romero (+235) by unanimous decision. He argued that Adesanya would keep the action on the feet and was proven correct as the champ landed numerous leg kicks en route to victory. Anyone who has consistently followed Wise is way up.

Now, with UFC 249 fast approaching, Wise carefully has studied every matchup on the main card, identified the best value in the UFC odds and released his MMA picks for each fight. He’s only sharing those selections here.

Ferguson vs. Gaethje expert preview
Wise knows Ferguson had been preparing to fight Nurmagomedov, who currently is stuck in Russia. It marks the fifth time a matchup between the two has failed to take place after being booked.

Ferguson is in the midst of the longest winning streak in UFC lightweight history. The 36-year-old Californian has won 12 consecutive fights, the last being a second-round TKO against Donald Cerrone on June 8.

A former collegiate wrestling champion, Ferguson has not lost since dropping a unanimous decision to Michael Johnson on May 5, 2012. He captured the interim lightweight championship with a submission win over Kevin Lee in October 2017, but was stripped of the title after withdrawing from a fight with Nuragomedov in April 2018 due to a torn knee ligament.


Ferguson’s winning streak could come to an end against the fourth-ranked Gaethje, who has recorded three straight victories after suffering back-to-back losses. The 31-year-old from Arizona’s most recent win also came against Cerrone, as he scored a TKO in the first round on Sept. 14. Get Wise’s predictions for Ferguson vs. Reyes and every main card fight here.

Top UFC 249 predictions
One of Wise’s UFC 249 predictions: He is backing Calvin Kattar (-240) to get past Jeremy Stephens (+200) in their featherweight match.

Kattar (20-4) won 12 of 13 fights before dropping a unanimous decision to Zabit Magomedsharipov on Nov. 9. The 32-year-old striker from Massachusetts, who is ranked ninth in the division, recorded seven of those victories by decision.


Despite being tied with Anderson Silva for the second-most knockdowns in UFC history (18), the seventh-ranked Stephens (28-17, 1 no-contest) has struggled lately, going 0-3 with a no-contest over his last four fights. The 33-year-old, who made his UFC debut as a lightweight in 2007, was on the wrong side of a unanimous decision in his match with Yair Rodriguez on Oct. 18 after being poked in the eye.

“Kattar has blossomed into an all-around fighter at 145 pounds, with an elite wrestling game to fall back on,” Wise told SportsLine.