UFC 285 Jones vs Gane: How Will Jones Fare After Three-Years of Inactivity?

• Former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones returns after 3-years
• The heavyweight and women’s flyweight titles will be on the line
• NCAA division one champion Bo Nickal makes his UFC debut

UFC 285: Jones vs Gane Odds

The odds for this match are provided by the DraftKings Sportsbook. Click the link to place your bets.

UFC 285: Jones vs Gane - Picks & Predictions

Jon Jones vs Ciryl Gane - Heavyweight championship

Ciryl Gane (+140)

(C) Valentina Shevchenko vs. Alexa Grasso - Women’s flyweight championship

Valentina Shevchenko (-800)

Geoff Neal vs Shavkat Rakhmonov - Welterweight division

Shavkat Rakhmonov (-490)

Mateusz Gamrot vs Jalin Turner - Lightweight division

Mateusz Gamrot (-205)

Bo Nickal vs Jamie Pickett - Middleweight division

Bo Nickal (-1500)

Jon Jones vs Ciryl Gane - Heavyweight Championship

We know it’s only March, but this has all the potential to be remembered as the UFC card of the year by the end of 2023. The biggest reason for this is the return to action of former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones.

Jones hasn’t lost a fight since 2009 (a DQ) but hasn’t fought in over three years. He will be moving up to heavyweight to fight Ciryl Gane for the vacant championship left behind in the departure of Francis Ngannou.

How will Jones fare after three years of inactivity? How will he fare against larger opponents in the heavyweight division? For the first time in a long time, Jones will fight a taller opponent. However, he will still enjoy a 3.5-inch reach advantage.

Gane, a former interim heavyweight champion, rebounded from his loss to Francis Ngannou recently with a third-round TKO win over Tai Tuivasa.

There have been rumors that Gane was suffering from a hand injury during training camp, but we’re forced to take that with a grain of salt. But this could be a partial factor into the oddsmakers’ decision to list Jon Jones as the -165 favorite.

To find out how to place your bets for this light heavyweight main event, check out our ultimate UFC betting guide to get started.

Valentina Shevchenko vs Alexa Grasso - Women’s Flyweight Championship

This is the first time in a long time that flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko hasn’t been listed as the biggest betting favorite on the main card (don’t worry - we’ll get there). But don’t let that fool you - the champion is still favored as a -800 to retain her title.

Shevchenko is currently riding a nine-fight winning streak but is coming off her closest contest to date as champion. Last June, at UFC 275, Shevchenko took on Taila Santos and squeaked by with the split-decision win.

The champ takes on Alexa Grasso, who has won four straight since moving up to the flyweight division. She most recently defeated Viviane Araujo last October via a unanimous decision.

Geoff Neal vs Shavkat Rakhmonov - Welterweight Division

Another huge betting favorite on the main card at -490 (but not the biggest - again, we’ll get there), Shavkat Rakhmonov is still undefeated at 16-0 with four wins under the UFC banner.

He last defeated Neil Magny via second-round submission last June. The win earned him his second performance bonus in a row.

Rakhmonov takes on Geoff Neal this Saturday, who has won back-to-back fights and is coming off of a spectacular performance over Vicente Luque - whom Neal knocked out in the third round of their fight last August.

But Rakhmonov is the favorite for many reasons. He is undefeated, stands taller, has a two-inch reach advantage, and holds a master of sport in both combat sambo and MMA.

Mateusz Gamrot vs Jalin Turner - Lightweight Division

Coming off of just his second professional defeat (a unanimous decision loss at the hands of Beneil Dariush at UFC 280 last October), Mateusz Gamrot looks to bounce back with a win over rising contender Jalin Turner.

Turner, one of the tallest and longest fighters in the lightweight division, is riding a five-fight winning streak into this contest on Saturday night - all five of those wins coming in the form of first- or second-round finishes.

Turner will stand four inches taller and have a six-inch reach advantage.

However, likely due to his experience and a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, it is Gamrot that is listed as the favorite at -205.

Bo Nickal vs Jamie Pickett - Middleweight Division

And now we come to the biggest betting favorite on the main card. At just 3-0 without any UFC experience, NCAA division one champion Bo Nickal is listed as a -1500 to defeat Jamie Pickett in what will be the first fight of the main card.

Nickal is a three-time National champion in freestyle wrestling and has two first-round submission wins on the Dana White Contender Series.

Although he will be sporting a reach advantage of five inches, Jamie Pickett is just 2-4 over his last six fights and has lost his last two in a row - one by TKO and the other by submission.

How to Watch UFC 285: Jones vs Gane

• LOCATION: T-Mobile Arena, Paradise, Nevada
• WHEN: Saturday, March 4
• TIME: 10 PM EST
• HOW: PPV, UFC Fight Pass, ESPN+