The official lineup for the UFC’s much-ballyhooed upcoming one-off event set for the White House in Washington, D.C., was recently unveiled and, suffice it to say, not every matchup is expected to be competitive.

The UFC Freedom 250 card is scheduled for June 14 with six fights featured and four of them having lopsided odds.

Several days after the initial announcement, the betting lines have begun settling down and the hot takes are heating up.

— Ilia Topuria vs. Justin Gaethje (lightweight title unification bout)
— Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane (for interim light-heavyweight title)
— Sean O’Malley vs. Aiemann Zahabi
— Mauricio Ruffy vs. Michael Chandler
— Bo Nickal vs. Kyle Daukaus
— Diego Lopes vs. Steve Garcia

With that in mind, here’s a look at the early betting odds, plus one lingering question, for each matchup.

Odds below courtesy of BetMGM.

ILIA TOPURIA vs. JUSTIN GAETHJE

Topuria odds: -667
Gaethje odds: +400

Gaethje has never been this big of an underdog in his entire fighting career. In the UFC to date, the toughest odds Gaethje faced before a fight was when he closed a +240 underdog against Khabib Nurmagomedov in 2020. Gaethje closed as a +205 underdog ahead of his interim lightweight title victory over Paddy Pimblett at UFC 324 in January.

Key question: Will an American be left face-down at end of the card?

Booking an American athlete in the main event was a no-brainer, but having an American as a significant underdog could end up backfiring — at least from an optics standpoint. Prop bet odds have not yet been listed but Topuria to win by KO/TKO will most certainly have the shortest odds of all possible outcomes. If the night concludes with a respected American getting sent to the shadow realm on the South Lawn of the White House, it would be quite the image.

ALEX PEREIRA vs. CIRYL GANE

Pereira odds: -125
Gane odds: -105

Pereira will be looking to make history as the first fighter in UFC history to win a title in a third weight class, but as these odds indicate, it won’t be easy. This is the closest-lined matchup on the entire card. Future odds for unconfirmed bouts had Pereira listed as more than a two-to-one underdog against both Tom Aspinall and Jon Jones.

Key question: Why does Gane keep getting rewarded with title shots?

This will be Gane’s fifth UFC title fight since 2021. Fifth! He won an interim title almost five years ago that held little significance within the division when he beat Derrick Lewis at UFC 265. He then lost undisputed title fights to Francis Ngannou in 2022 and to Jon Jones in 2023. He is coming off a no-contest in his most recent title fight with Tom Aspinall 4.5 months ago. Gane earned that title shot only with a controversial split decision in the first place and then it was his multiple eye-poke fouls that resulted in the Aspinall bout getting called off early. Aspinall is still recovering from multiple eye surgeries stemming from his injuries and is out indefinitely. Meanwhile, Gane gets rewarded with yet another title fight? Make it make sense!

SEAN O’MALLEY vs. AIEMANN ZAHABI

O’Malley odds: -400
Zahabi odds: +275

A bantamweight title shot will be on the line in this one as Zahabi looks to extend his winning streak to eight while going up against a popular former champion.

Key question: Can Zahabi put the nation on his back?

Zahabi is one of six international fighters on the card and, with the Olympics still fresh in sports fans’ minds, he told Sportsnet this past weekend he hopes to get one back for Team Canada.

“Canada lost to the U.S. in the (men’s and women’s hockey) finals of the Olympics. I gotta get one back for Canada,” Zahabi said. “I’m gonna go to their home soil, and I’m going to do it at the White House. I feel like I could really put the country on my back with a victory here on June 14.”

MAURICIO RUFFY vs. MICHAEL CHANDLER

Ruffy odds: -715
Chandler odds: +425

Chandler has been the underdog in all but one of his UFC appearances but he has never faced odds this steep.

Key question: How much does Chandler have left in the tank?

Chandler will look to snap a three-fight losing streak when he faces Brazil’s Ruffy in a lightweight bout that doesn’t shape up to be a favourable style matchup for the proud American. Chandler had been campaigning both for a spot on this card as well as for a grudge match with Conor McGregor, yet only one came to fruition. Ironically, Ruffy is a slick striker who has at times been compared to McGregor. Chandler will also be 40 by the time he steps into the cage, while Ruffy will be three days shy of his 30th birthday and riding the momentum of his February KO win over Rafael Fiziev.

BO NICKAL vs. KYLE DAUKAUS

Nickal odds: -370
Daukaus odds: +265

Nickel has been at minimum a two-to-one betting favourite ahead of all six of his UFC appearances.

Key question: Why was this the only all-American matchup added to the card?

Nickal has previously golfed with U.S. President Donald Trump and the UFC loves to promote him, so it wasn’t surprising to see the former Division 1 collegiate wrestling champion included. Daukaus, on the other hand, was somewhat out of left field but it’s a nice story because Daukaus is in his second stint in the UFC and enjoying a career turnaround. He went 2-0 in the UFC in 2025 with a 43-second win in August and a 50-second win in November.

DIEGO LOPES vs. STEVE GARCIA

Lopes odds: -200
Garcia odds: +150

This is the third specialty event in as many years on which Lopes has competed. He was on the UFC 300 prelims, he was featured on the UFC 306 main card at the Sphere, and now he’s set to open perhaps the most unique card in UFC history. There aren’t any prop bets listed yet but if they ever listed Fight of the Night odds, this Lopes vs. Garcia matchup would easily be the frontrunner for the FOTN bonus. It’s an awesome featherweight matchup.

Key question: Will this be the last time we see Lopes at 145 pounds?

Lopes is in unofficial No Man’s Land at featherweight with two lopsided unanimous decision losses to current champ Alexander Volkanovski within the past 11 months. His only other loss in the weight class in the UFC was to No. 1 contender Movsar Evloev. As long as Volk is the champ, Lopes won’t get another title shot and he has hinted that his future could be at 155 pounds. Win or lose, Lopes heading up to lightweight after he faces Garcia would add a layer of intrigue to that division. On the other hand, if Garcia wins, he’ll immediately jump to near the top of the contender rankings.