UFC 329 McGregor vs. Holloway 2 predictions: Odds, picks, best bets for Saturdays full card

Conor McGregor is the biggest name in mixed martial arts, and his return Saturday night is appointment viewing.After five years away from the octagon recovering from a shattered tibia and fibula he suffered in July 2021, he’s back to face Max Holloway.It’s a loaded card at UFC 329 that will garner tons of attention, as McGregor will get a ton of public eyeballs from fans who don’t often watch MMA.Ten of the 14 fights on the card are projected to end inside the distance, as the UFC loves to book some squash matches for prospects.Here are our predictions for the full UFC 329 card:McGregor is a public darling.His odds opened at +420 and have been bet all the way down to +175.He’s skilled in the ways of striking.

At his peak, he was the exception to so many rules about one-dimensional fighters.McGregor has enough power in the sport that he was able to force Holloway to move up to 170 pounds for this fight after the Hawaiian appeared at 145 pounds just 20 months ago before going up to 155.It’s an obscene ask by McGregor, but it does give him a legitimate edge.McGregor has been fighting mainly at 170 pounds since 2016, when he took on Nate Diaz.These two fought previously at featherweight in 2013 — but that fight was so long ago that you can’t really take anything from it.Given the incredible dip in odds on Holloway, and McGregor having not fought since 2021 with an injury that no one has come back from successfully, I’ll take the favorite.When is the last time McGregor looked really good in a fight? Holloway beat the brakes off Arnold Allen, beat Yair Rodriguez and while he was knocked out by Ilia Topuria, that fight was plenty competitive.I think Holloway is a gift at -210 odds, and he should win this one going away.Predictions: Holloway moneyline for parlays; Holloway wins in Over 4.5 minutes (-140, DraftKings)An absolute banger co-main event in the lightweight division, as Paddy Pimblett faces Benoît Saint Denis, a former French special forces soldi...