The betting markets are up for UFC Saudi Arabia, and former champion Israel Adesanya alongside top contender Ian Machado Garry are being backed to bounce back. Ag Fight reports that Israel Adesanya opened as the betting favorite over Shara Magomedov, while Ian Machado Garry opened favored against Yaroslav Amosov.

Our own tracker has the Adesanya fight priced at minus 155 for Adesanya and plus 132 for Magomedov, with our model calling it a true coin flip at 55 percent. That lines up with where the two sit in the rankings, Adesanya at number 9 and Magomedov at number 15 at middleweight. Adesanya is coming off a loss to Joe Pyfer by knockout in the second round this past March, while Magomedov enters off a decision win over Michel Pereira in June. Adesanya carries a 1441 Elo rating over six tracked bouts; Magomedov sits at 1569 over seven.

The welterweight matchup looks tighter on paper. Our data has Garry at minus 170 and Amosov at plus 145, with the model giving Garry 58 percent. Garry is ranked number 1 at welterweight but is fresh off a decision loss to Islam Makhachev in August, while Amosov, ranked number 11, is riding a submission win over Joel Alvarez via arm triangle in May. Garry's Elo sits at 1603 across nine bouts, the highest number in this pair.

Both fights land on the December 5 card, UFC Fight Night: Adesanya vs Magomedov, and the early numbers suggest oddsmakers see two top fighters trying to climb back from recent setbacks against hungry contenders looking to make a statement in Saudi Arabia.