UFC White House fight card predictions: Expert picks for pair of title fights at UFC Freedom 250
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- UFC Freedom 250 takes place Sunday from the South Lawn of the White House, a unique venue that gives fighters on the card a shot at a singular piece of sports history
- Ilia Topuria (lightweight champion, -520 at DraftKings) faces interim champion Justin Gaethje (+390) in the main event, with all three CBS Sports experts who picked — Campbell, Brookhouse, Mahjouri — backing Topuria to win
- Alex Pereira (-105) meets Ciryl Gane (-115) for the vacant interim heavyweight title in Pereira's heavyweight debut, a fight the sportsbooks have as a near pick'em and where the experts are split
- Josh Hokit (-410) is a heavy favorite over Derrick Lewis (+320) as the fast-rising heavyweight, who has reached title contention in just three UFC fights since his Curtis Blaydes bout at UFC 327
- CBS Sports' Brent Brookhouse called Hokit a "legitimate high-level American heavyweight prospect" but criticized his persona as a "poor imitation of a professional wrestling gimmick"
- Shakiel Mahjouri framed a Pereira win as historic: a third UFC title in a third weight class, "something no fighter has before," interim or otherwise
Why it matters: For the first time, the UFC is hosting a numbered card on the White House South Lawn, giving both title fights unusual political-cultural visibility. With Topuria a -520 consensus pick across the featured experts, the main event offers little value to bettors, while the Pereira-Gane interim heavyweight bout is the night's genuine coin-flip — and could crown a three-division champion if Pereira wins.
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