Jon Jones will open a hefty betting favorite against Ovince Saint Preux in a newly announced interim title fight at UFC 197 on April 23.
Jones (21-1) has been pegged a minus-675 favorite to win the interim light heavyweight championship at UFC 197 in Las Vegas. Saint Preux (19-7), who accepted the fight on three weeks' notice, is listed at plus-450.
Lines were set by Nick Kalikas of MMAOddsBreaker.com. This is the third-most lopsided opening betting line of Jones' career.
Jones, 28, was supposed to fight Daniel Cormier, but Cormier withdrew because of a leg injury. At the time the fight was pulled, Westgate Las Vegas had Jones as a minus-360 favorite, with Cormier at plus-300.
"Ovince Saint Preux is one of the better rising contenders in the UFC light heavyweight division, but he's biting off more than he can chew here," Kalikas said. "You have to give credit to OSP for taking on Jon Jones on three weeks' notice, but his typical advantages disappear against Jones.
"Saint Preux will not have a reach advantage. He won't be able to muscle him around, and Jones has proven to be as durable as any opponent Saint Preux has ever fought. Jones will be better than OSP everywhere, except perhaps one-punch power."
Jones hasn't fought since UFC 182 in January 2015. In that time, he has been arrested on a felony hit-and-run charge and placed on 18 months supervised probation. Saint Preux is 7-2 overall in the UFC.