The UFC heads back to Perth, Australia for one of the most anticipated PPV events of the summer where the middleweight championship is up for grabs.

(Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)

In the main event, we have a showdown between two of the best middleweights the UFC has to offer as the champion Dricus Du Plessis finally gets to settle the score against the former two-time middleweight champion Israel Adesanya who's looking to become only the second three-time champion in UFC history.

On the prelims, we have a matchup in the women's flyweight division between two surging prospects Casey O'Neill and Luana Santos.

O'Neill will be hoping her return to the Octagon will put her back into the win column meanwhile, Santos will be looking to keep rolling into hostile territory this weekend.

These two female competitors are coming to put on a show for the fight fans, so let's take a look at the matchup and our O'Neill-Santos prediction and pick.

UFC 305: Casey O'Neill Betting Predictions August 17th

Casey O'Neill (9-2)?started her career 4-0 looking like a bonafide contender but she has since lost back-to-back fights most recently getting submitted by Ariane Lipski in her last fight. She looks to get back on track when she faces off against rising star Luana Santos this weekend at UFC 305.

1. O'Neill won three of her first four fights in the UFC inside the distance showing her dominance but injuries have plagued her rise in the flyweight division as she has fought just 3 times since 2022.
2. O'Neill has done her best work on the canvas where she has three of her wins by KO/TKO via ground-and-pound.

While O'Neill has the striking to keep this fight competitive on the feet, she is going to need to get her grappling game going in this fight against Santos. Santos will certainly struggle if she gets into a grappling match with O'Neill.

As far as this matchup goes, Santos does a great at keeping distance with her kicks and uses her size to win the exchanges in the clinch however, O'Neill has done a great defensively on the feet and her double leg and single leg takedowns are ready to combat with Santos' judo background.

• If O'Neill can get this fight to the mat it's in her world and she can potentially get the finish and finally get back into the win column this weekend.

UFC 305: Luana Santos Betting Predictions August 17th

Luana Santos (8-1)?is looking like a star in the making since she's made her UFC debut. Santos has run through the competition in her UFC career compiling three wins in just one year with the promotion.

1. Santos is coming off a dominant win her last fight where she submitted Mariya Agapova in the first round which gives her two finishes in her first three fights inside the Octagon.
2. Luana Santos is now 8-1 in her professional career with 5 wins inside the distance which are split between 4 submissions and 1 KO/TKO.
3. A win over Casey O'Neill will make it 6 wins in a row and the biggest win of her career which will help her surge up the flyweight rankings.

Santos is a very well-rounded fighter who will give O'Neill problems on the feet and on the canvas but it will be best to just pick O'Neill apart at range in this matchup.

She is the sharper and cleaner fighter on the feet and she should be able to counter O'Neill's aggression as she looks to take this fight to the canvas.

• In this matchup, Santos will need to use her judo background to either keep this fight on the feet or land takedowns of her own to land on top. As long as she can avoid being put on her back it's her fight to lose this weekend.

UFC 305: CASEY O'NEILL vs LUANA SANTOS FANDUEL ODDS FOR AUGUST 17

MONEY LINE

• CASEY O'NEILL: +126
• LUANA SANTOS: -154

PROPS

• CASEY O'NEILL BY POINTS: +270
• CASEY O'NEILL BY SUBMISSION: +1000
• CASEY O'NEILL BY KNOCKOUT/TKO: +600
• LUANA SANTOS BY POINTS: +155
• LUANA SANTOS BY KNOCKOUT/TKO: +1000
• LUANA SANTOS BY SUBMISSION: +470

OVER/UNDER (ROUNDS TOTAL)

• OVER 2.5 ROUNDS (-225)
• UNDER 2.5 ROUNDS (+172)

BEST UFC 305 ODDS FOR CASEY O'NEILL vs LUANA SANTOS

• Casey O'Neill returns to the Octagon as the underdog in this matchup. BetRivers Sportsbook has the best odds for O'Neill at (+135)
• Luana Santos comes into hostile territory as the betting favorite over Casey O'Neill. DraftKings Sportsbook comes in with the best odds at (-135)
• FanDuel has the best odds when it comes to the over/under on the total rounds, which is set at 2.5 Rounds (-225) for the over, and (+172) for the under

FINAL O'NEILL-SANTOS PICK & PREDICTION

This is going to be a great scrap between these two flyweight competitors. Both O'Neill and Santos are looking for a statement victory as they look to climb the flyweight rankings this weekend.

Ultimately, this fight will be relatively close throughout but it will be Santos who will be getting the better of the exchanges on the feet and as long as she doesn't get put on her back she will get the win on the scorecards and extend her UFC winning streak to 5-0.

FINAL O'NEILL-SANTOS PICK & PREDICTION: Luana Santos (-154)