Tuesday, January 7, 2014

Johny Hendricks vs Carlos Condit 2 (rematch) in 2014?

Johny Hendricks is favored to win against Robbie Lawler, and Carlos Condit is favored to win over Tyron Woodley. This sets up a very interesting potential rematch between Condit and Hendricks. Hendricks won the first fight in a close decision, but in the third round he was fading and Condit was catching fire. If it was five rounds Condit was favored to take it. There's a good chance Hendricks becomes the new champ this year and Condit takes the belt in a rematch.

Chris Weidman vs Lyoto Machida, who would win that fight?

If Chris Weidman and Lyoto Machida win their next fights, there's a chance that these two will meet up in Octagon and fight for the title. This would give Machida a chance to join the illustrious class of individuals who have won UFC titles in two weight categories (Randy Couture, BJ Penn).

This is a fight that favors Machida because he is very hard to take down and his striking is tremendous. Machida is the king of counter attacks, and Weidman is not a fighter to play it safe. While Phil Davis was able to take Machida down, he has made adjustments that will allow him to help him against Weidman.

Based on the odds, there's a good chance these two will meet in 2014 and Machida will emerge as the new UFC  middleweight champion in 2014.

Sunday, January 5, 2014

Johny Hendricks vs Robbie Lawler betting odds

This is a fight between two sluggers. But Hendricks has better wrestling, so he has an edge.

Johny Hendricks -225
Robbie Lawler +225

UFC 171 betting odds Carlos Condit vs Tyron Woodley

Carlos Condit's conditioning and striking give him and edge over almost every fighter at 170.

Carlos Condit -200
Tyron Woodley +200

Rashad Evans vs Daniel Cormier betting odds

Close fight between two similar athletes: Evans is a good wrestling with good striking, as is Cormier. They have great MMA wrestling which might negate that portion of the game. With regards to striking they're both very dynamic so it's hard to say who will come out on top. The better clinch game and wrestling give Cormier a slight edge, but it's basically even money.

Rashad Evans +105
Daniel Cormier -105

UFC 170 betting odds Ronda Rousey vs Sara McMann

Ronda Rousey's armbar spree over everyone she has ever fought gives her an edge over fellow Olympian Sara McMann. McMann can potentially get Rousey down, but whether she can keep her there or not get caught in an armlock is another story.

Ronda Rousey -295
Sara McMann +300

UFC betting odds Lyoto Machida vs Gegard Mousasi

Evasiveness and striking skill which is unorthodox and dangerous give Machida an edge on the odds.

Lyoto Machida -200
Gegard Mousasi +200

UFC 169 betting odds

Frank Mir +265
Alistair Overeem -245

Ricardo Lamas +275
Jose Aldo -300

Renan Barao -155
Dominick Cruz +155

UFC 172 Jon Jones vs Glover Teixeira betting odds

Glover Teixeira has powerful punches and that makes him a dangerous threat against Jon Jones. But his takedowns can be stopped and the reach factor for Jones is the biggest strength in this fight.

Jon Jones -400
Glover Teixeira +400

BJ Penn vs Frankie Edgar betting odds

BJ Penn has never fought at 145 and he has already lost twice to Frankie Edgar. All those factors in addition to Penn losing a bit of steam over the years, makes him a 4.5 to 1 underdog against Frankie Edgar in their third fight.

Frankie Edgar -450
BJ Penn +450

Nick Diaz vs Roy Jones Junior in boxing, who'd win (prediction)

Nick Diaz is a very talented boxer in MMA, and could do quite well as a boxing athlete. However if he were to fight Roy Jones Junior in the ring in boxing, I would have to favor Jones, who is one of the greatest ever. Sure he has lost many steps over the years, but this was his life, still is, and he is the GOAT in boxing in some peoples' opinion.

Now, Diaz has cardio and great boxing skill and youth vis a vis Jones, but I still feel the skill level of Jones would be too much for Diaz to deal with. Jones would take it.

Two fighters who use anger and emotion well: Michael Bisping and Diego Sanchez

Some fighters get distracted by anger and it can be a detriment to them. They can gas out, lose their focus, and fall into their opponents traps. Think Robbie Lawler chasing Nick Diaz because Diaz was taunting and slapping him; only to have Lawler walk right into a punch that knocked him out.

Then there are cases where anger fuels fighter and it works well for them. Chris Weidman knocked out Anderson Silva after he got fed up and chased after him with punches. So it depends on the fighter.

Two fighters work well with emotion better than others, those two are Michael Bisping and Diego Sanchez.

Sanchez draws energy from everywhere and is on a different level of intense emotional energy which you can see as the fight goes on. He wants to outheart his opponent and make them wilt in the later rounds, which often happens.

With regards to Michael Bisping, he fights better when he's angry at his opponents. That is the reason he talks a lot of smack and tries to get into verbal battles with them. He wants his opponents to say bad things about him because that will cause anger to arise inside him more easily, and consequently he will fight better. He was angry at Jorge Rivera and Mayhem Miller, and fought very well under that intense emotional force. With regards to Rivera, he was clearly displaying anger in between rounds and getting very upset at him during competition. He was able to stay focussed and win the fight and used anger effectively.

So the jury is out on whether anger is good fuel or not. Really it depends on the person. When you have an incredible work ethic, desire, and heart, sometimes that angry fuel is something that you can use and make you friend. It really depends on the fighter.

UFC 169 predictions: Aldo over Lamas, Barao over Cruz, Overeem over Mir

Renan Barao vs Dominick Cruz

Great fight, but favoring Barao because Cruz has ring rust. He has an extremely strong work ethic, but Barao is someone you need to be in perfect shape against, which includes no ring rust. Barao takes this.

Jose Aldo vs Ricardo Lamas

Lamas has good takedowns and a very good overall game. Very underrated and overlooked because he doesn't talk smack at all, and is very low key. But Aldo is a very hard fighter to take down and strike with. That's a bad combo to deal with. Aldo takes it.

Frank Mir vs Alistair Overeem

Both these fighters are always involved with very exciting fights, save a couple here and there such as Mir's bout with CroCop, but credit to Mir the ending was exciting! If Mir gets it to the ground early he can win, or if he pulls a punch like he did versus Kongo. But this one isn't going the distance. I sense Overeem gets a big KO in this battle.

Cain Velasquez vs Jon Jones betting odds

Cain Velasquez will be a 2.5 to 1 favorite if Jon Jones does jump up to heavyweight and fight against him in a superfight, which he has stated he intends to do.

Cain Velasquez -250
Jon Jones +250

Ronda Rousey vs Cristiane Cyborg Santos (Justino) betting odds



Ronda Rousey will be a 2 to 1 favorite against Cyborg if the two do fight in the future. Cyborg said she is coming for Ronda in a Tweet after Rousey tapped out Miesha Tate for the second time in their rematch. Cyborg would be required to drop down to 135 and sign with the UFC should the two actually fight in the cage. Rousey's armbar is her most dangerous weapon but there is potential for that to be combatted by a slam. Cyborg did slam Tito Ortiz when they rolled with one another in training as Ortiz (around 250 pounds when not in fight mode) caught her in a triangle choke. If she can lift and slam Ortiz in a submission of that sort, there is the potential of her slamming Rousey on her head if she attempts an armbar. Nonethless, Rousey is a 2 to 1 favorite.

Rousey -200
Cyborg +200


  

Wednesday, January 1, 2014

Chris Weidman vs Lyoto Machida betting odds (UFC 173)

Chris Weidman is a slight favorite versus Lyoto Machida. Weidman -125 Machida +125