UFC 100 Betting Preview
by Bodog Sportsbook | Jul 10 2009
They've hit the ton.
Ultimate Fighting Championship made its pay-per-view debut 16 years ago as a no-holds-barred promotion matching martial artists from different disciplines - boxing, wrestling, shootfighting, even sumo. It was an instant hit with just about everybody in the United States except lawmakers. Thanks to their pressure, the UFC adopted new rules, and the fighters followed suit by adapting their styles to suit the environment. Now the company is reportedly worth over $1 billion, and they're pulling out the stops for this Saturday's
UFC 100 card at the Mandalay Bay Event Center in Las Vegas.
The main event is a Heavyweight title unification match between champion Brock Lesnar (-250) and "Interim" champion Frank Mir (+190). This is a rematch of Lesnar's UFC debut on Feb. 2, 2008, when he lost to Mir by kneebar submission at 1:30 of the first round. Lesnar was all over Mir like a wet blanket from the outset; however, he gave Mir that one sliver of opportunity, and didn't properly defend against the submission.
A pair of strong victories over Heath Herring and living legend Randy Couture (the latter for the belt) have erased many doubts about Lesnar's ability to pick up the craft of
MMA. On the other hand, some of the shine from Mir's Interim title victory over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira was lost when it was revealed that Nogueira was recovering from a staph infection as well as a knee injury. Mir has nonetheless proved himself capable of cashing in against Lesnar. Here are the odds (as at press time) for the top four matches at
UFC 100, plus the recent odds and results for all eight men involved.
Middleweight: Dan Henderson (-210) vs. Michael Bisping (+170)
Jan. 17, 2009: Henderson (-125) over Rich Franklin (-105) by split decision
Sept. 6, 2008: Henderson (-200) over Rousimar Palhares (+160) by unanimous decision
Mar. 1, 2008: Anderson Silva (-150) over Henderson (+120) by second-round submission
Oct. 8, 2008: Bisping (-215) over Chris Leben (+175) by unanimous decision
June 7, 2008: Bisping (-340) over Jason Day (+260) by first-round TKO
Apr. 19, 2008: Bisping (-325) over Charles McCarthy (+250) by first-round TKO
Welterweight: Jon Fitch (-600) vs. Paulo Thiago (+400)
Jan. 31, 2009: Fitch (-600) over Akihiro Gono (+400) by unanimous decision
Aug. 9, 2008: Georges St-Pierre (-265) over Fitch (+205) by unanimous decision
Mar. 1, 2008: Fitch (-500) over Chris Wilson (+350) by unanimous decision
Feb. 21, 2009: Thiago (+330) over Josh Koscheck (-410) by first-round TKO
Welterweight title: Georges St-Pierre (-280) vs. Thiago Alves (+220)
Jan. 31, 2009: St-Pierre (-170) over BJ Penn (+130) by fourth-round TKO
Aug. 9, 2008: St-Pierre (-265) over Jon Fitch (+205) by unanimous decision
Apr. 19, 2008: St-Pierre (-450) over Matt Serra (+350) by second-round TKO
Oct. 25, 2008: Alves (+130) over Josh Koscheck (-160) by unanimous decision
June 7, 2008: Alves (+160) over Matt Hughes (-200) by second-round TKO
Apr. 2, 2008: Alves (+150) over Karo Parisyan (-180) by second-round TKO
Heavyweight title unification: Brock Lesnar (-250) vs. Frank Mir (+190)
Nov. 15, 2008: Lesnar (-130) over Randy Couture (+105) by second-round TKO
Aug. 9, 2008: Lesnar (-270) over Heath Herring (+210) by unanimous decision
Feb. 2, 2008: Mir (+125) over Lesnar (-155) by first-round submission
Dec. 27, 2008: Mir (+300) over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (-365) by second-round TKO
Feb. 2, 2008: Mir (+125) over Lesnar (-155) by first-round submission
Aug. 25, 2007: Mir (-180) over Antoni Hardonk (+150) by first-round submission
