Betting Odds and Predictions.for upcoming Oct. 25 UFC 90 event Silva vs. Cote
Anderson Silva (-600) vs. Patrick Cote (+505)
Sean Sherk (-230) vs. Tyson Griffin (+212)
Josh Koscheck (-150) vs. Thiago Alves (+135)
Gray Maynard (-220) vs. Rich Clementi (+210)
Fabricio Werdum (-850) vs. Junior Dos Santos (+600)
Thales Leites (-445) vs. Drew McFedries (+365)
Spencer Fisher (-345) vs. Shannon Gugerty (+299)
Hermes Franca (-180) vs. Marcus Aurelio (+190)
Josh Burkman (-197) vs. Pete Sell (+200)
Dan Miller (-325) vs. Matt Horwich (+305)
Predictions from: MMAbettingblog.com
Anderson Silva vs. Patrcik Cote
In the main event of the evening, Pound for Pound number one
contender Anderson “The Spider” Silva defends his UFC Middleweight
Title against Canadian contender Patrick “The Predator” Cote. While
Cote is certainly a good fighter, the fact that he is getting a title
shot is more a testament to Silva’s dominance of the division than it
is to Cote’s merits inside the Octagon.
Cote’s disadvantages going into this fight are many. For one thing,
he is noticably smaller than his opponent, who endures a nearly
superhuman weight cut to make the Middleweight limit of 185 pounds. In
addition to his size disadvantage, Cote is also inferior to Silva in
the conditioning department, and will not be able to hang around if the
fight makes it to later rounds. Most importantly, though, Cote has a
massive disadvantage in the stylistic matchup. Primarily a striker,
Cote has powerful hands and a decent chin. Unlike most strikers in MMA,
though, Cote does not fare well in boxing exchanges. Rather, he likes
to bully his opponents around, getting in the clinch and then scoring
hard shots as he pushes out.
Needless to say, Anderson Silva’s clinch is not a place any rational
human being willingly enters. Rich Franklin, who proved he was still a
dangerous fighter with a recent win over the talented Matt Hamill at
Light Heavyweight, learned this the hard way, enduring two brutal
destructions in that exact position. Bear in mind that Franklin is a
superior striker to Cote, and that unlike Cote he does not need to get
in close to dole out damage, and it becomes pretty clear that Cote is
going to be in for a long night.
If Silva’s game has one hole, it is on the ground. While he is an
accomplished grappler, he has shown a weakness to takedowns and guard
passes in some of his recent fights, notably against Dan Henderson and
Travis Lutter. Cote, though, is not nearly on the same level as either
of those men, and so his one hope of victory is pretty much
unattainable. Look for Silva to live up to his nickname, drawing Cote
in and then snaring him before the kill.
It’s entirely possible the fighter introductions will be longer than the fight is. Silva by utter destruction in Round 1.
Josh Koscheck Vs. Thiago Alves
Josh Koscheck, much like Drew McFedries, stepped up on short notice
as a replacement for the injured Diego Sanchez. He is set to meet
Thiago “Pitbull” Alves, a well rounded fighter who is riding the
momentum of a shocking TKO victories over top contender Karo “The Heat”
Parisyan and former champion Matt Hughes.
Pats Prediction:
Koscheck’s development as a fighter will prove to be his saving
grace, as his striking should be just good enough to keep Alves at bay
long enough for him to secure the inevitable takedown. From there,
Alves is the fish out of water, and Koscheck should be able to hold him
down and keep him in trouble with ground and pound.
Sean Sherk vs. Tyson Griffin
Tyson Griffin, one of UFC’s hottest young prospects at 155 pounds,
will be looking to assert himself as a top contender to BJ Penn’s title
in what is arguably UFC’s most stacked division when he comes up
against powerhouse Sean “The Muscle Shark” Sherk. For his part, Sherk
is hungry to restore some of the prestige he lost in his recent
dismantling by BJ Penn.
Pats Prediction:
That said, I see Sherk grinding this one out to a much needed
win, getting the best of the wrestling exchanges and controlling the
fight from the top on his way to a hard-fought unanimous decision
win.
Fabricio Werdum vs. Junior Dos Santos
Relatively unknown Junior dos Santos is getting thrown to the wolves
immediately in his UFC debut, being matched up with dangerous Brazilian
Jiu Jitsu black belt Fabricio Werdum. Primarily a striker, dos Santos
made a name for himself on much smaller shows, amassing an impressive
6-1 record. Werdum, though, is on a whole different level from dos
Santos’ previous opponents, so the up and comer is going to have his
hands full to say the least.
Pats Prediction: Dos Santos will have to chalk
this one up to a learning experience, because he will be easily
submitted by Werdum inside the very first round.
Thales Leites vs. Drew McFedries
McFedries, who stepped up to replace Goran Reljic in this fight,
will be looking to avenge his recent loss to the relatively unknown
Mike Massenzio on Ultimate Fight Night. He will have a tough task on
his hands in the form of Thales Leites, who is coming off an extremely
controversial split-decision win against Nathan Marquardt in a fight
where he was largely dominated but pulled ahead on points thanks to
questionable deductions for fouls.
Pats Prediction: Leites by submission early in the second round
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