"The Spider" will grace the Octagon once again in Las Vegas.
Anderson Silva will make his long awaited return to the Octagon this weekend, looking to earn the No. 1 contender spot in the middleweight division, as he takes on fellow returning fan-favorite Nick Diaz in the marquee bout of Ultimate Fighting Championship's (UFC) latest pay-per-view (PPV) venture.
The middleweight collision headlines UFC 183, which will go down this Saturday (Jan. 31, 2015) at MGM Grand in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Besides for the captivating main event, fight fans will be treated to a top welterweight battle between Tyron Woodley and Kelvin Gastelum, as well as potential No. 1 contender fights in the flyweight and women's bantamweight divisions respectively as Ian McCall takes on John Lineker, and Miesha Tate battles Sara McMann.
UFC 183 has more than a handful of outstanding fights, so lets take a gander at the latest betting odds and see if we can pick out a few winners in "Sin City."
Here we go:
UFC 183 Odds For The Under Card:
Sara McMann (-210) vs. Miesha Tate (+170)
Derek Brunson (-600) vs. Ed Herman (+400)
Ian McCall (-230) vs. John Lineker (+180)
Rafael Natal (-185) vs. Tom Watson (+150)
Diego Brandao (-175) vs. Jimy Hettes (+145)
Ildemar Alcantara (-185) vs. Richardson Moreira (+150)
Thiago Santos (-175) vs. Andy Enz (+145)
Thoughts: The UFC 183 "Prelims" feature a bevy of very close match-ups, and to choose a winner outright for most of these fights is quite difficult. In my mind, I can rationally come up with avenues for victory for several of the underdogs listed above, but how much are you willing to risk is the question?
Let's jump right into the Diego Brandao vs Jimy Hettes fight. Stripping away the nuts and bolts from this featherweight collision, the factors you must consider before betting are the most probable outcomes of victory for both men. In Brandao's case, it is unquestionably finishing Hettes via knockout. For the American, it would be to utilize his impressive judo game before finishing "DB" off via submission.
Considering the Brazilian is a black belt in jiu-jitsu and has not been submitted in a fight since 2007, I think it is safe to say "The Kid" won't be choking out Brandao this weekend. On the other hand, Hettes was finished by a similarly aggressive opponent to Brandao in Dennis Bermudez his last time out, and I expect the American to get punished on the feet early on at UFC 183. In the end, my money is going to be spent on Brandao taking this fight via (technical) knockout.
Moving on, I'd like to give a quick shoutout to underdog Tom Watson. Now before I go rattling off all of Watson's skill set giving him the ability to win this bout, his huge grappling disadvantage against Natal could prove fatal on fight night. With that being said, I think the Englishman pulls off the upset victory via brutal clinch work in "Sin City."
Simply put, Natal has not looked all that great as of late, and the Brazilian's porous striking and even worse gas tank will put him into major trouble against "Kong" this weekend. If you dare to take an underdog, I say Watson takes out "Sapo" at UFC 183.
Finally, I find myself looking at the "Prelims" main event, wondering whether or not Miesha Tate will put on the performance she needs in order to defeat Sara McMann this weekend. While everyone and their mothers want to discuss McMann's Olympic-caliber wrestling, can we finally just admit that her heyday was over ten years ago and she really is not as otherworldly as so many make it seem?
Point blank, Tate is better fighter than McMann, but she could definitely find herself on the wrong end of a decision if the Olympian is able to lay on top of her for 15 minutes. If "Cupcake" utilizes a strong game plan, throws kicks sparingly, and utilizes her footwork and aggressive striking, I think she can take home the win in Vegas. I'd rather put my money on Watson, but some of you want to hear my "name" pick, so I'd have to go with Tate here.
UFC 183 Odds For The Main Card:
Anderson Silva (-450) vs. Nick Diaz (+325)
Tyron Woodley (-105) vs. Kelvin Gastelum (-125)
Al Iaquinta (-190) vs. Joe Lauzon (+155)
Thales Leites (-500) vs. Tim Boetsch (+350)
Jordan Mein (-145) vs. Thiago Alves (+115)
Thoughts: If you like betting on underdogs, then UFC 183 is the card for you!
First things first. I know everyone here is just itching to bet on the main event between Silva and Diaz, but those lines are just screaming "avoid!" to me. I expect Silva to win rather handily, but then again, how do we know what type of fighter will step into the cage following two straight losses, a horrendous injury, and a near 14 month layoff?
Considering you won't make much money betting on Silva, a small bet on Diaz may be something to look into as a high risk/high reward type deal.
The money to be made on this card has to be the middleweight bout between Thales Leites and Tim Boetsch. Now I understand Leites is a resurgent contender, and has looked stellar in four straight Octagon wins, but -500? That is just ridiculous.
Boetsch is aptly nicknamed "The Barbarian" because while he rarely shows off any impressive technique inside the Octagon, he often gets the job done in vicious fashion. Considering Leites has never been finished via knockout in his career, I don't expect the American to be the first man to do so, but that does not mean he isn't a fantastic value at +350. Simply put, Boetsch has played spoiler many a times during his UFC career, and I could see it happening again at UFC 183.
The other two intriguing underdogs are obviously Thiago Alves and Joe Lauzon. If you are really feeling lucky for UFC 183, I'd suggest betting on "The Pitbull" on Saturday night. While Jordan Mein is certainly a tough test, Alves has faced the cream of the crop in his UFC career, earning impressive victories over several top contenders over the last decade.
Is Alves the welterweight berserker he once was? Of course not, but he looked uber impressive as he dominated Seth Baczynski last April in his highly anticipated return. If he is able to put together a similar performance at UFC 183, you may be laughing all the way to the bank.
Bottom Line: This card has so many close fights it is very tough to bet a lot of money on anyone in particular. In my opinion, the best bet of the night has to be Tim Boetsch, as his value is just unbelievable. Other than "The Barbarian" I'd put my money on Diego Brandao, Ian McCall, and potentially Nick Diaz if you are feeling lucky.
Good luck ... and enjoy the fights!