The UFC 101 odds are up and the main events, Penn/Florian and Silva/Griffin, are getting all the attention. Those fights should be great, but they're not the only interesting bouts on the card. Here are a couple of others to bet on.
Amir Sadollah (1-0) vs Johnny Hendricks (5-0)
MMA odds: Sadollah -125, Hendricks -105
While the main events may not yield an upset, the Sadollah/Hendricks fight should. Sadollah won the Ultimate Fighter reality show title at welterweight, but he hasn't fought for a long time since. He's had to back out of multiple fights due to injuries, with the most recent cancellation due to a broken clavicle. Finally, he returns to the Octagon August 8 after more than a year off. He uses his Sambo background to get opponents to the ground and his Jiu-Jitsu to submit opponents, as he did C.B. Dollaway in the TUF finale show. However, he faces a tough opponent in undefeated Johnny Hendricks. Wrestling is Hendricks' discipline, but he's shown some knockout power with three stoppage wins.
Look for Hendricks to take advantage of Sadollah's rust, be the aggressor, and beat Sadollah up en route to an upset.
Daily sports pick: Hendricks -105
Kendall Grove (12-5) vs Ricardo Almeida (10-3)
MMA odds: Grove +150, Almeida -180
Ricardo Almeida's MMA career has started impressively. He's a Jiu-Jitsu specialist with a penchant for choking opponents out and has beaten some good fighters -- most notably major middleweight contender Nate Marquardt. However, it may be smart betting management to predict another upset here. Kendall Grove is a bad matchup for Almeida. Grove's chin is weak, and the only fighters that give him big trouble are hard hitters. Almeida has no knockout wins, so Grove likely won't get caught, and Grove is close to Almeida's equal on the ground. I like the more well-rounded fighter here. Bet on Grove.
Daily sports pick: Grove +150
Amir Sadollah (1-0) vs Johnny Hendricks (5-0)
MMA odds: Sadollah -125, Hendricks -105
While the main events may not yield an upset, the Sadollah/Hendricks fight should. Sadollah won the Ultimate Fighter reality show title at welterweight, but he hasn't fought for a long time since. He's had to back out of multiple fights due to injuries, with the most recent cancellation due to a broken clavicle. Finally, he returns to the Octagon August 8 after more than a year off. He uses his Sambo background to get opponents to the ground and his Jiu-Jitsu to submit opponents, as he did C.B. Dollaway in the TUF finale show. However, he faces a tough opponent in undefeated Johnny Hendricks. Wrestling is Hendricks' discipline, but he's shown some knockout power with three stoppage wins.
Look for Hendricks to take advantage of Sadollah's rust, be the aggressor, and beat Sadollah up en route to an upset.
Daily sports pick: Hendricks -105
Kendall Grove (12-5) vs Ricardo Almeida (10-3)
MMA odds: Grove +150, Almeida -180
Ricardo Almeida's MMA career has started impressively. He's a Jiu-Jitsu specialist with a penchant for choking opponents out and has beaten some good fighters -- most notably major middleweight contender Nate Marquardt. However, it may be smart betting management to predict another upset here. Kendall Grove is a bad matchup for Almeida. Grove's chin is weak, and the only fighters that give him big trouble are hard hitters. Almeida has no knockout wins, so Grove likely won't get caught, and Grove is close to Almeida's equal on the ground. I like the more well-rounded fighter here. Bet on Grove.
Daily sports pick: Grove +150
