UFC Odds and Picks
By: Hugh Citron
Sportingnews.com
LAS VEGAS – UFC Fight Night comes to us Saturday night from Brasilia, Brazil with an interesting fight in the heavyweight division between 4th-ranked Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva and No. 14 Andrei "The Pit Bull" Arlovski (8 p.m. ET, UFC Fight Pass). Silva is a -400 favorite, with Arlovski getting about 3-to-1 odds as the underdog.
Silva (18-5-1) has really made a name for himself in the UFC heavyweight division over the last few years as someone who should always be taken seriously when signing up to fight against him. With KO wins over Alistair Overeem and hot up-and-comer Travis Browne, Silva has proved to be dangerous at any point in a fight.
Since 2010, Silva has only three losses on his resume. Of those losses, two were against current UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez, whom I regard as the best heavyweight in the history of MMA, and the other to undefeated Daniel Cormier, who has a shot at the light heavyweight title later this year. In May 2010, Silva beat Arlovski via unanimous decision in the Strikeforce promotion.
Silva's last fight, a five-round majority draw with Mark Hunt, was one of the most entertaining you'll ever see. It was later ruled a no contest. Both fighters were in trouble several times and managed to keep going until the final bell in what many fans regard as one of the best stand-up fights in UFC history.
Arlovski (22-10), a former UFC heavyweight champion, has traveled quite a long road in his MMA career, this being his second run in the UFC. His return to the UFC started this June with a split-decision victory over Brendan Schaub. Even though "The Pit Bull" got the win, he didn't look anything like the Arlovski of old, who, at his peak, was the quickest with both hands and feet the heavyweight division had ever seen.
At 35, this could be the last shot for Arlovski to make a run at the heavyweight title. Another loss could just about spell the end of his chances.
I would love to play Arlovski at the nice underdog price, but I just haven't seen enough from him recently. Especially concerning is his lack of speed and power, two elements that were so prevalent during his first UFC run.
Silva also has the edge of fighting in his hometown, something that can never be overlooked with Brazilian fighters, who get a huge lift from their always-supportive fans.
I'm never a big fan of laying sizeable favorites, especially with heavyweights. However, I just can't see any other way to go here. I'll play the favorite "Bigfoot" to beat "The Pit Bull" on Saturday night.