If the odds for the UFC 163 fight card are to be believed, the UFC has produced some serious mismatches on the Brazilian card.
Reigning UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo, Lyoto Machida and Rani Yahya will all enter their respective fights on Saturday night as massive favorites. While being heavily favored is generally a positive thing, there are some drawbacks.
Both obviously have favorable matchups and will be expected to win, but losing with those kind of expectations can be devastating for their title aspirations (or title reign in the case of Aldo).
Here’s a look at the full fight card, along with a closer look at the biggest favorites on the card who can’t afford to be upset. All odds via OddsShark.com.
Lyoto Machida vs. Phil Davis
Odds: Machida -370, Davis +310
It’s easy to see why Machida is a favorite here. He’s a former champion coming off of back-to-back wins over Ryan Bader and Dan Henderson and will be fighting in front of a Brazilian crowd for the first time since joining the UFC.
He also has the most on the line heading into Saturday’s card. At 35 years old with just two consecutive wins, “The Dragon” is going to start finding it more and more difficult to climb the ladder once again after losses.
Davis may be the sizable underdog, but he’s a dangerous opponent. The once highly hyped light heavyweight still has just one loss on his record after dropping a decision to Rashad Evans at UFC on Fox 2. He’s won two fights since then and is looking to make a title run of his own.
A loss for Machida would most likely force him to either give up on fighting for titles or head down to the middleweight division.
Rani Yahya vs. Josh Clopton
Odds: Yahya -1100, Clopton +700
No one is a bigger favorite on Saturday night’s card than Rani Yahya. On a card that features Machida and Aldo, that’s saying a lot.
After finishing out his WEC career with back-to-back losses against Joseph Benavidez and Takeya Mizugaki, the 28-year-old Brazilian has gone 3-1 in the UFC. His lone loss came against Chad Mendes, who is currently ranked as the top featherweight contender in the UFC’s media rankings.
Clopton is just 6-1 in his career with an 0-1 record in the UFC after losing his promotional debut to Steven Siler. With another win, Yahya will have a good case to get a top-10 featherweight in his next bout.
A loss to an unknownn commodity like Clopton would send him right back to the end of the line.
Vinny Magalhaes vs. Anthony Perosh
Odds: Magalhaes -400, Perosh +325
Vinny Magalhaes’ bout with Anthony Perosh is a crucial one for the 29-year-old. He sits at an even 1-1 in his current run with the UFC after scoring a second-round submission over Igor Pokrajac and dropping a decision to Phil Davis in his last bout.
Taking on the 13-7 Perosh, the expectation is that he’ll have a winning record by the end of the night on Saturday.
Magalhaes can put his loss to Davis behind him if he’s able to take care of business against Perosh, but a loss in his home country would make his future with the organization look fairly bleak.
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