UFC 153 gets underway from the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Saturday evening.The oddsmakers are putting their final touches on the lines as money continues to trickle in.Anderson Silva meets Stephan Bonnar in the evening’s main event in a li…
UFC 153 gets underway from the HSBC Arena in Rio deJaneiro, Brazil on Saturday evening.
The oddsmakers are putting their final touches on the lines as money continues to trickle in.
Anderson Silva meets Stephan Bonnar in the evening’s main event in a light heavyweight special attraction. The co-main event of the evening pits Dave Herman against the returning Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.
The rest of the main card has some exciting matchups as well. Demian Maia squares off against Rick Story, Jon Fitch meets rising star Erick Silva and Glover Teixeira will try to make his claim for a title shot against Fabio Maldonado.
Here is a look at the updated main card odds just hours before the event.
Demian Maia (16-4) and Rick Story (14-5) meet in the opening bout of the UFC 153 pay-per-view telecast.The two talented welterweights meet in a bout where the winner will certainly be talked about in the rankings.The fight will be Maia’s second in the …
Demian Maia (16-4) and Rick Story (14-5) meet in the opening bout of the UFC 153 pay-per-view telecast.
The two talented welterweights meet in a bout where the winner will certainly be talked about in the rankings.
The fight will be Maia’s second in the welterweight division. His first was a quick affair with Dong Hyun Kim that resulted in a TKO victory due to an injury.
Story returns to the Octagon after defeating Brock Jardine via decision at UFC on FX: Maynard vs. Guida.
The fight offers an intriguing stylistic match-up: Story’s power and wrestling versus Maia’s technique and jiu-jitsu.
This is how the two welterweights stack up against each other:
Anderson Silva and Stephan Bonnar will face one another in the main event of UFC 153. The replacement main event takes over for the UFC featherweight championship match originally planned.Fans are now treated to watching Silva one more time i…
Anderson Silva and Stephan Bonnar will face one another in the main event of UFC 153. The replacement main event takes over for the UFC featherweight championship match originally planned.
Fans are now treated to watching Silva one more time in 2012, as Bonnar tries to pull off one of the biggest upsets in MMA history and cement his UFC legacy.
Whatever happens, this matchup has all the makings of an exciting fight, and the one sure winner in this instance is the fans.
This is not a fight to determine a top contender and there is no title on the line. This is simply a good fight.
Here are five questions we are asking about Silva leading in to UFC 153.
Demian Maia made his welterweight debut at UFC 148 with a first-round TKO victory over Dong Hyun Kim. The stoppage marked his first non-decision win since a triangle choke against Chael Sonnen in 2009. He will get his second in a row over Rick Story at…
Demian Maia made his welterweight debut at UFC 148 with a first-round TKO victory over Dong Hyun Kim. The stoppage marked his first non-decision win since a triangle choke against ChaelSonnen in 2009.
He will get his second in a row over Rick Story at UFC 153.
His victory over Kim was a result of an injury, but an injury stemming from Maia’s takedown. Do not expect a clouded stoppage against Story.
Story burst on to the welterweight scene with back-to-back victories over Johny Hendricks and ThiagoAlves. He then jumped in on short notice to fight Nate Marquardt at UFC Live in June 2011.
Marquardt failed to receive medical clearance and then Charlie Brenneman stepped in. His win streak stopped that night. Story then tried to rebound against another top contender in Martin Kampmann, but was defeated at UFC 139.
The “Horror” Story got back on track with a decision victory over Brock Jardine in June, but Maia will show that he is simply a solid gatekeeper for the UFC’s 170-pound division.
Story has heavy hands and good wrestling, but that is nothing new for Maia. At middleweight he has fought against the likes of Ed Herman, Nate Quarry, ChaelSonnen, Nate Marquardt, Dan Miller, Mark Munoz, and Chris Weidman. In one facet or the other, and in some cases both, Story does not equal those men.
Maia will be even more acclimated to the new division. This will help him be prepared for a three-round battle against Story.
Story will want to keep the fight on the feet, but if there has been one area where Maia has improved his technique it is his striking. He continues to become a more technical striker in each of his bouts, and does not rely on power like Story.
While Story is very much a live underdog in this matchup, he does not have many ways to finish the fight. At some point in this fight, the two men will end up on the mat. That is where Maia will return to his finishing ways and stop Story.
Maia began his UFC career with five consecutive submissions, with four of those being named submission of the night. Nine fights have now passed with zero submission wins—that changes on Saturday night.
The Brazilian will be able to withstand the striking exchanges and clinch with Story. From that position, Maia is able to take down most in the world. His wrestling may not be the best, but his takedowns from the clinch are excellent.
Once he is on top, you can start your stopwatch for the finish.
Maia will grab his second win at welterweight and assert himself as a true factor in the division. Story is an excellent gatekeeper for the division, and Maia will walk through to the other side.
Stephan Bonnar has the chance of a lifetime at UFC 153. A massive underdog against opponent and best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet Anderson Silva, Bonnar has the opportunity to stun the world.After almost a year away from the cage, Bonnar …
Stephan Bonnar has the chance of a lifetime at UFC 153. A massive underdog against opponent and best pound-for-pound fighter on the planet Anderson Silva, Bonnar has the opportunity to stun the world.
After almost a year away from the cage, Bonnar returns to try to pick up his fourth straight victory. However, very few are giving the former The Ultimate Fighter runner-up much of a chance.
UFC 153 will be held at the HSBC Arena in Silva’s backyard of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Bonnar will enter hostile territory to try to pull off the upset. Just like his TUF counterpart, Forrest Griffin, he will have a quick escape planned, as his wife is set to give birth at any time.
Here are three big keys for a Bonnar victory before his kid arrives on the scene.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira returns to the cage for the first time since Frank Mir broke his arm with a Kimura at UFC 140, and he will be taking on Dave Herman in the co-main event of the evening.Herman will try to end his two-fight slide with a victory o…
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira returns to the cage for the first time since Frank Mir broke his arm with a Kimura at UFC 140, and he will be taking on Dave Herman in the co-main event of the evening.
Herman will try to end his two-fight slide with a victory over the former PRIDE and Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion.
The last time Nogueira competed at the HSBC Arena, he got his first career knockout against Brendan Schaub. Can he replicate his success against Herman, or will “Pee Wee” take out the legend in front of his home crowd?
Here is how the two heavyweights stack up against one another for this Saturday’s contest.
