There have been many pay-per-view cards for the UFC over the last year, but few have built as much hype as the UFC 181 show Saturday night from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.
Not only are fans going to witness Johny Hendricks battling Robbie Lawler for the UFC Welterweight Championship, but the lightweight title will also be one the line as Anthony Pettis defends against Gilbert Melendez.
Here is the full UFC 181 PPV card with predictions and odds, and a breakdown of one of the fights not getting enough mainstream attention.
Odds via OddsShark.com.
Underrated Fight to Watch: Travis Browne vs. Brendan Schaub
There are several fights on the card that have the potential to steal the show as Fight of the Year candidates, but the battle between Travis Browne and Brendan Schaub is just going to be a brutal heavyweight bout.
Fans looking for a knockout are most likely to get it in this fight.
Schaub is coming off a tough loss to Andrei Arlovski. The veteran heavyweight had beaten Matt Mitrione and Lavar Johnson in back-to-back fights before the defeat, but he has fallen back down the rankings.
At 31 years old and with three losses in his last five fights, Schaub understands that this could be one of his few remaining chances to make an impact in the division. Proving to UFC President Dana White how important he is in the ring will be a big part of Schaub’s motivation.
Add in some trash talking from Schaub to Browne, via Brett Okamoto of ESPN.com, and fight fans can’t help but get excited for this PPV fight:
Hopefully, he’s 100 percent healthy. Every loss he has, it’s, ‘Well, he did break his hand and foot.’ My left hand was broke when I fought Arlovski, did anyone know about it? Nope. Because I don’t make excuses for that fight. It was pure s—. When he lost to [Antonio Silva], he hurt his knee.
It’s called getting your ass whooped. That’s what it’s called. That kind of s— happens when you get beat up for five rounds. I just hope he’s healthy. I truly believe he’s the most dangerous heavyweight in the world. He’s a handful, and I’m looking forward to this one.
Browne is coming off a heartbreaking decision loss to Fabricio Werdum in a heavyweight title eliminator. Coming into the battle, Browne had three straight wins, all coming via knockout and earning the Knockout of the Night honors.
Both men possess the ability to end this fight early, but Browne has been fighting at the highest level of his career over his last four bouts. He may be coming off a loss, but Browne showed his toughness against Werdum and proved he belongs at the top of the rankings.
On Saturday night, Brown should be able to return to his winning ways by knocking out Schaub with his unique mixture of heavy strikes and powerful kicks.
Predicted Winner: Browne via first-round TKO
*Stats via UFC.com.
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