UFC Middleweight bout: Nate Marquardt vs. Dan Miller
Odds: (-325 Marquardt /+250 Miller )
Betting Pick: Marquardt
Bet on this fight at Sportsbook.com
With Yoshihiro Akiyama forced to withdraw from his scheduled bout with top Middleweight contender Nate Marquardt because of the tragedy in Japan, the always-game Dan Miller has stepped up as a late replacement to fight Marquardt. Originally scheduled to face Nick Catone, Miller will now face a much stiffer challenge as he tries to hand Marquardt another loss on short notice. Miller is experienced and versatile, but Marquardt is one of the better fighters in the division and is going to give him a completely different look than Catone would have, so this is a tough fight for Miller and he should be commended for taking such a formidable opponent on so little notice.
Miller has had mixed results in his UFC career, but he is currently riding a 2 fight win streak and his only losses came to top contenders in Chael Sonnen, Michael Bisping, and Demian Maia. Miller has really excellent jiu-jitsu from every position and extremely underrated wrestling to go along with it. What prevents him from being one of the top contenders in the division has always been his standup, which is neither powerful nor technically good. If Miller is going to win a fight, he is going to do it on the ground. Even the most middling strikers are more than a match for him, as Demian Maia proved, and Marquardt is a lot more than a middling striker.
Marquardt has been one of the top contenders at Middleweight for a few years now, but has fallen short in a series of big fights that have kept him from the title. Most recently he was outwrestled, outboxed, and dominated by Yushin Okami in a fight he was favored to win. Still, Marquardt has proven over and over again that he is extremely dangerous both standing and on the ground. His kickboxing is technically solid and he has a lot of punching power, and he has very good submissions, especially from top position and with the guillotine. Marquardt’s biggest problems have come with guys who are able to outwrestle him and force him to work off his back. Whether Miller can implement that gameplan remains to be seen.
I don’t like Miller’s chances here. Taking a big step up in competition like this on such short notice is always dangerous, but the more important fact is that Marquardt is just a better fighter. On the feet, Marquardt will be faster, more accurate, and far more powerful. Miller is a good wrestler, but so is Marquardt, and I don’t think Miller is going to be able to impose his will on Marquardt the way Okami or Sonnen did. I think Marquardt will be able to keep this fight standing, and eventually put Miller away. Marquardt by T/KO.
Prediction: Nate “The Great” Marquardt via second round T/KO.
To add a little more excitement on fight night, you can bet on this fight at Sportsbook.com Odds. Check out my review of Sportsbook here…