Let’s set the scene. It’s 2006, and it’s the finale of The Ultimate Fighter season four. In the main event, Matt Serra defeated Chris Lytle by unanimous decision.
With the win, Serra earned a shot against welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre in 2007 at UFC 69.
St-Pierre was a -900 favorite and Serra was a +600 underdog. In the biggest upset in MMA history, Serra knocked St-Pierre out in the first round and won the welterweight title.
Now, five years later, Vitor Belfort is set to fight Jon Jones for his light heavyweight title on Saturday. You can get Belfort at a +625 underdog, and you can get Jones at as much of a favorite as -925.
Could Vitor Belfort do the impossible? Could he defeat Jon Jones for the light heavyweight title? In MMA, anything is possible.
Vitor could get another fluke win, like when he beat Randy Couture for the title at UFC 46. If that were to happen then, yeah, he’d pull off the biggest upset since GSP-Serra.
But one thing that fans aren’t considering is the legitimate threat that Vitor poses to Jones.
Have you seen what Jones does when he gets hit? He seems to run backwards and try to get away from follow-up strikes.
He was able to successfully do that against both Lyoto Machida and Rashad Evans.
Have you seen what Belfort did to Wanderlei Silva years ago?
He rocked him, and quite literally chased him across the Octagon with strikes.
If Vitor is able to land a solid shot on Jones, dozens more will follow it. All it takes is one to start it off.
Tim McTiernan is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. For the latest news on everything MMA, follow him on Twitter @TimMcTiernan.
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