The UFC 160 fight card is littered with matchups that will shake up the championship landscape.
From the first title defense in Cain Velasquez’s second title run to a No. 1 contender’s match in the lightweight division between T.J. Grant and Gray Maynard, the results for Saturday’s biggest matchups will affect the immediate title picture in at least two divisions.
As the pay-per-view approaches, so do the buzz and anticipation for the biggest fights on the card. Here’s a look at the full fight card and the latest odds for the biggest fights.
All odds via Bovada.
FX Prelims (8 p.m. EDT)
Mike Pyle (170) vs. Rick Story (169)
Dennis Bermudez (146) vs. Max Holloway (145)
Colton Smith (170) vs. Robert Whittaker (171)
Khabib Nurmagomedov (158.5) vs. Abel Trujillo (155)
Main Card (10 p.m. EDT)
Cain Velasquez (240) vs. Antonio Silva (263)
Junior dos Santos (239) vs. Mark Hunt (264)
Glover Teixeira (205) vs. James Te-Huna (206)
Gray Maynard (156) vs. T.J. Grant (155)
Donald Cerrone (155) vs. K.J. Noons (156)
Odds and Predictions
Cain Velasquez (c) vs. Antonio Silva
Odds: Velasquez -800, Silva +500
When these two first met, Velasquez battered and bloodied “Bigfoot” with a barrage of elbows on the ground until the fight was stopped after three minutes and 36 seconds.
Since then, Velasquez turned in the best performance of his career, dominating former champion Junior dos Santos over the course of five rounds and earning the strap once again.
But Silva has improved too. He put away Travis Browne and Alistair Overeem in devastating fashion and has established himself as a legitimate UFC heavyweight.
Prediction: Velasquez via second-round TKO
Silva has improved, but he’s nowhere near Velasquez’s level. Expect Silva to survive a lopsided first round before the champion puts him away in the second via ground-and-pound.
Junior dos Santos vs. Mark Hunt
Odds: dos Santos -450, Hunt +325
This one’s going to be fun.
Dos Santos and Hunt are two of the best power punchers in the UFC, and they’ll collide on Saturday night. The winner will most likely head for a title fight against the winner of Velasquez vs. Silva.
“Cigano” hasn’t fought since he lost a unanimous decision to Cain Velasquez, but he still maintains the No. 1 contender’s spot in the UFC’s media rankings.
Hunt brings in a four-fight win streak, which includes an impressive knockout victory over Stefan Struve.
Prediction: Dos Santos via unanimous decision
How do two sluggers with the power of dos Santos and Hunt go to decision? When dos Santos is too good of a boxer to get caught and Hunt is too tough to be taken out.
As great as dos Santos is, he wasn’t able to put away the always tough Roy Nelson, and this fight could play out the same way.
T.J. Grant vs. Gray Maynard
Odds: Grant +130, Maynard -160
The winner of this bout is expected to become Benson Henderson’s next challenger for the lightweight title.
Grant is on a roll of late. He has four straight wins including an impressive first-round knockout of Matt Wiman in his last bout. His wins haven’t come against elite competition at 155, but his improvement has been noticed by Dana White and Co.
Maynard will be making his return to the Octagon for the first time in almost a year. After defeating Clay Guida by split decision in June 2012, he’s just one win away from returning to the title scene.
Prediction: Grant via third-round TKO
Maynard is the slight favorite here, but Grant’s momentum is no joke. Grant is a much better striker than Maynard, and he has had success against good grapplers recently. Maynard’s layoff could give Grant the edge he needs to pull off the upset.
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