Jon Olav Einemo vs. Dave Herman Prediction

UFC Heavyweight bout:  Jon Olav Einemo vs. Dave Herman
Odds:  ( +190 Einemo / -250 Herman )
Betting Pick:  Einemo
Bet on this fight at Bodog.com
In the third bout of the evening, Golden Glory’s Jon Olav Einemo returns to the sport after a layoff of nearly five years to face off against Elite XC and Bellator veteran Dave […]

UFC Heavyweight bout:  Jon Olav Einemo vs. Dave Herman

Odds:  ( +190 Einemo / -250 Herman )

Betting Pick:  Einemo

Bet on this fight at Bodog.com

In the third bout of the evening, Golden Glory’s Jon Olav Einemo returns to the sport after a layoff of nearly five years to face off against Elite XC and Bellator veteran Dave “Pee-Wee” Herman. What’s interesting about this fight is that Herman has way more fights under his belt than Einemo does, and all 22 of his professional bouts have come since the last time Einemo fought. Both of these guys are big, strong, and have great striking, so this should be a very exciting matchup.

Jon Olav Einemo is a very compelling figure. At 6′6, he is a very tall and rangy fighter who uses his reach very effectively. He has very good striking with a lot of power, but he is also one of the world’s best Heavyweight grapplers. He is somewhat thin and lanky and isn’t very physically strong, but he has a huge arsenal of offensive tools both standing and on the ground. The big question is how he will handle the long layoff from the sport. After fighting four times between 2000 and 2003, he was away from the sport for almost 3 years, fought two more times, and has not competed since 2006. A layoff like that could be disastrous on his performance, but he has so many skills that it would be extremely dangerous to underestimate him.

Dave “Pee-Wee” Herman is an extremely prolific striker who has fought on smaller shows all over the world, but this is his first appearance in the UFC. His striking technique is excellent, and he has a surplus of knockout power. Unlike Einemo, Herman has been very active over the last five years, fighting all over Japan, in Bellator, and in Elite XC. He does have some ground game, but he will not be able to hang with Einemo’s submission skills if this fight gets to the ground. He is going to need to try to keep this fight standing, use his superior strength and physicality to bully Einemo around, and try to get inside his range and land power punches.

Despite his five year layoff, I think this matchup favors Einemo. His long arms and ability to use his reach to keep Herman at a distance should help him avoid Herman’s power punching, and he should be able to find a way to drag this fight to the ground, where he will enjoy a marked advantage. I just think Einemo is too well-rounded for Herman, and he should be able to survive on the feet long enough to get this fight down to the ground and secure a submission.

Prediction:  Jon Olav Einemo via first round armbar.

To add  a little more excitement on fight night, you can bet on this fight at Bodog.com Odds.   Check out my review of Bodog here…

Demian Maia vs. Mark Munoz Prediction

UFC Middleweight bout:  Demian Maia vs. Mark Munoz
Odds:  ( Even- Maia / -130 Munoz )
Betting Pick:  Munoz
Bet on this Fight at Bodog.com
In the second bout of the evening, Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Demian Maia faces a very stiff challenge in heavy-handed wrestler Mark Munoz. Maia is one of the most superlative grapplers in the sport, and his jiu-jitsu […]

UFC Middleweight bout:  Demian Maia vs. Mark Munoz

Odds:  ( Even- Maia / -130 Munoz )

Betting Pick:  Munoz

Bet on this Fight at Bodog.com

In the second bout of the evening, Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace Demian Maia faces a very stiff challenge in heavy-handed wrestler Mark Munoz. Maia is one of the most superlative grapplers in the sport, and his jiu-jitsu is good enough to compensate for his one-dimensional offense, but Munoz is a tough matchup for him because he has very good striking with a lot of power and is difficult to get to the ground. Stylistically, this is one of the most interesting matchups of the night and it should make for a very interesting fight.

Demian Maia’s jiu-jitsu skills cannot possibly be overstated. From every position on the ground, he is a constant threat to submit anyone in the world. His boxing is improving steadily, and he actually has pretty good punching technique, but he lacks power and his defense on the feet is porous. More troubling is that his wrestling is just not up to snuff, which is a big problem for a guy who depends solely on his ground game to get wins. Against Munoz, that is going to be an even bigger problem than usual, because Munoz is a bigger, stronger guy with extremely good wrestling. Still, even if he has to resort to pulling guard, if Maia can get this fight to the ground he immediately becomes a big favorite.

Mark “The Filipino Wrecking Machine” Munoz is an extremely dangerous fighter with a great offensive skill set. He is a very big and strong guy with a lot of wrestling skill and very solid, heavy-handed boxing. On the feet he is extremely effective, both in terms of being able to dole out punishment with his hands and neutralizing their clinch work. His takedowns are also very effective and he can put a hurting on his opponents from top position, but against Maia trying to take this fight to the ground would be a colossal mistake. Munoz has a distinct advantage on the feet, and if he uses his wrestling defensively to keep Maia from being able to work for submissions and tries to box him around on his feet, he will be in a great position to win this fight.

I think Munoz has to be considered the favorite here. Maia is better at jiu-jitsu than Munoz is at anything, but this is a bad style matchup for him. He is going to have a lot of trouble getting Munoz to the ground, both because Munoz is the vastly superior wrestler and because Maia’s takedown attempts are going to be hampered by Munoz’s bruising boxing. I think Munoz is going to be able to keep Maia at bay and thwart his takedown attempts, and Maia is not going to be able to hold up in the face of Munoz’s boxing. Munoz by T/KO.

Prediction:  Mark Munoz via second round T/KO.

To add  a little more excitement on fight night, you can bet on this fight at Bodog.com Odds.   Check out my review of Bodog here…

Dustin Poirier vs. Jason Young Prediction

UFC Featherweight bout:  Dustin Poirier vs. Jason Young
Odds:  ( Poirier / Young )
Betting Pick:  Poirier
Bet on this fight at Bodog.com
In the opening bout of the evening, Britain’s Jason “Shotgun” Young steps up on late notice to replace the injured Rani Yahya against rising star Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier. Poirier is coming off a huge upset win […]

UFC Featherweight bout:  Dustin Poirier vs. Jason Young

Odds:  ( Poirier / Young )

Betting Pick:  Poirier

Bet on this fight at Bodog.com

In the opening bout of the evening, Britain’s Jason “Shotgun” Young steps up on late notice to replace the injured Rani Yahya against rising star Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier. Poirier is coming off a huge upset win against Josh “The Fluke” Grispi in his UFC debut, and now he is looking to spoil Young’s big show debut and avoid a big upset of his own. Both of these guys have versatile skill sets, but it remains to be seen how Young will handle the bright lights of the UFC, not to mention his short prep time for this fight.

Jason “Shotgun” Young, a veteran of Cage Rage and some other smaller shows, is making his first appearance in the UFC, and he is doing it on short notice against a very skilled opponent who is riding a lot of momentum. Young is fairly versatile, with decent striking and serviceable wrestling, but he isn’t the kind of guy who is going to take control of a fight or really back opponents off with one dominant skill. He does have decent punching power, but his striking isn’t top-level. He is going to have his hands full here dealing with short notice, a technically superior opponent, and his first time fighting on such a huge stage.

Dustin “The Diamond” Poirier had made a rapid rise in his young career. After a rough start to his stint in WEC, dropping a decision loss to Danny Castillo, he put on a great performance stopping Zachary Micklewright on strikes. In his last fight, he pulled off a huge upset by thoroughly beating top contender Josh Grispi in his UFC debut, a fight he was expected to lose. Poirier has a very well-rounded skill set, with good technical striking, good punching power, decent wrestling, and effective submissions. He is also a very good finisher, having only won one fight by decision.

This is going to be a rough matchup for Jason Young. Poirier is just a better, more complete fighter, he has fought better opponents, he didn’t take this fight on short notice, and his strengths play right into Young’s weaknesses. All three of Young’s professional losses are by submission, and Poirier’s submissions are very effective. I don’t think Young is ready for this level of competition, and certainly not without a full camp to prepare, and he is going to pay the price. Poirier by submission.

Prediction:  Dustin Poirier via second round rear naked choke.

To add  a little more excitement on fight night, you can bet on this fight at Bodog.com Odds.   Check out my review of Bodog here…

TUF 13 Finale: Ed Herman vs. Tim Credeur Prediction

UFC Middleweight bout:  Ed Herman vs. Tim Credeur
Odds:  (-135 Herman /-105 Credeur )
Betting Pick:  Credeur
Bet on this fight at Bodog 
In a featured Middleweight bout, tough wrestler Ed “Short Fuse” Herman will square off against another Ultimate Fighter alum in Louisiana’s Tim “Crazy” Credeur. Herman is a tough bruiser with great takedowns and top control, but […]

UFC Middleweight bout:  Ed Herman vs. Tim Credeur

Odds:  (-135 Herman /-105 Credeur )

Betting Pick:  Credeur

Bet on this fight at Bodog 

In a featured Middleweight bout, tough wrestler Ed “Short Fuse” Herman will square off against another Ultimate Fighter alum in Louisiana’s Tim “Crazy” Credeur. Herman is a tough bruiser with great takedowns and top control, but Credeur has serious striking prowess and a top-level submission game, so Herman is going to need a really solid game plan if he wants to avoid falling into Credeur’s best areas. With both of these guys coming off a loss, they have a lot to fight for here in order to maintain their place in the company, since neither guy is a very established star or at the top of the Middleweight division.

Ed Herman, who originally debuted as a member of Team Shamrock on The Ultimate Fighter 3, is a very skilled wrestler with solid top control, punishing ground and pound, underrated submissions from top position, and fairly decent boxing. While he is hardly an overpowering striker and he lacks in technique, he does have heavy hands and he uses his boxing to set up his takedowns fairly well. The big hole in his game is his submission defense, which is notoriously porous. Against a grappler on Credeur’s level, that could be a big problem, so he is going to have to be careful on top if he doesn’t want to get choked out.

Tim Credeur also made his way to UFC through the Ultimate Fighter series, and has carved out a nice niche for himself. A solid technical striker with knockout power, Credeur’s best work still comes on the ground, where he has submissions from every position. Credeur is a consummate finisher, having never won a fight by decision and only having gone the distance once in his professional career. There is no question he can outstrike Herman, the question is how well he will be able to work off his back underneath Herman’s stifling top control.

I think this matchup favors Credeur. On the feet he has a clear advantage in terms of technique, hand speed, and accuracy. It is unlikely he will be able to prevent Herman from taking him down for the entire fight, but he is great off his back and Herman is notorious for getting too aggressive on top and leaving himself open for submissions, especially triangle chokes. Herman is going to have no choice but to take this fight to the ground, since Credeur is a vastly superior striker, but I don’t like his chances of staying on top of Credeur for three rounds without presenting an opening. Credeur by submission.

Prediction:  Tim Credeur via second round armbar.

To add  a little more excitement on fight night, you can bet on this fight at Bodog.com Odds.   Check out my review of Bodog here…

TUF 13 Finale: Josh Grispi vs. George Roop Prediction

UFC Featherweight bout:  George Roop vs. Josh Grispi
Odds:  (+350 Roop /-550 Grispi )
Betting Pick:  Grispi
Bet on this fight at Bodog.com
In the semi-main event, former top contender Josh “The Fluke” Grispi will look to rebound from his upset loss to Dustin Poirier against a fellow WEC alum George Roop. Roop is something of a journeyman, but […]

UFC Featherweight bout:  George Roop vs. Josh Grispi

Odds:  (+350 Roop /-550 Grispi )

Betting Pick:  Grispi

Bet on this fight at Bodog.com

In the semi-main event, former top contender Josh “The Fluke” Grispi will look to rebound from his upset loss to Dustin Poirier against a fellow WEC alum George Roop. Roop is something of a journeyman, but he still has a versatile skill set and some dynamic offense, so if Grispi takes him lightly he might find himself on the wrong end of another upset. Grispi, who looked set for a title short before coming up short against Poirier, can’t afford to drop his first two UFC bouts if he wants to stay relevant as a top contender, has a lot on the line in this fight and is going to need his best performance to show why he belongs at the top of the 145 pound division.

George Roop, a WEC veteran with a variety of skills, has seen his career held back by a host of inconsistent performances. A solid technical boxer with decent wrestling and a fairly effective submission game, Roop’s big problem is that he can’t take over a fight in any one area and he lacks any one dominant skill. He is forced to try and hang in fights where they go because nothing about his offensive skill set enables him to push the pace of a fight or force a fight where he wants it to go.

In many ways, Josh Grispi is exactly the opposite of Roop. Unlike Roop, Grispi can take a fight over both standing and on the ground, and has the ability to finish a fight wherever it plays out. He isn’t the world’s most dominant wrestler, but he has great standup with a lot of power, extremely effective submissions, and a decent ability to get fights to the ground when he needs to. He doesn’t really need dominant wrestling, because he can handle opponents in the striking and, if he gets taken down, can work from any position and is always a threat to submit opponents.

What this fight comes down to is that Grispi is just better than Roop at everything. On the feet he will demolish Roop, Roop doesn’t have the ability to get him to the ground, and even if he does Grispi’s ground game is on a whole different level. I expect this fight to play out on the feet, though, and Grispi will easily box Roop around before finishing him. Grispi by T/KO.

Prediction:  Josh Grispi via third round T/KO.

To add  a little more excitement on fight night, you can bet on this fight at Bodog.com Odds.   Check out my review of Bodog here…

Anthony Pettis is a -165 Favorite Against Clay Guida!

The betting lines for The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale: Guida Vs. Pettis fight have been released and are showing Anthony Pettis as a (-165) favorite with Clay Guida as a (+135) dog. The famous “Showtime.

The betting lines for The Ultimate Fighter 13 Finale: Guida Vs. Pettis fight have been released and are showing Anthony Pettis as a (-165) favorite with Clay Guida as a (+135) dog.

The famous “Showtime Kick” undoubtedly has impressed the line-makers over Guida’s latest 3 submissions win streak including his January 1st fight against Takanori Gomi, who Guida choked out in the second round. Pettis became nationally recognized with a Matrix-like kick that sealed him the WEC Championship belt, coming into the UFC. Pettis is currently on a 4 fight win streak, that Gray Maynard has dismissed by saying that save for Ben Henderson, Pettis has fought “scrubs.” This will be Pettis’ first fight in the UFC.

To bet on Clay Guida vs. Anthony Pettis, you may click on the icons to the online sports books in the Odds Side Bar to the right of our page or head here.