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[Sakara=Excitement]

UFC 162 odds: Anderson Silva opens as -215 favorite against Chris Weidman (+165) in Las Vegas - MMAmania.com

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva (33-4) will defend his 185-pound title against Chris Weidman (9-0) at the promotion's annual Fourth of July weekend extravaganza from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

And he'll do it as the -215 favorite, according to our fiscal friends at MMAOddsBreakers.com.

That leaves the "All American" as the +165 underdog, which could bring boku bucks for Weidman fans willing to bet the undefeated wrestler is the one to end the Brazilian's reign of terror, which started with a crushing defeat of Chris Leben nearly seven years ago.

He hasn't lost since.

By the time he steps foot back inside the Octagon, it will be a full year since "The Spider" defended his title, a second-round technical knockout win over Chael Sonnen last July. Silva took time out of his vacation to beat the brakes off Stephan Bonnar at UFC 153 and will now focus his fury on "the kid."

Kid or not, he certainly fights like a man.

Just ask Mark Munoz, who was obliterated by Weidman last July on FUEL TV. While he was riding high after stopping "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" in San Jose, he may have lost some of that momentum when he took a year off to have a bum shoulder surgically repaired.

We'll see if the time away matters on July 6 in "Sin City."

The big question heading into this fight is how Silva will be able to deal with Weidman's wrestling. The Brazilian was put on his back by Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen with relative ease, but still found a way to come out on top. Will he be able to triumph once again?

[TreK]

Anderson Silva is a non-human cyborg, I swear!

But, looking at Chris Weidman's skill set, he might just have the stuff to give Anderson fits! Great wrestling, strong top game and a pretty good chin, perhaps allowing him to take a punch and get in on Anderson for the takedown.

I believe that Weidman's fight with Maia was very short notice and Chris put in a performance that showed his heart and will to win... and Maia is no joke of course. Chris' wrestling speaks for itself but, that KO of Munoz was a pretty sweet elbow thrown expertly. I'm not sure Chris' striking gets due credit.

Then there's the X factor... Chris is still improving quite a bit as a fighter... whereas Anderson will be the same machine that he was in his last fight. Perhaps that could be the difference... Anderson might not know what's coming... perhaps Chris will show up with a drastically improved striking or clinch game?

[K1NG P3NN]

I think Anderson beats Weidman up. Not sure why really, but it's just my gut feeling.

[Fe1]

Anderson a favourite over someone? Shocking.

[Cat--Smasher]

Those odds are a lot closer than I thought they would be.

[Cat--Smasher]

Chris Weidman on ending Anderson Silva's reign: 'I believe this is meant to be' - MMA Fighting

"Without a doubt, it feels like fate," Weidman told MMA Fighting. "When I got injured, I was down, but I did feel like something better was going to happen out of this. I thought I was going to get an even bigger fight than the Boetsch fight. I didn't have my hopes up too much that it would be Anderson, but I knew there was a chance it could be. Everybody who could have had a shot lost. Things went my way. I'm grateful and humble for the opportunity."

In order to take the fight, Weidman needed one final thing to go his way.

On Tuesday, Weidman went to see his doctor for what he hoped was the last time. After having his shoulder checked out, he was pronounced healed; 100 percent healthy.

Unbeknownst to him, later that night, Silva, who was in New York for the FOX Sports 1 announcement, sat down with UFC chairman and CEO Lorenzo Fertitta to talk about the future. Fertitta pitched Silva on the idea of headlining the main event during Las Vegas' "International Fight Week," a concept that was created in 2012 to bring added traffic to the city and increased attention on the show. By the end of their conversation, Silva had agreed to fight Weidman.

The next morning, Fertitta and Weidman traveled separately to Albany, where they would lobby state legislators to pass a bill that would regulate MMA. As it turned out, Weidman was late, and joined a radio interview with Fertitta in progress. When it was over, the two walked into a hallway where Fertitta told him the news.

"I said, 'Really?'" Weidman said. "I said, 'I love you, man. That's freaking awesome.' I wasn’t getting my hopes up for the fight even though Dana [White] said publicly that it will happen. I just didn't want to get my hopes up for no reason. I didn't want to believe it until it was announced."

Feritta's disclosure washed over him throughout the day. Weidman said during his meetings with legislators, he caught himself day-dreaming about the Silva fight several times. After all of the events of the preceding months, he couldn't be blamed.

As he has in the past, the unbeaten 28-year-old put out a bold prediction. He doesn't just envision a win over the man most consider the greatest mixed martial artist of all-time. No, that's not quite enough.

"I'm very motivated to make the most of this opportunity and not just be another title contender," he said. "Every other time I've had a full training camp, I've had a finish. And I plan on continuing that. I'm going against the greatest of all-time, but that's not going to change my confidence of what I'm going to do in there. I'm very excited."

With four months to go until fight night, Weidman plans to slowly work his way into camp as a precaution against re-injuring his shoulder. Meanwhile, repairs on his house are nearly complete, as well. He hopes to have renovations finalized within 2-3 weeks.

It's been quite a whirlwind, everything falling apart and then coming back together. Some might even call it fate. But for that, Weidman needs his perfect ending. And that will require more than just the forces of nature.

"I believe this is meant to be," he said. "It's not meant to be that I get there to lose. I'd be disgusted with myself if that happens. I refuse to let myself be beat. After all this, I believe I'm meant to win."

[rivethead]

Wow...Weidman is getting a lot of credit in Vegas. I didn't expect the odds to be that close.

The big question heading into this fight is how Silva will be able to deal with Weidman's wrestling. The Brazilian was put on his back by Dan Henderson and Chael Sonnen with relative ease, but still found a way to come out on top. Will he be able to triumph once again?

No, the big question is if can Weidman deal with Anderson's striking.

But it's at least nice to see puff pieces like this making the effort to hype the fight.

rh

[Masscore]

Originally Posted by rivethead

Wow...Weidman is getting a lot of credit in Vegas. I didn't expect the odds to be that close.


No, the big question is if can Weidman deal with Anderson's striking.

But it's at least nice to see puff pieces like this making the effort to hype the fight.

rh

I think it is because they know that if Weidman gets on top of Silva he can finish the fight unlike Sonnen. But unlike Sonnen he lacks the size and takedowns to put Silva down whenever he wants.

I am with you I think this fight comes down how much damage Weidman has to take before taking Silva down. If he can force his will on Silva we will have a new MW Champion before the end of the 2nd round. If he can not look for another dominating Silva finish.

[rivethead]

that's interesting that you've mentioned size twice...I've thought Weidman has a bigger frame than sonnen. chael carries a little more weight, but I wouldn't think he carries much.

I do agree his TD's aren't as polished, but his standup is lightyears ahead of chael, and when he hits, it actually has an impact.

But yeah, I don't see this going to decision. If it goes to the mat, Chris has a great chance of actually finish the fight--I'd say his chances of winning go up to 4 or 5 out of 10 if he can manage to get it to the ground and create space without getting tied up to employ gnp. But if he can't get it to the ground, and/or Silva manages to tie him up effectively and force the fight back standing...his chances go down to 1 or 2 out of 10, in my book.

rh

[MIZjitsZOU]

The odds are pretty close. To bet on Weidman I would want to see the odds favor him a little more. Long layoff as well could hamper him. Might be good odds to belt on Silva. Arguably greatest of all time and hasn't appeared to have any decline in his older age.