UFC 82 - Full Card and Bodog Odds

The next UFC event will be called UFC 82: Pride of a Champion, and it will be taking place on March 1st at the Nationwide Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The main event of the night will feature MMA veterans Anderson Silva and Dan Henderson competing in a middleweight title unification match. Silva is the reigning UFC middleweight champ, while Henderson holds the PRIDE welterweight title.

Below is the full fight card. I‘ve also included the odds from Bodog.

UFC 82 - FULL CARD

Preliminary Card

Heavyweight bout: Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski (-385) vs. Jake O'Brien (+260)

Welterweight bout: “The Silent Assassin” Luke Cummo (-160) vs. Luigi Fioravanti (+130)

Welterweight bout: Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez (-525) vs. David Bielkheden (+325)

Welterweight bout: Josh “Kos” Koscheck (-500) vs. Dustin Hazelett (+300)

Lightweight bout: Jorge Gurgel (-200) vs. John Halverson (+160)

Main Card

Middleweight unification bout: Anderson “The Spider” Silva (-170) vs. “Hollywood” Dan Henderson (+130)

Heavyweight bout: “The Texas Crazy Horse” Heath Herring (+145) vs. “The French Sensation” Cheick Kongo (-175)

Middleweight bout: Evan Tanner (+170) vs. Yushin “Thunder” Okami (-220)

Middleweight bout: Chris “The Crippler” Leben (-165) vs. “Legionarius” Alessio Sakara (+135)

Welterweight bout: Jon Fitch (-625) vs. Chris Wilson (+425)

ANDERSON SILVA vs. DAN HENDERSON

Here’s a detailed look at the two men competing in the main event.

Anderson Silva

Current UFC middleweight champion. He is also the current Cage Rage middleweight champ, and is the longest-reigning champion in that promotion. Silva has also competed in Shooto, Rumble on the Rock and PRIDE.

Standing 6’2” and weighing 185 pounds, Silva is highly trained in both Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

On a 6-fight winning streak, Silva has a record of 20 wins and 4 losses.

He holds victories over men such as Rich Franklin (twice), Carlos Newton and Jeremy Horn.

His losses have come to Yushin Okami (by DQ), Ryo Chonan (submission), Daiju Takase (submission) and Luiz Azeredo (his 1st pro fight).

Dan Henderson

The current PRIDE welterweight champion, Henderson was also the last PRIDE middleweight champion (before the belt was absorbed into the UFC light-heavyweight title). He is the only fighter to hold two titles in different weight classes at the same time in a major MMA promotion. Founded Team Quest along with Randy Couture and Matt Lindland. He competed in the 1992 and 1996 Summer Olympics in Greco-Roman wrestling.

Standing 6’1” and weighing 185 pounds, Henderson is an Olympic-level wrestler. He is also proficient in boxing, kickboxing, judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

On a one-fight losing streak, Henderson has a record of 22 wins and 6 losses. 10 wins have come by knockout, while one was by submission. The other 11 wins were by decision.

He has wins over Vitor Belfort, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Renato Sobral, Wanderlei Silva, Kazuo Misaki, Renzo Gracie and Murilo Bustamante.

He has lost to Quinton Jackson (his most recent fight), Kazuo Misaki, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Ricardo Arona and Wanderlei Silva.

Henderson fought twice in 2007, knocking out Wanderlei Silva and then losing a 5-round decision to Quentin “Rampage” Jackson.

MAIN EVENT PREDICTION

Silva really seems to be at the top of his game right now, but Henderson is too well-versed in wrestling to get caught like Rich Franklin did. Look for Dan to take this one to the ground early and try to pound his way to a decision victory. But even if it stays standing up, Henderson has the boxing skills to survive (just ask the other Silva named Wanderlei). The lower weight will probably also suit Henderson better, as his last fight was at light-heavyweight. Of course, Silva’s arsenal of strikes and submissions could end the fight at any time.

This will be a close fight, but I would bet on Dan Henderson even if the odds were even. Therefore, I certainly have to take him as a +130 underdog.

For more MMA action, see the following:

Kimbo Slice Fights

Cage Rage 21 Results

UFC 82 - Full Card and Bodog Odds