MMA: Jackson big favorite for UFC 96
Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson is a solid -365 favorite against Keith Jardine at UFC 96 on Saturday night.
A former light heavyweight champion, Jackson defeated former Pride rival, Wanderlei Silva last December and returns to The Octagon for Saturday’s Main Event.
Jackson who won the light heavyweight belt with a knockout of fan favorite Chuck Liddell in 2007, lost the title to Forrest Griffin last July and his only fight since that loss was the victory over Silva.
The loss to Griffin has bearing on Saturday’s match as Jackson lost due to a series of leg kicks. Jardine, +285 odds for Saturday, is also very strong with leg strikes and actually beat Griffin back in 2006. Jardine has struggled since that fight though and lost to Silva and Houston Alexander in two of his last four fights.
Bettors should also take note that Jackson has a lot more riding on this fight. If he wins, he’ll face current light heavyweight champ, Rashad Evans, who took the title from Griffin in December. Jardine has ruled out facing Evans even if he wins as the two are friends and fight out of the same camp.
The other huge fight on Saturday night is heavyweight Shane Carwin (+140) going in as the underdog against Gabriel Gonzaga (-170).
The American Carwin is a former college wrestling champion who also played football. He is a perfect 10-0 in his MMA career with five coming by knockout and five by submission. Gonzaga is the biggest challenge of his early career, and fans want to see if the hype and promise being thrown Carwin’s way is for real.
Gonzaga (10-3) has beaten Josh Hendricks and Justin McCully since suffering back-to-back losses against Randy Couture and Fabricio Werdum.
The Brazilian is the deserved favorite for this fight and another loss would be a huge blow to his resume.
Other UFC 96 Odds
Pete Sell (-135) vs. Matt Brown (+105)
Matt Hamill (-170) vs. Mark Munoz (+140)
Gray Maynard (-175) vs. Jim Miller (+145)
Tamdan McCrory (-290) vs. Ryan Madigan (+230)
Kendall Grove (-200) vs. Jason Day (+160)
Tim Boetsch (-130) vs. Jason Brilz (Even)
Brandon Vera (-500) vs. Mike Patt (+300)
Aaron Riley (-205) vs. Shane Nelson (+165)
