Travis Lutter Ready to Fight Rich Franklin at UFC 83

[I Heart Gambling Online]

Since winning the fourth season of The Ultimate Fighter in November of 2006, Travis Lutter (9-4) has fought only once inside the octagon, losing to UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva (21-4) in February of 2007.

Now, having fully recovered from the neck injury that kept him from fighting, Lutter returns to the UFC to face former middleweight champ Rich "Ace" Franklin (22-3) at UFC 83: Serra vs. St. Pierre 2, Saturday, April 19 in Montreal, Canada.

Franklin has also lost to Silva, suffering devastating TKO's in 2006 and in 2007, but Lutter isn't letting those fights get to his head.

"Rich is a really, really good fighter," Lutter tells MMAWeekly. "A lot of people I don't think are giving him the respect he deserves because of the Anderson Silva fights. I'm excited to be given the opportunity to fight him"

Currently, Franklin is the -350 favorite in the Bodog Sportsbook, while Lutter is the +250 underdog.

"It''s never a secret what I go out there and do," Lutter says."I go out there and try to take the guy down. I'm going to go out there and I'm going to try to take Rich down, and I'm going to beat him up. That's what I do. If I can't take him down than it's going to be a long day for me. If he can't stop me from taking him down, it's a long day for him."

Bet on Lutter vs. Franklin in the Bodog Sportsbook.