UFC 95 Hardy vs Markham – Its Going to be a Battle
UFC 95 will take place in London at the O2 Arena, a site that is quickly becoming one of the more exciting sports betting venues for the UFC. Each time a UFC event comes to London, one of the hometown guys makes a special appearance.
Usually, the top fighter at each event from England is Michael Bisping, but while Bisping takes a break to film the next “Ultimate Fighter” TV season in the America vs. England matchup, his countryman Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy will take his spot as the crowd’s main rooting interest this time around.
Hardy is listed at -120 in his bout with Rory Markham, a slight favorite to Markham’s -110 odds in their fight at the 170-pound weight class.
Hardy recently scored a quality win over Akihiro Gono at UFC 89 in London on the Bisping. Vs. Leben card, but it was a close split decision. He enters the contest with a career record of 20-6.
Markham meanwhile comes in at 16-4 with his last bout a July head kick KO of Brodie Farber. He’s won 4 of his last 5 fights which is impressive even considering the level of competition, which was nothing to write home about.
Hardy will want to get in close and use his strength and technical striking game to wear down Markham, but that will be tough to do because Markham is a more versatile striker with a varied arsenal of kicks.
This fight could play out in many different ways, but expect it to be an interesting chess match of two different styles as Markham tries to keep Hardy at bay with his kicks. Hardy will have a tough time getting inside of them but once he does, he has the potential to punish Markham.
Hardy has a slight size advantage and having the home crowd behind him in such a huge matchup will be huge, both in terms of getting his second wind and having the confidence and energy needed to go in for the kill against Markham.
This one also could come down to the judges because it is such a potentially close match, and having the hometown crowd behind him in that case certainly can’t hurt Hardy, either. This is a tough fight to call, but Hardy seems like the best bet here to walk away with the win at UFC 95.
The Pick: Hardy by decision
Usually, the top fighter at each event from England is Michael Bisping, but while Bisping takes a break to film the next “Ultimate Fighter” TV season in the America vs. England matchup, his countryman Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy will take his spot as the crowd’s main rooting interest this time around.
Hardy is listed at -120 in his bout with Rory Markham, a slight favorite to Markham’s -110 odds in their fight at the 170-pound weight class.
Hardy recently scored a quality win over Akihiro Gono at UFC 89 in London on the Bisping. Vs. Leben card, but it was a close split decision. He enters the contest with a career record of 20-6.
Markham meanwhile comes in at 16-4 with his last bout a July head kick KO of Brodie Farber. He’s won 4 of his last 5 fights which is impressive even considering the level of competition, which was nothing to write home about.
Hardy will want to get in close and use his strength and technical striking game to wear down Markham, but that will be tough to do because Markham is a more versatile striker with a varied arsenal of kicks.
This fight could play out in many different ways, but expect it to be an interesting chess match of two different styles as Markham tries to keep Hardy at bay with his kicks. Hardy will have a tough time getting inside of them but once he does, he has the potential to punish Markham.
Hardy has a slight size advantage and having the home crowd behind him in such a huge matchup will be huge, both in terms of getting his second wind and having the confidence and energy needed to go in for the kill against Markham.
This one also could come down to the judges because it is such a potentially close match, and having the hometown crowd behind him in that case certainly can’t hurt Hardy, either. This is a tough fight to call, but Hardy seems like the best bet here to walk away with the win at UFC 95.
