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Gambling Preview: Rashad Evans vs. Phil Davis UFC FOX 2

UFC on FOX 2 Previews – Full Card Picks

Phil Davis will get his chance to prove himself on the big stage when he takes on one of the most dangerous, most athletic fighters in the Light Heavyweight Division.

Date/Time: January 28, 2012, 8pm ET/5pm PT
Location: United Center, Chicago, Illinois
Broadcast: FOX, FUEL TV (Prelims)

Main Event

Rashad Evans (16-1-1): -170
Phil Davis (9-0-0): +140

Davis is a four-time All-American wrestler whose submission game and striking are evolving. But evolving skills won’t be enough against Evens who has the wrestling capabilities to match Davis’s.

In the end, this looks like Rashad’s fight to lose. His athleticism, his incredible striking and his experience on the Big Stage will be the determining factor here. Evans wants Jon Jones – he won’t let Phil Davis stand in his way. Look for Rashad to use his skills to keep this fight standing, to pick Davis apart and to call out Jon Jones at fight’s end!

Pick: Rashad Evans -170

Main Card

Chael Sonnen (26-11-1): -450
Michael Bisping (22-3-0): +350

Sonnen enters this fight as an overwhelming favorite and as one of the best Middleweights on the planet. His competition on Saturday is Michael Bisping, a fighter that possesses some of the best standup in the division and one that feels that he has long been overlooked as a serious title contender.

This fight is a classic clash of styles – Sonnen will look to utilize his elite wrestling to drag this fight to the mat while Bisping has to keep this fight standing where he can employ his technical striking prowess and his top-notch conditioning. But Sonnen is no slouch on his feet and Bisping has some grappling/submission skills of his own.

I am calling upset in this one. Bisping knows that he has a very small window for a title shot – a win against Sonnen would certainly result in a long overdue shot at Anderson Silva. You can bet that Bisping has exclusively worked his takedown defense. Look for him to frustrate Sonnen on his way to a less-than-scintillating decision win. I love the upset – too bad I hate Bisping!

Pick: Michael Bisping +350

Demian Maia (15-3-0): +120
Chris Weidman (7-0-0): -150

Chris Weidman is certainly one of the more exciting Middleweight prospects in the game but he is taking on one of the more accomplished submission artists in the UFC today. Maia has done nothing but improve his standup after being completely exposed against Anderson Silva. Maia`s experience and ever-evolving game will be a good lesson for Weidman – Weidman isn`t quite ready for prime time yet!

Pick: Demian Maia +120

FUEL TV Prelims Card

Nik Lentz (21-4-2): +275
Evan Dunham (12-2-0): -345

Evan Dunham will look to avoid his third loss in four fights after going 11-0 to start his career against the very impressive Nik Lentz who has gone 5-1-1 in his UFC career. Unfortunately for Dunham, his inability to effectively fight off his back has been exposed as of late. Look for Lentz to take Dunham down and exploit this inability to score from the bottom.

Pick: Nik Lentz +275

Shane Roller (10-5-0): -215
Michael Johnson (9-6-0): +175

TUF 12 alumni Michael Johnson will likely be fighting for his UFC life on Saturday when he takes on another fighter in danger of being cut from the organization, Shane Roller. Johnson’s wrestling should serve him well but Roller just may be better in the wrestling department. Add in Roller’s striking and decent submission game and Johnson looks to be outclassed anywhere that this fight happens to go. [ad-3573245]

Pick: Shane Roller -215

Jon Olav Einemo (6-2-0): +135
Mike Russow (14-1-0): -165

Mike Russow rides a 10 fight win streak (3 in the UFC) against another typically tough Heavyweight Jon Olav Einemo. Russow is good in every aspect of MMA surprisingly and his grappling just may be the difference. Both fighters are almost equal in standup as is their ability to absorb punishment but Russow definitely has a huge edge on the ground.

Pick: Mike Russow -165

Cub Swanson (15-5-0): -165
George Roop (12-8-1): +135

Cub Swanson and George Roop will meet in Featherweight action on Saturday – both needing a win desperately to reverse their recent misfortunes and both having lost to some incredible talent as of late. Both fighters are fairly well rounded and either can end the fight anywhere that it happens to go. On the ground, this fight is a virtual lock – take the better standup of George Roop to prevail in this one.

Pick: George Roop +135

Charles Oliveira (14-2-0): -500
Eric Wisely (19-6-0): +350

Charles Oliveira will look to start a new run of success at Featherweight when he takes on a very tough Eric Wisely. Oliveira looked very impressive in his first two fights in the UFC dominating Darren Elkins and Efrain Escudero but consecutive losses to Jim Miller and Donald Cerrone has take a little luster off of his potential. Eric Wisely has never been stopped in his MMA career and looked very good against Pat Healy. He also holds wins over Matt Veach and Hermes Franca in his career.

Oliveira has the grappling skills and the striking capability to return to the win column on Saturday. Wisely will be a good test but his take down defense and striking are not quite up to the standard of a very motivated Charles Oliveira.

Pick: Charles Oliveira -500

Joey Beltran (13-6-0): -215
Lavar Johnson (15-5-0): +175

Slugfest Alert! Joey Beltran and Lavar Johnson will square off in what is sure to be a striking battle of epic proportions – Beltran and Johnson have power to spare and possess terrific chins. Both of these guys will stand and trade and in an exciting fight, I’ll take the slightly better-rounded Beltran to prevail. His technique is slightly better and his motivation after losing three of his last four fights has to be at an all-time high.

Pick: Joey Beltran -215

Dustin Jacoby (6-1-0): +160
Chris Camozzi (15-5-0): -200

Two fighters in desperate need of a victory square off in Middleweight action on Saturday night. While neither has been all that impressive in the MMA careers, Camozzi’s well-rounded style will likely be too much for the much taller Jacoby. Jacoby showed against Clifford Starks that he is completely inept when fighting off his back. Look for Camozzi to take Jacoby down and absolutely control the fight from there.

Pick: Chris Camozzi -200

By DaveB

Dave B has been a Fantasy Football writer for us for 10 years. A couch potato wannabe, Dave’s insights have been read by 10’s of people for years. He hope’s for world peace + global relaxation. Enjoy and remember only smoke things that are completely natural.