UFC Quick Pick – Anderson Silva (-600) vs. Patrick Cote (+350)
Anderson Silva defends his UFC middleweight title against Patrick Cote at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, IL (outside Chicago) this Saturday. Silva, who beat Rich Franklin in one round to win the championship, later beat Dan Henderson in what was probably his landmark performance as a member of the UFC.
He is known as a versatile fighter, perhaps one of the three or four most versatile in the game. He can stand up and strike his opponent with authority, while at the same time possessing a rough-and-tumble ground game that can make an opponent squirm. While no one is unbeatable, Silva may be close to it, and the UFC delights in touting him as the top pound-for-pound fighter in the world.
A fighter of his level should have no problem with the likes of Patrick Cote, the Canadian who lost his first four fights competing in the UFC after some success in other organizations. His best win as a pro was probably against Kendall Grove. He has also taken Tito Ortiz the entire distance, so he can hang tough with some world-class opposition. At present, Cote is on a five-fight winning streak, which apparently made him a good choice, from a cosmetic standpoint, to take on the titleholder. If you ask most UFC betting observers, they will probably tell you that Cote is better in the area of wrestling than anything else. But he has shown a preference for striking, When he is in with a top-of-the-line fighter like Silva, he is going to come out second best, and particularly when he is practicing something that may not be his forte.
You have to take a look at the level of both experience and competition, and this is a world-class champion going in with a fringe contender. You hate to use the term “walkover” when describing a matchup, especially when it headlines a pay-per-view event, but Silva is going to have all the advantages here. We’re looking for this to end within the first round.
