The Las Vegas Suns UFC prediction panel is back to give their thoughts on which fighters will come out on top of the UFC 110 event in Sydney, Australia. Yahoo.com’s Kevin Iole (55-32) has caught fire with his picks, while Las Vegas Sun’s Brett Okamoto (50-37) and ESPN Radio’s Steve Cofield (46-41) try to catch up. Odds courtesy of The Venetian sports book, but subject to change.
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira
- Age: 33
- Height: 6’3''
- Weight: 240
- UFC record 3-1
- MMA record 32-5-1
- Out of: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Betting line: -135
Cain Velasquez
- Age: 27
- Height: 6’1''
- Weight: 240
- UFC record 5-0
- MMA record 7-0
- Out of: San Jose, Calif.
- Betting line: +105
Heavyweight Bout
Main Event
Last fight: Unanimous decision win over Randy Couture at UFC 102.
Punch list: There were many who believed Nogueira was past his prime after looking awful in a second-round TKO loss to Frank Mir in December 2008, but it was later revealed the former Pride and UFC champion had been suffering from a nasty case of staph infection before that fight. Nogueira can certainly hold his own on his feet and can be dangerous from his back.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Velasquez
Cofield: Nogueira
Last fight: Second round win by TKO over Ben Rothwell at UFC 104.
Punch list: Everyone knows what’s coming with Velasquez, it’s just that no one has been able to stop it so far. The former All-American wrestler is relentless in taking opponents down and emptying their gas tanks while they’re down there. After joining the UFC in 2008, his ground and pound has taken him straight to the top of the heavyweight division.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Nogueira
Wanderlei Silva
- Age: 33
- Height: 5’11''
- Weight: 185
- UFC record 2-5
- MMA record 32-10-1
- Out of: Las Vegas
- Betting line: -145
Michael Bisping
- Age: 30
- Height: 6’2''
- Weight: 185
- UFC record 8-2
- MMA record 19-2
- Out of: Manchester, England
- Betting line: +115
Middleweight Bout
Co-Main Event
Last fight: Unanimous decision loss to Rich Franklin at UFC 99.
Punch list: Silva will certainly go down as a legend of the sport, but he still comes in to UFC 110 with something to prove after losing five of his last six fights. Whether he wins or loses, the Las Vegas fighter will always be a fan favorite and his enthusiasm almost always wins over any crowd.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Silva
Cofield: Silva
Last fight: Second round win by TKO over Denis Kang at UFC 105.
Punch list: Bisping has fought, and won, since falling victim to Dan Henderson’s right hand at UFC 100. According to Bisping it hasn’t felt that way however, as most questions are still aimed towards the unfortunate loss. Bisping got to Australia early to prepare for the fight and spent a lot of time training with fellow UFC fighter Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Bisping
Joe Stevenson
- Age: 27
- Height: 5'7’’
- Weight: 155
- UFC record 8-4
- MMA record 36-10
- Out of: Albuquerque, N.M.
- Betting line: -220
George Sotiropoulos
- Age: 32
- Height: 5’10’’
- Weight: 155
- UFC record 4-0
- MMA record 11-2
- Out of: Vancouver, Wash.
- Betting line: +180
Lightweight Bout
Last fight: Second round win by submission over Spencer Fisher at UFC 104.
Punch list: Stevenson was asked by UFC lightweight champion B.J. Penn to help prepare him for top contender Diego Sanchez at UFC 107, but Stevenson said the timing didn’t work out. A small part of it may have also been Stevenson hopes to fight Penn a second time, after losing a bloody battle to him in January 2008.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Stevenson
Cofield: Stevenson
Last fight: Second round win by submission over Jason Dent at UFC 106.
Punch list: Sotiropoulos says he’s undergone one of the best training camps of his career after making the decision to move to Vancouver, Wash. to be closer to his primary trainer and boxing coach, Leonard Gabriel.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Sotiropoulos
Keith Jardine
- Age: 34
- Height: 6’2''
- Weight: 205
- UFC record 6-5
- MMA record 14-7-1
- Out of: Albuquerque, N.M.
- Betting line: +120
Ryan Bader
- Age: 26
- Height: 6’2''
- Weight: 205
- UFC record 3-0
- MMA record 11-0
- Out of: Tempe, Ariz.
- Betting line: -150
Light Heavyweight Bout
Last fight: First round loss by knockout to Thigo Silva at UFC 102.
Punch list: Jardine admitted to not knowing exactly who Bader was when the UFC first proposed the fight. To Jardine, it didn’t matter who he fought, as he was eager to return to the cage after losing in the first 95 seconds of his last fight against Thiago Silva.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Bader
Cofield: Jardine
Last fight: Unanimous decision win over Eric Schafer at UFC 104.
Punch list: Bader’s background is his wrestling, but he showed some great standup in his last fight against Eric Schafer, knocking him down several times over the course of the decision win. Even though he probably holds the advantage in wrestling, Bader might chose to strike with Jardine if things go well early.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Bader
Mirko Filipovic
- Age: 35
- Height: 6’2’’
- Weight: 220
- UFC record 2-3
- MMA record 25-7-2
- Out of: Zagreb, Croatia
- Betting line: -170
Ben Rothwell
- Age: 28
- Height: 6’4’’
- Weight: 265
- UFC record 0-1
- MMA record 30-7
- Out of: Milwaukee, Wis.
- Betting line: +140
Heavyweight Bout
Last fight: Third round loss by submission to Junior Dos Santos at UFC 103.
Punch list: Following what he perceived to be a disappointing performance against Junior Dos Santos in Septbemer 2009, Filipovic chose to leave his usual training grounds in Croatia and train with kickboxers in Holland.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Rothwell
Cofield: Filipovic
Last fight: Second round loss by TKO to Cain Velasquez at UFC 104.
Punch list: After living in Iowa and training with Pat Miletich for the past six years, Rothwell decided to move back to his home state of Wisconsin three months ago and train exclusively with longtime coach and friend Duke Roufus.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Rothwell
Elvis Sinosic
- Age: 39
- Height: 6’3’’
- Weight: 205
- UFC record 1-6
- MMA record 8-11-2
- Out of: Sydney, Australia
- Betting line: +110
Chris Haseman
- Age: 40
- Height: 6’0’’
- Weight: 205
- UFC record 0-1
- MMA record 20-16
- Out of: Stafford, Queensland, Australia
- Betting line: -140
Light Heavyweight Bout
Last fight: First round loss by TKO to Paul Cahoon at Cage Rage 24.
Punch list: Sinosic holds an unimposing 1-6 record in the UFC and hasn’t won a fight since 2006. Despite those unimpressive facts, he’s definitely faced top competition in his career including Tito Ortiz, Forrest Griffin and Michael Bisping.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Haseman
Cofield: Haseman
Last fight:First round win by knockout over Yuji Hisamatsu at FWC 1.
Punch list: Haseman may hold a slight mental advantage over Sinosic due to the fact he’s beat him before. In fact, Haseman handed Sinosic the first professional loss of his career in 1997 when he forced him to submit by driving his chin into Sinosic’s eye.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Haseman
Stephan Bonnar
- Age: 32
- Height: 6’4’’
- Weight: 205
- UFC record 5-5
- MMA record 14-6
- Out of: Las Vegas
- Betting line: +150
Krzysztof Soszynski
- Age: 32
- Height: 6’1’’
- Weight: 205
- UFC record 3-1
- MMA record 19-10-1
- Out of: Temecula, Calif.
- Betting line: -180
Light Heavyweight Bout
Last fight: Unanimous decision loss to Mark Coleman at UFC 100.
Punch list: Bonnar is in jeopardy of losing three consecutive fights for the first time in his career. The other time he was in this position, Bonnar ended up submitting Mike Nickels just two minutes into their bout at UFC 73.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Soszynski
Cofield: Bonnar
Last fight: Unanimous decision loss to Brandon Vera at UFC 102.
Punch list: Soszynski couldn’t get much offense going in his last fight with Brandon Vera, that slowly deteriorated into a stalemate with Vera slightly ahead. He’ll look to become the first fighter to ever stop Bonnar in his UFC career.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Soszynski
Chris Lytle
- Age: 35
- Height: 5’11’’
- Weight: 170
- UFC record 9-9
- MMA record 37-17-4
- Out of: Indianapolis, Ind.
- Betting line: -200
Brian Foster
- Age: 25
- Height: 5’10’’
- Weight: 170
- UFC record 1-1
- MMA record 15-4
- Out of: Granite City, Ill.
- Betting line: +170
Welterweight Bout
Last fight: Unanimous decision win over Kevin Burns at TUF 9 Finale.
Punch list: Lytle went under the knife for the first time of his career in August 2009 to repair his ACL and medial meniscus. UFC 110 will be his first fight back since undergoing the operation.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Lytle
Cofield: Foster
Last fight: Second round by TKO over Brock Larson at UFC 106.
Punch list: Foster replaced the injured Dong Hyun Kim on the UFC 110 card, but fortunately was told very far in advance. Foster, who trains at Matt Hughes’s H.I.T. Squad gym, should have had enough time to prepare after accepting the fight back in December.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Foster
CB Dollaway
- Age: 26
- Height: 6’2’’
- Weight: 185
- UFC record 10-3
- MMA record 3-2
- Out of: Tempe, Ariz.
- Betting line: +150
Goran Reljic
- Age: 25
- Height: 6’3’’
- Weight: 185
- UFC record 1-0
- MMA record 8-0
- Out of: Zadar, Croatia.
- Betting line: -180
Middleweight Bout
Last fight: Unanimous decision win over Jay Silva at UFC Fight Night: Diaz vs. Guillard.
Punch list: Dollaway is a former junior college national champion wrestler and has surrounded himself with similar-style fighters, including Aaron Simpson and Ryan Bader.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Reljic
Cofield: Reljic
Last fight: Second round win by TKO over Wilson Gouveia at UFC 84.
Punch list: Reljic turned a lot of heads when he defeated Wilson Gouveia in the Fight of the Night at UFC 84 in 2008, but hasn’t fought since due to lingering lower back problems. Reljic finally underwent surgery on the area in 2009 and is set to finally make his return at UFC 110.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Dollaway
James Te Huna
- Age: 28
- Height: 6’2’’
- Weight: 205
- UFC record 0-0
- MMA record 13-4
- Out of: Penrith, Australia
- Betting line: -115
Igor Pokrajac
- Age: 31
- Height: 6’0’’
- Weight: 205
- UFC record 0-1
- MMA record 21-6
- Out of: Zagreb, Croatia
- Betting line: -115
Light Heavyweight Bout
Last fight: First win by knockout over Anthony Perosh at CFC 10.
Punch list: Te Huna has actually participated in a tag team mixed martial arts match in Dubai, where he was able to tag a teammate and leave the ring during throughout the fight.
Staff picks: Yahoo.com and ESPN Radio
Iole: Te Huna
Cofield: Te Huna
Last fight: Unanimous decision loss to Vladimir Matyushenko at UFC 103.
Punch list: Pokrajac helped Mirko ‘Cro Crop’ Filipovic prepare for his first professional mixed martial arts fight, which he won over Kazuyuki Fujita by TKO just 39 seconds into the fight.
Staff picks: Las Vegas Sun
Okamoto: Te Huna