Wandy vs Akiyama at 108

[Mr. IWS]

Will be all over Vandy as long as the line isnt crazy high.


http://www.sbnation.com/2009/9/29/1060165/wanderlei-silva-vs-akiyama#

Sep 29, 2009 - It looks like two fairly significant fights are going to be added to UFC 108. First from BloodyElbow.com Editor in Chief Luke Thomas' Twitter:

I'm hearing that Wanderlei Silva is fighting Yoshihiro Akiyama at UFC 108. Stay tuned for confirmation.

Also, from MMAMania:

Joe Lauzon is set to make his long-awaited return to the Octagon much sooner than expected when he collides with Sam Stout in a lightweight showdown planned for UFC 108 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Jan. 2, 2010.

Sources out of Las Vegas tell MMAmania.com that bout agreements have been distributed, but are unsigned at this time.

Silva/Akiyama is the kind of fight that conjures up images of old PRIDE events when Wanderlei was on top of his game and running through the next "Great Japanese Hope" every show. We should learn a lot about where each guy stands in the division following this.

As for the 155 pound fight it will be interesting to see how Lauzon is doing following having very significant knee surgery which he seems to have recovered extremely quickly from. Stout is 1-2 in his last three fights and would have to be the underdog coming in here but his solid striking always presents a threat.

[SPX]

Will be all over Vandy as long as the line isnt crazy high.

Really? That seems kind of like a peculiar decision considering how many other fights you've chosen not to bet on.

What is your reasoning exactly? Wandy is 1-5 in his last 6 and Akiyama is legit. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying Wanderlei will lose this fight. In fact, I personally would probably favor him, but I'm curious about why you feel like he should be so highly favored in this matchup.

[Mr. IWS]

Mostly a gut feeling on my part. But from what I have seen from Japanese fighters, they dont do well in the UFC.

Akiyama hasnt really shown me to be more than a hyped up guy from Japan. He has a good Judo pedigree, but from the fights Ive seen, he doesnt use it as much as a guy like Karo would. In his last 5 fights he greased against Sakuraba, and he beat a guy that was 3-6, and 1-2. In between, he did KO Kang, that was a good win. But he struggled against Alan Belcher in the cage, and you could make the case that Belcher won that fight.

I know Silva lost 5 of 6, but he looked good against Franklin, a very close fight and could have easily won it. If you look at the guys Silva lost to in his last 5, they are always bigger than him except for Hendo. 185 is a perfect class for him IMO.

Akiyama struggled with Belcher's standup, getting dropped a couple times in the fight. Belcher has never been known to have KO power to just end a fight but he was fucking Akiyama up in that fight.

I think Wandy will KO him easy.

[SPX]

Hmm, maybe you're right. You make some legitimate points.

I will probably be on Silva if I can get this one pretty close to even money (or, do I hope, Silva will actually be the underdog?), but I doubt I'd bet on him above -130 or so.

[Mr. IWS]

This sucks, all the fights I want to bet on are months away.

BJ Penn over Sanchez
Wandy over Akiyama
Probaby be on Tito over Coleman
and now
Brock over Nog

[SPX]

This sucks, all the fights I want to bet on are months away.

BJ Penn over Sanchez
Wandy over Akiyama
Probaby be on Tito over Coleman
and now
Brock over Nog

I got 2.5u on Penn @ -190.

I'd like to bet on Tito, but I don't like his line. If it hits -300 or better then I'll probably drop something, but if that's going to happen it will probably happen after UFC 105. That's when the line's really start to move.

[zY|]

Wandy eats Japanese fighters.

[Mr. IWS]

All over Wandy here. ::moneyeye::




http://www.fightersonlymagazine.co.uk/n ... hp?id=3258 (http://www.fightersonlymagazine.co.uk/news/viewarticle.php?id=3258)

Wanderlei Silva has confirmed his next opponent. In a video blog entitled ‘Wanderlei Silva vs. Yoshihiro Akiyama’, the legendary Brazilian confirms the fight for Sydney, Australia on February 21st.

“Finally I have the date for my next fight. I am going to fight on 21st of February in Sydney Australia. I am so happy because this is the first event there and my boss has chosen to put me there, it is a great honour for me because it is the main event,” he says in the video.

“I was the main event in Cologn, Germany, the first event there and now I am going to fight in the first in Australia. I am going to give a great fight for the guys in this new place that have never had UFC before.”

As one of the biggest names in the sport, Silva is undoubtedly going to be a draw for Australian fans. When he headlined UFC 99 in Germany, he got a rapturous reception and that will not have gone unnoticed by the UFC top brass.

The fight will be Silva’s first at 185lbs after dropping down from light-heavyweight via a catchweight 195lbs bout with Rich Franklin at UFC 99.

Akiyama (13-1-0 with 2 NC) is 1-0 in the UFC thanks to a split-decision win over Alan Belcher in his debut at UFC 100.

[Luke]

I dont know much about Akiyama but if you like it that much I'll probably tail you