UFC 103 Main Event Pick - Rich Franklin vs. Vitor Belfort
by Ian James
Rich Franklin (-140) vs. Vitor Belfort (+110) Saturday, September 19 th – 10 PM ET
The main event of the evening doesn’t have a belt on the line and it won’t have much of an impact on either fighter’s standings in their division. What it does have is entertainment value and the possibility to be the fight of the night.
Rich Franklin and Vitor Belfort are meeting in the middle, 195 pounds, as Franklin usually patrols the 205 pound division while Belfort naturally weighs in at 185.
Vitor Belfort seems to have the most to loose as he returns to the octagon after dropping his last two UFC fights to Randy Couture and Tito Ortiz. That should serve as motivation for Belfort as he is rumored to be in line to fight the middleweight champion, Anderson Silva. When you have that kind of motivation coming into a fight, you know Vitor is going to come in looking to send a message.
Franklin doesn’t have as many variables to think about as he is coming off an impressive unanimous decision over Wanderlei Silva back in June. It appears that he is biding his time in the hopes that if he keeps providing quality fights, he will find himself with a light heavyweight title shot.
Fight analysis
Belfort’s return to the UFC is the major story in this one, as this will likely be his last chance to do some real damage. Long time MMA fans will remember that he was truly an up and coming superstar. So much so that he was dubbed "The Phenom" and was considered the prototype for the next generation of mixed martial artists.
Looking at the title holders in the various divisions, except for Brock Lesnar, they all have a strong Brazilian jiu-jitsu game combined with some serious boxing skills. Belfort fit that mold and coming up, his mix of power, skill and tenacity with unprecedented speed led many people to believe he was the next big thing.
It didn’t go as planned for Belfort and he’s had some bad bounces along the way but it appears he’s getting it together. His last victory came in January when he viciously knocked out Matt Lindland, who is no slouch, in seven seconds flat.
If Belfort is finally living up to his potential, Rich Franklin may be the next victim, twitching on the canvas.
Franklin isn’t a push over and he loves to throw the leather, but he doesn’t have the same KO power as Vitor. He’s no doubt watched the Lindland fight and will probably try to feed Belfort a steady diet of leg kicks and jabs to keep him away. The problem is that Vitor is the kind of tenacious fighter that will eat a few of those shots to get inside so he can unload bombs.
With so much to prove, Belfort is going to want to end this fight early and by knockout. Despite out boxing Wanderlei, Franklin historically doesn't deal well with persistent strikers that can land with accuracy. It’s going to be a matter of time before Vitor lands a big shot that either KO’s Franklin or stuns him enough for Belfort to finish it on the ground.
