UFC Betting Odds for Cro Cop vs Rothwell
by Charles Jay
UFC Fans who love wagering on mixed martial arts will enjoy a heavyweight crossroads fight on the undercard of the Nogueira-Velasquez main event at UFC 110, as Mirko Cro Cop, the Croatian legend, takes on Ben Rothwell, the former IFL standout, in a three-round bout that may send the loser out of the organization. UFC 110 is scheduled for Saturday, February 20 at the Acer Arena in Sydney, Australia.
For betting purposes, let's look at the contestants:
MIRKO "CRO COP" FILIPOVIC (25-7-2, 19 KO's), the -150 favorite, has been at this seemingly forever, starting things out as a kick-boxer in 1996, compiling a record of 16 win in 23 bouts, including a first-round KO of Bob Sapp in April 2003. He hooked up with PRIDE in 2001 and fought a lot of good fighters right away.
Within his first ten bouts he had a draw with Wanderlei Silva and wins over Kazushi Sakuraba, Igor Vovchanchyn and Heath Herring. In fighting for the PRIDE heavyweight title, he was submitted with an armbar after being taken down by Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. After a first-round KO loss to Kevin Randleman in the Pride heavyweight Grand Prix in April 2004, he was written off by some, but then came a winning streak, with wins over Josh Barnett, Mark Coleman and Randleman (getting some revenge), which put him in the ring with Fedor Emilianenko.
Mirko did well for himself, but lost the unanimous decision, then blamed his loss on the time difference in Japan. Mirko continued on, chalking up two wins over Josh Barnett, as well as Wanderlei Silva, whom he had fought to a draw earlier. He entered the UFC with a win over Eddie Sanchez, then suffered back-to-back losses to Gabriel Gonzaga and Cheick Kongo. His last bout, which was at UFC 103, resulted in a third-round TKO loss to Junior dos Santos, as he suffered an eye injury. He was nailed with a punch by dos Santos and then complained that he couldn't see. After the fight, he announced that he was making dramatic changes to his training team, and is now trained by former Muay Thai champion Ivan Hippolyte.
ROTHWELL (30-7, 17 KO's), the +120 underdog is one of those guys with a lot of experience at a relatively young age; just enough experience to be a pain in the neck for someone like Mirko Cro Cop. He's been a pro since the age of 19, making his debut with a one-round TKO of Rob Shinkle in January 2001. His first four fights last a total of two minutes and 44 seconds. His unbeaten streak was ended by future UFC heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia.
He went from one organization to another from that point forward, and he finally landed with the team-oriented International Fight League in 2006. He was undefeated with nine straight wins in IFL competition, and defeated and former UFC heavyweight titleholder Ricco Rodriguez, which took place in the IFL Team Championship Finals. After the collapse of the IFL, Rothwell hooked on with Affliction and was KO'd by Andrei Arlovski in the very first show, Affliction: Banned in July of '08. Rothwell made his UFC debut in October, and was stopped in the second round by Cain Velasquez, taking a lot of blows in the process.
:
MIRKO CRO COP -150
BEN ROTHWELL +120
Rothwell is certainly a guy who brings a lot of capability into this matchup. He is one of those fighters who may not have a single overwhelming strength, but is very solid in a number of ways and doesn't have what you might call a glowing weakness. His roster of opponents doesn't quite compare to that of Cro Cop, but by the same token, he does not have as much wear and tear on his body.
As you are aware, Cro Cop is very adept at those high leg kicks. He's had issues with his knee in recent years, however, and has not looked particularly good in his UFC appearances. He essentially quit in his fight against dos Santos, as he brought the referee in to stop it after getting nailed pretty good. His reasons for continuing to fight may be somewhat dubious as well; he has said that he is interested in fulfilling the two remaining fights on his UFC contract. He pulled an old fighters' trick in that he basically blamed his training team for his latest misfortune, which kind of bothers me too.
In terms of class, Rothwell may never get to where Cro Cop once was. However, he may have too much to offer right now. Yes, he was dominated by Velasquez, but maybe Velasquez is the real deal; I guess we'll find out when he fights Minotauro Nogueira. Let's go with Rothwell, who is the +120 underdog.
JAY'S PLAY: ROTHWELL TO WIN (+120) **
(Graded on a scale of 1-4 stars)
