UFC 153 Betting Odds

Carrie Stroup here with your UFC 153 betting odds courtesy of Sportsbook.com, which was offering up to $250 in FREE CASH when you join here today. 

Anderson Silva (30-4) vs. Stephan Bonnar (17-7)

Sportsbook.ag Line: Silva -1000, Bonnar +600

Arguably the most dominant MMA fighter in the world will return to the Octagon as Anderson Silva puts his light heavyweight belt on the line in the headline bout on UFC 153’s main card against Stephan Bonnar on Saturday night in Rio.

There is no way to undersell Silva’s dominance—he owns records for the most consecutive UFC wins at 16 and title defenses at 10. He first won the belt way back in 2006 and has never looked back. He received arguably his best challenge from Chael Sonnen in 2010, but he eventually finished that off with a fifth-round submission, and then with a second-round TKO in a rematch on July 7, Silva’s most-recent bout. In between, he made easy work of Vitor Belfort (KO) and Yushin Okami (TKO). Bonnar enters this fight coming off three consecutive wins, two of which were decisions. But none of those fights were against elite contenders, and when Bonnar has faced the best-of-the-best competition, he has struggled. He has lost to Forest Griffin both times he fought him and has also lost to Jon Jones and Rashad Evans. Additionally, Bonnar has not fought since November 2011 prior to this fight, coming out of unofficial retirement just for the chance to battle Silva. Although fighting Silva is the opportunity of a lifetime, it’s difficult to see Bonnar having any chance here.

Silva wins, and he does not mess around. More than half of his career victories are via knockout, while he also owns six submissions to his name. The base of his attacks are his strikes, which is based in his boxing pedigree, but he also incorporates Jiu Jitsu, Judo and Taekwondo. And despite being 37 years old, two years older than Bonnar, Silva has shown no signs of slowing down. Take “The Spider” here.

If "American Psycho" Bonnar has one thing going for him in this fight, it’s his size. At 6-foot-4, 205 pounds, he owns a 20-pound weight advantage and stands two inches taller than Silva. Bonnar’s most famous fight was his first against Griffin in the first season of The Ultimate Fighter, a bout that earned 2005 fight of the year honors. Bonnar lost, but showed he was game for any opponent. Too bad he has yet to register any sort of marquee victory in his career that would make him an encouraging play here at such long odds.

Minotauro Nogueira  (33-7-1) vs. Dave Herman (21-4)

Sportsbook.ag Line: Nogueira -340, Herman +260

Two fighters coming off losses will look to redeem themselves as Minotauro Nogueira and Dave Herman enter the Octagon for a heavyweight bout on UFC 153’s main card Saturday night in Brazil.

Nogueira fell via submission in his last bout to Frank Mir, a fight that only lasted 3:38. That was his second career loss to Mir, with wins against Brendan Schaub and Randy Couture and a loss to Cain Velasquez in between. His first loss to Mir forced him to give up the interim UFC heavyweight belt, a title he won by beating Tim Sylvia in the previous fight. Herman is no slouch though—he began his career with about as much noise as possible, winning 15 consecutive fights with none of them going to the final bell. He is 1-2 since joining UFC with an impressive TKO victory against John-Olav Einemo before knockout losses to top contenders Stefan Struve and Roy Nelson earlier this year. The one against Struve was a particularly good showing, however—he outfought him most of the night and seemingly had it in the bag until the out-of-nowhere devastating punch.

Nogueira is a threat both on his feet and on the ground. At 36, he is past his prime, but still brings quality attacking skills to the Octagon. On his feet, he is an elite boxer while on the ground, few can match his Jiu Jitsu skills. Twenty of his 33 career victories are submissions, evidencing his Jiu Jitsu prowess. He owns three knockouts and 10 decision victories to his credit as well. An element of concern for Nogueira is that he has not fought since December of last year when Mir broke his arm.

Of Herman’s 21 career wins, 15 have been knockouts, five have been submissions and just one has been a decision. All and all, this one appears unlikely to go to the final bell. Of his four career losses, he’s been knocked out three times and lost once via disqualification, but notably never been susceptible to top-notch ground games and submissions. Though Herman has never beaten an opponent as accomplished as Nogueira and his quick loss to Nelson was discouraging, his power makes him a threat to take any fight at any time. 

Glover Teixeira (18-2) vs. Fabio Maldonado (18-5)

Sportsbook.ag Line: Teixeira -525, Maldonado +375

Glover Teixeira and Fabio Maldonado will square off in the only Brazilian-on-Brazilian bout on UFC 153’s main card taking place Saturday night in Rio de Janeiro.

The winner of 16 consecutive fights, Glover Teixeira is one of the biggest up-and-coming names in MMA and possibly the most notable in the light heavyweight class. After making easy work of the lower circuits, he beat Kyle Kingsbury with a first-round submission in his first UFC fight in May. Maldonado is coming off two consecutive losses, one of them in a fight-of-the-night decision defeat to Kingsbury on June 4, 2011. He did have an impressive KO against James McSweeney before the Kingsbury loss, giving him a 1-2 mark in his three UFC bouts. The money on this fight keeps on pouring in on Teixeira, since he opened closer to -325. And even though he is the big name right now, Maldonado was in that same position just two years ago, having won 11 straight fights after his bout with McSweeney. A lot can change in a short period of time, and Maldonado still has heavy hands that can end a fight at any time.

Of Teixeira’s 18 career wins, 11 have been knockouts, five have been submissions and two by decision. Of his past nine fights—all wins—seven of them have ended in the first round, with just one decision in that span. Wrestling forms the base for much of his attack, but it also sets up his striking opportunities and chances to take opponents to the mat and use his Jiu Jitsu in search of a submission. The 32-year-old who fights out of Rio, stands 6-foot-2, one inch taller than his opponent.

Twelve of Maldonado’s 18 career wins have been knockouts, splitting the other six between submissions and decisions. His punching is his most dangerous asset as James McSweeney can attest to, as can a number of other fighters who have fallen from his powerful fists. Previously a boxer, those strikes make up the core of his approach, while he is also known for having a tough chin that lets him stick deep into fights.

- Carrie Stroup, Gambling911.com Senior Reporter