The main event of the evening tonight at UFC 108 sees the winning coach from The Ultimate Fighter 10, Rashad Evans, take on Thiago Silva.
Silva goes into the Light Heavyweight bout as the outsider, best priced at time of writing at 7/4 with Boylesports.
Evans, coming off a brutal title defeat at the hands of Lyoto Machida at UFC 98 last May, is a best price 8/15 with bet365 as he looks to bounce back with a dominant performance against 27-year-old Silva.
Brazilian Silva (5-1 UFC) was drafted in to take on Evans as a result of Quinton 'Rampage' Jackson's disappearing act from the UFC, although the battle of the TUF 10 coaches is expected to take place later in 2010.
Silva's last outing was at UFC 102 where he impressively beat Keith Jardine - a friend and training partner of Rashad's - via KO in just 95 seconds. If you fancy the Brazilian's chances of a similar victory tonight, he can be backed at on Betfair for a KO or TKO win, while Silva is 9/2 with Paddy Power for a first round win.
Evans (13-1-1), a winner on Season 2 of The Ultimate Fighter, has improved throughout his UFC tenure. After some uninspiring performances early on in his career, his strong wrestling game have led to him picking up some hard fought decision wins, while his standup game has developed well in recent fights to the point that he is now a solid all-round fighter.
While Silva also has a solid all-round game, he is at his most dangerous when the fight is stood up and he can use his hands. But while Silva’s standup is technically better, Rashad probably possesses slightly more power in his punches and not only gives him the edge when it comes to standup, but makes the 6/4 with Paddy Power on a Evans KO win a favourable bet.
We expect Evans to look to take the fight to ground at some point, mixing it up and ensuring he doesn't get caught by Silva's hands.
Paddy Power make the fight 11/8 to go the distance and as we don't this one ending early, that may also be worth an interest as a saver.
Prediction: Rashad Evans to win
Best bet:
Rashad Evans to win - 8/15 bet365
Other bets:
Evans to win in Round 3 - 7/2 Paddy Power
Saver:
Fight to go the distance - 11/8 Paddy Power