UFC 107 will take place on December 12 in Memphis, Tennessee. The main event will be lightweight champion BJ Penn (14-5) versus Diego Sanchez (21-2). Penn is coming off a dominant win over Kenny Florian. He looks back to form after losing to welterweight champ Georges St. Pierre last January.

Diego Sanchez earned this title shot against Penn after reeling off four straight wins. Sanchez beat Clay Guida and Joe Stevenson to claim number one contender status.

BJ “The Prodigy” Penn

Penn was motivated against his fight against Kenny Florian but will it be the same Penn against Sanchez? Penn has an advantage in every category against Sanchez. He has a far more superior stand-up game, a more tested ground game and all the confidence in the world.

Penn should force Sanchez into fighting him standing up. Sanchez does not have the strength to force Penn to the ground. Penn will just shrug off take down attempts by Sanchez.

Diego “Nightmare” Sanchez

Sanchez earned the right to receive a beat down from Penn. The key to beating Penn is roughing him up and inflicting damage with ground-and-pound.

The only way I see Penn losing is if he comes in out of shape and unmotivated. It’s that simple. Sanchez isn’t strong enough to physically tire Penn down.

Penn and Sanchez have two common opponents. Penn submitted both Kenny Florian and Joe Stevenson. Sanchez scored a TKO victory over Stevenson and beat Stevenson via decision. Penn was much more dominating in his wins against Florian and Stevenson.

It’s going to take a lot of patience by Sanchez to beat Penn. He must counter effectively to frustrate Penn early on. He must play a smart game and survive Penn’s early onslaught.

Frank Mir (12-4) vs Cheick Kongo (19-5)

Mir will get a shot at redemption after losing the heavyweight title to Brock Lesnar. Lesnar was simply too big and explosive for Mir.

Kongo is coming off a loss against Cain Velasquez. He missed his opportunity to compete for the UFC heavyweight title.

Mir and Kongo have great boxing skills but Mir holds an advantage because of his experience. Mir has to bring the fight to the ground. If Kongo wants to beat Mir he has to overwhelm him with his power. It wouldn’t be surprising if Kongo scored the upset over Mir.

November 10 games preview.

Orlando Magic against the Charlotte Bobcats

Despite losing Vince Carter to injury, the Orlando Magic continue to win. They’re off to a fast start and only have lost once this season. Dwight Howard looks really motivated to get back to the NBA Finals and the new and improved bench has shown great chemistry so far.

The Bobcats are one of the most exciting teams in the NBA this season. Gerald Wallace and D.J. Augustine are leading the Bobcats young core and at times look like a playoff team.

The Bobcats are not ready challenge elite teams in the NBA. The Orlando Magic will win this game with or without Vince Carter.

Denver Nuggets against the Chicago Bulls

After a hot start the Nuggets have lost two straight. Those two straight losses came at the hands of playoff teams in the east. In those losses the Nuggets looked lazy on the defensive end where they allowed the Hawks to score 125 points. Carmelo Anthony has been playing like an MVP as of late.

The Bulls have not lost at home this season. Derrick Rose has yet to gain the same explosiveness he had last year because of a bothersome ankle but the Bulls hold the top spot in the Central division.

This will be a close game but I see the Nuggets snapping their two game losing streak and handing the Bulls their first home loss.

Houston Rockets against the Dallas Mavericks

In the battle of Texas teams, the Rockets will travel to Dallas to challenge Dirk Nowitzi and the Mavs. The Rockets are overachieving this season and feature a winning record. Many thought the Houston would be spending most of their time in the bottom of the cellar this season.

The Mavericks acquired Shawn Marion during the offseason but Marion has not made the fully adjusted to the Mavs’ offense yet. Dallas doesn’t need Marion to score a dozen points; they need him primarily on defense.

The Rockets are overachieving this season but it won’t be enough against the Dallas Mavericks, especially with Dirk tearing up the fourth quarter lately.

Washington Wizards against the Miami Heat

Gilbert Arenas is back to all-star form but it hasn’t exactly helped the Wizards win games this season. Turnovers are plaguing the Wizards and have lost four straight games.

The Miami Heat finally moved Michael Beasley into the starting lineup and so far it’s been disappointing. Miami has beaten the Wizards at Washington earlier this season.

The Wizards will snap their three game losing streak against the Heat.

Although Valuev has held the heavyweight title for over a year,  many boxing pundits still doubt his abilities as a pugilist. Many are attributing Valuev’s 50 wins to his sheer size. That claim is partly true. At 7′0″ weighing more than 300 pounds, the Russian Giant is easily the world’s biggest champion of the modern era. But to say that Valuev is a mere sideshow attraction gives disservice to his talent. His slow and awkward punches are sometimes painful to watch, but those punches have power behind them. The combination of power and length makes it very hard for opponents to fight effectively against Valuev.

Despite his outstanding record, Valuev is very much beatable. He is slow and he is getting older, and these can be taken advantage of by a much quicker fighter like Haye. In his fight against Evander Holyfield last year, Valuev could not tag the  46-year old American, who closed in to punch and moved out to avoid the Russian’s punches. Valuev netted a majority decision win, but anyone who saw the fight can make a case in favor of Holyfield winning the fight. In Valuev’s only loss in the hands of Ruslan Chagaev, the smaller Chagaev used his speed to neutralize Valuev’s long reach. Haye is quicker than Chagaev and the  46-year old Holyfield. He will surely use the same strategy of moving in and out of Valuev’s reach.

David Haye’s most successful campaign had come from the cruiserweight division, were he became the undisputed champion in 2008. He is new in the heavyweight division: he has participated in only two heavyweight bouts in his career. It is natural to have concerns about his campaign in the heavier division. Will his chin hold up against heavier punches? Will he carry his vaunted speed as he moves up in  weight?

As to the speed issue, it is no question that Haye will be much faster than Valuev come fight night. And this will be his main weapon against the behemoth. He will circle around the Russian, all the while jabbing and throwing a power punch or two.

As to his chin, it is safe to assume that Haye will not engage Valuev in a brawl. David will “ride the bicycle” all throughout the match. Haye can survive Valuev’s heavy punches, as long as the Englishman can keep them to a minimum.

What is more of a concern to the Hayemaker is his stamina. He has shown in his loss  against Carl Thompson that pacing can be a problem. In that fight, Haye was leading comfortably in the first five rounds, but he punched himself out, giving Thompson the opportunity for a knockout in the fifth. There lies the rub for Haye : how can he keep his stamina and maintain the fast-paced style against Valuev?

Assuming that Haye has prepared well for the fight, it is hard to see Valuev winning this fight. Haye is an active fighter, who can be the first boxer to knock Valuev out. Even if Haye does not score a knock out, the busier Haye will probably get the judges nod when the match comes to the cards, as long as the fight is judged fairly.

Photo credit: dailymail.co.uk

New Orleans Hornets +11 vs. Boston Celtics

Boston’s Paul Pierce is as good as ever - scoring over his opponents almost as will, Kevin Garnett’s knees don’t seem to affect him, Rajon Rondo has been efficient in distributing the ball, and new acquisition Rasheed Wallace is a nice fit to the Celtics system. In its first three games, it dismantled Cleveland Cavs by 6, Charlotte Bobcats by 33 and Chicago 28. It is thus hard to bet against Boston right now, even if the opponent is a playoff contender like New Orleans. But what if New Orleans an 11-point edge?

New Orleans is no push over. It has one of the best point guards in Chris Paul, who can score as well as find the opening man. He has a nice supporting crew around him, including David West, Emeka Okafor and Peja Stojakovic. And with the exception of Okafor, the key players of New Orleans have played with each other for over 3 years, so they know the system inside and out. They may even pull an upset on this one. Pick: New Orleans Hornets

Other Games:

Chicago Bulls +4.5 vs. Miami Heat. Miami’s Jermaine O’neal has been surprisingly great this season, and it is putting other teams off guard. But Chicago has a great nucleus of young players. Chicago is more confident since last year’s playoffs (when they pushed Boston to the limit), and it will show in the game tomorrow. O’neal will be neutralized by Bulls’ bigs. Pick: Chicago Bulls

Portland Trailblazers vs. Oklahoma Thunder +3. Portland has had a rocky start, while Oklahoma has looked great in their games. But Portland is the more experienced team. Blazer swingmen will not stop Kevin Durant defensively. But offensively,  Blazer stars Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge cannot be stopped either. Pick: Portland Traiclblazers

Memphis Grizzlies +11 vs. Denver Nuggets. Nuggets are playing like a championship team right now, led by the phenomenal Carmelo Anthony.  Memphis is still looking for its identity. The disparity in talent and experience will show in the scorecards, in favor of the Nuggets. Pick: Denver Nuggets

Minnesota Timberwolves +13 vs. Phoenix Suns. Phoenix Suns blew away Golden State Warriors by 23 points. The Warriors are a better team than the Timberwolves. This leads to the conclusion that Phoenix will win against the Wolves by a huge margin as well. But picking the Wolves (with a 13 point advantage) is enticing, considering that the Wolves have better defense than the Warriors. Pick: Minnesota Timberwolves

Atlanta Hawks +6.5 vs. Los Angeles Lakers. Los Angeles was pummeled by Dallas in its last game, while Hawks have been getting better and better. But look for Laker stars Kobe Bryant and Andrew Bynum to score in bunches. Pick: L.A. Lakers

Photo credit: thestartingfive.net

1. Keep in mind that the house/bookie gets 10% of the winnings. This means that a winning bettor who bets $10 will get $19 (which consists of the original bet of $10 plus the $9 of winnings). A losing bettor, on the other hand, loses all $10 of his bet. Why is this important, you ask? It is important to take note of this because you will have to think twice before betting on a game. A bettor winning one out of two games still loses money (Since he shells out $20 for betting on two games, yet he only gets $19 in return).

2. Know who the home teams are and the visiting teams are. Home court advantage is a huge factor in the NBA. A good away team can still be beaten by a mediocre home team. In looking at the odds, you should also factor this in.

3. Always research before betting. For instance, it helps to know which team or player is in a slump and on a streak. This will increase you chances of winning. Another example is to check beforehand the injured players on a particular team team you are eyeing. NBA players are prone to injuries, and since the NBA has a long season (82 games per team), a team will usually sit out a player even if the injury is a minor one, especially if he is an important player. Teams do this in order to keep a player fresh come the last stretch of the regular season, or even the playoffs if the team is in contention. A missing player can be the difference between a win and a loss in spread betting, so knowing who will sit out in a game can help you decide whether to bet on a particular game or not.

4. If in doubt, do not bet. There are some games which are too close to call. So if you are not sure, just pass up on the opportunity. Carefully choose which games to bet on. After all, there can be as many 10 games per day. You do not have to bet on all of them. Remember the first tip: losing a bet is more costly than winning one.

5. Bet on the best point spread. This tip is somewhat ambiguous. To explain, most spreads will be too close to call (as stated in the 4th tip) especially for novice bettors. But there are some cases where the odds  obviously tilt in favor of one team. Bet on that kind of spread immediately, since the bookies normally change the odds in the course of the day once they realize this.

6. If you are new at NBA betting, it is better to keep track of only two or three teams. Know these teams by heart. Keep track of all their players, and even their coaching staff and their system. In this way, you will be more confident whenever you decide to bet for or against those teams.

Photo credit: Mslacat’s Blog

Arsenal (3rd place, 19 points) vs Tottenham Hotspur (4th place, 19 points)

Arsenal couldn’t keep West Ham United at bay and allowed them to end the match in a draw. Van Persie and Gallas struck early for Arsenal but their defense allowed West Ham to score late. West Ham was already down to 10 men and Arsenal couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity.

Tottenham is coming off a loss at the hands of Stoke City. Glenn Whelan struck at the 86th minute to hand Tottenham the loss. Tottenham lost for the third time at home.

This will be a good match-up for both teams but expect Arsenal to win by the slimmest of margins.

Bolton Wanderers (12th place, 11 points) against Chelsea (1st place, 24 points)

Bolton won a tight game against the relentless Everton team 3-2. The late goal by Klasnic in the 85th minutes sealed the deal for Bolton. Bolton early on, had no answer for Everton midfielder Lucas Neill. Neill found his way in seams and set-up both goals for Everton.

Chelsea is atop the Premiere standings and has lost only twice during the course of the season. They completely destroyed the Blackburn Rovers in their last fixture. Drogba scored a goal and Lampard had two in that match. Chelsea had a lot of chances to score in double digits but couldn’t finish their advances towards the goal.

Chelsea will embarrass the Wanderers in their match. Drogba and Lampard will run wild and free to set-up their teammates.

Fulham (13th place, 11 points) against Liverpool (5th place, 18 points)

Fulham was lucky enough to score a draw with Manchester City. Duff shot the equalizer in the 62nd minute and Dempsey had the other equalizer in the 67th minute. Manchester City placed much of the blame on Tevez who missed a shot in the 17th minute and Adebayor.

Liverpool was due for a win and got it against rival Manchester United. They shut out Man United 2-0 with Torres and Ngog scoring. Keep in mind that Torres forced to play in the game despite the injury.

Liverpool will continue its winning ways and will proceed to dominate Fulham.

Manchester United (2nd place, 22 points) against Blackburn Rovers (16th place, 10 points)

Man United will be looking to avenge their loss to Liverpool. What better way to exact revenge than heading into a game with Blackburn. Hopefully, Man United will have Rooney healthy and on the pitch against Blackburn.

Blackburn was destroyed by Chelsea 5-0.

Manchester United will destroy Blackburn.

Betting on NBA games does not merely involve choosing who the winner will be against two teams pitted against each other. If that is the case, then the house or bookie will most likely lose money on a regular basis, as when a championship contender dukes it out with a perennial cellar dweller. For instance, in a match between defending champion L.A. Lakers and Oklahoma Thunders, L.A. will win more often than not. Majority of the bettors know it, so they will bet on L.A. In that scenario, the bookie will shoulder the loss.

That is why bookies level the risk of betting, in the form of a point spread (or simply known as spread). A point spread bet usually looks like this:

L.A. Lakers vs. Oklahoma Thunders +10

It shows the two teams who are set to face each other for a particular day. The first team is usually the visiting or “away” team, while the second team is usually the home team. The plus sign and the corresponding figure beside one team is the point spread.

In point spread betting, the underdog  is  usually given additional points, so that bettors will not always pick the favorite.  The spread is to be added to the final score of the underdog. So if the final score is 105-100 in favor of L.A., 10 points will be added to Oklahoma’s score. While in reality L.A. won by five, in the point spread system, the score considered is 110-105 in favor of Oklahoma. For purposes of the spread, Oklahoma wins, and whoever bets on Oklahoma wins the bet.

If you bet on the Lakers, L.A. must not only win, but it must also win by eleven or more points in order for you to win the bet. Conversely, betting on Oklahoma means that you win if Oklahoma wins, or if it loses by 9 points or less. If L.A.’s lead over Oklahoma is exactly ten (example: final score of 110-100 in favor of L.A. ), your money will be returned, whether you bet on L.A. or Oklahoma. You neither win nor lose the bet.

There are 3 variations of the spread, which are:

• L.A. Lakers vs. Oklahoma Thunders +10
• Dallas Mavericks +3.5 vs. Orlando Magic
• Boston Celtics vs. Cleveland Cavaliers

The first variation is discussed above. If the lead L.A. over Oklahoma  is exactly 10, the bets will be returned.

In the second variation, Orlando must win by four points or more in order for an Orlando bettor to win.  If Orlando wins be three points or less or it loses the game, then whoever bets on Dallas wins the bet. Unlike in the first variation, there is no instance here where the bets will be returned. The bettor will either win or lose.

The third is technically not a point spread, since there is no additional points given to either team. This is a straight up bet. The bettor in this instance picks the team which he thinks will win. Like in the second variation, the bettor will either win or lose. No basketball game ends in a tie, after all.

Photo credit: Le Basketbrawl

Yonnhy Perez, a relative unknown outside of his native Colombia, has risen from the ranks to become Agbeko’s mandatory challenger. With nineteen wins and no losses (14 knockouts), Perez appears to be a young up-and-comer, but he is not. He is already thirty years old. He started late with his professional career, thus the record. And while he earned his chance to become the challenger, his past rivals are not of the same caliber as Agbeko’s. Perez has certainly won against a lot of journey men to achieve his immaculate record. While his fast hands are effective against his past opponents, it is a question mark whether his fists will be as effective when fighting Agbeko.

But if his last fight is any indication, no one can count out Perez against Agbeko. Perez’s match against the formidable Silence Mabuza of  South Africa showed that he may have a fighting chance against King Kong. In the said fight, the Colombian was down in all the judges’ cards at the end of the penultimate round as Perez was often pinned to the ropes and tagged with body punches by “African Spice” Mabuza. Perez went toe to toe against Mabuza to steal the fight via a technical knockout in the twelfth round, making him the mandatory challenger to Agbeko.

However, Agbeko is the more proven fighter as between him and Perez. The champion Agbeko shows that he is more versatile, adjusting his game according to his opponent. While Perez has certainly shown that he has the heart to grab a come-from-behind victory, it may not be enough for the power punching champion, who has shown poise to win in the judges’ scorecards, and even possibly a middle round knockout.

Photo credit: Ghana Voices

UFC 105 will take place on November 14 in Manchester, England. The main event will be Randy Couture (16-10) versus Brandon Vera (11-3) in a Heavyweight match. Couture is coming off a two straight losses. The Natural lost the UFC Heavyweight Championship to Brock Lesnar and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. Vera was once considered a future UFC Champion but his losses to Keith Jardine and Fabricio Werdum has prevented him in doing so.

Randy “The Natural” Couture

Randy Couture continues to fight despite his age but is still looking like a top contender. He should consider dropping down the the 205 lbs. Light Heavyweight division and contend for the title. Couture didn’t look exactly terrible against Nogueira but he also didn’t look impressive. Still, he showed why he is a major player in the UFC.

Couture should bring the fight to the ground against Vera. He should avoid Vera’s superior Muay Thai skills. If Couture allows Vera to establish any kind of rhythm in the stand-up game it’ll be lights out Randy Couture. Couture should utilize his wrestling skills to effectively pin down Vera. Vera does have experience in wrestling but Couture is the more skilled.

Brandon “The Truth” Vera

Vera displayed impressive skills early on his MMA career but his lost to Tim Sylvia signaled that he wasn’t ready to contend for the title. Many considered him the future of the heavyweight division until he lost two more times to Werdum and Jardine. He has a chance to redeem himself against a veteran fighter in Randy Couture.

Vera must effectively avoid take downs and utilize his Muay Thai knees and superior striking ability to down the aging veteran. Although, Vera might not be able to score a KO victory over Couture because The Natural still has a granite chin.

Couture and Vera do have one common opponent. Couture dominated Tim Sylvia while Vera lost via decision to Sylvia. Vera supposed “superior striking” skills was fully nullified against the bigger and stronger Sylvia.

Couture took Sylvia to the ground repeatedly and battered him with old fashioned ground-and-pound. Couture is not the most skillfull striker but when he chooses to put his wrestling skills to use, he is one of the most devastating fighters in the UFC.

In order for Vera to redeem himself he must not only beat Couture but dominate and win impressively. If Couture aims to win another UFC Championship he should show he still has that zing in his jab.

UFC 104 will take place on October 24 in Los Angeles, California. The main event will be Lyoto Machida (15-0) versus Mauricio “Shogun” Rua (18-3) for the UFC Light Heavyweight Championship. Shogun did nothing to deserve a title shot but instead was given the opportunity to fight for the belt since he was the only contender available to fight Machida.

Lyoto Machida

Machida has never lost a round in the UFC. His elusive defensive style and unorthodox karate stance are a handful for opponents. He rarely gets hit but is highly susceptible to being submitted on the ground as shown by Tito Ortiz. Even with a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu background, Ortiz had Machida in a triangle choke, luckily for Machida he was slippery enough to escape.

Early in his fights in the UFC, Machida was deemed to boring to watch but it certainly has changed with his KO victories over Thiago Silva and Rashard Evans. Against Evans, Machida picked his shots and avoided any strike attempts by Evans. Evans didn’t even try to take Machida to the ground which was a mistake. The key to beating Machida is fighting him very physical and imposing your strength against him.

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua

Shogun definitely has the skills to hang in the octagon with Machida but Rua has not been the same fighter since moving to the UFC from PRIDE. The reason why Rua was so effective in PRIDE compared to the UFC is certain rule differences. In PRIDE, Shogun utilized elbows and knees on downed opponents which is a big no-no in the UFC. He also stomped on his opponents in PRIDE. Shogun had to make big adjustments in his transition to the UFC.

Many UFC fans are hoping that the PRIDE version of Shogun returns in this bout against Machida. So far, Shogun has struggled in his matches in the UFC. He lost by rear naked choke hold to former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Forrest Griffin and looked unimpressive in his win over Mark Coleman. Shogun did KO former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Chuck Liddell but who doesn’t KO Liddell nowadays.

If the PRIDE version of Shogun shows up in UFC 104, then we will have an exciting and thrilling match but if UFC Shogun rears its ugly head in UFC 104 expect Machida to explode on Shogun. Shogun has a wide array of offensive weapons but his confidence has been fading bad. The win over Liddell was good for Shogun mentally.

Machida may lose a round to Shogun but it wouldn’t be enough to crown a new UFC Light Heavyweight Champion.