UFC 150: August 11, 2012 Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado UFC Lightweight Contender Donald Cerrone (-305) Profile: Donald Cerrone (18-4) is a longtime WEC vet who has come close to earning gold around his waist on multiple occasions only to fall short. In the WEC, “Cowboy” was 0-3 in shots for the lightweight title, but he always defeated everyone else around him. When the UFC absorbed the WEC, Cerrone went right back to work in an extremely active 2011, fighting in the organization five times going 4-1 and with impressive wins over Paul Kelly, Vagner Rocha, Charles Olivera and Dennis Siver. His six-fight winning streak was snapped when he met Nate Diaz in the Octagon at UFC 141, as he lost a unanimous decision in a bout that won Fight of the Night. Deadly on the feet and with an impressive ground game in a relatively short period of time, this Greg Jackson-trained 29-year-old can win anywhere in the cage. UFC Lightweight Contender Melvin Guillard (+255) Profile: After winning five in a row from 2009 to 2011, Melvin Guillard (30-10-2, 1 No-Contest) lost via rear-naked choke to both Joe Lauzon and Jim Miller in the first half of the first round before rebounding with a unanimous decision victory against Fabricio Camoes at UFC 148. “The Young Assassin” has every resource in the MMA world available to him for training, and aside from his questionable ground game, he has the potential to defeat almost any lightweight on any given night. UFC bettors know what the 29-year-old MMA veteran is capable of at this level, but his discipline remains questionable, as he constantly looks to knock out anyone who stands in his way yet has proven he is susceptible to submissions. Opening UFC 150 Odds Analysis: MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas has made Cerrone a big -305 favorite (bet $305 to win $100) against Guillard, who opened as a +255 underdog (bet $100 to win $255) according to the MMA odds. This lightweight matchup at UFC 150 promises to be one of the most exciting bouts on the card, pitting two good friends and former training partners at Jackson’s MMA against each other. While Guillard moved on to join the Blackzilians in Florida, he is still very close to Cerrone and believes the two will have a great opportunity to put on a “Fight of the Night” show for those fans in attendance and watching elsewhere. Cerrone is certainly the more polished fighter, winning seven of his last eight bouts and collecting five bonuses during that stretch for Fight of the Night (three times), Submission of the Night and Knockout of the Night. Guillard has two Knockout of the Night bonuses to his credit over his career, and he definitely has KO power to take advantage of weaker opponents. The problem is, he will be facing an opponent who knows him very well and has never been knocked out.
