UFC 149: July 21, 2012 Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada UFC Welterweight Contender Brian Ebersole (-320) Profile: Brian Ebersole (50-14-1, 1 No-Contest) is a veteran journeyman of the MMA world. Currently, he is riding an 11-fight winning streak following a unanimous decision win against TJ Waldburger at UFC on FX 4, with his last loss coming at the hands of Hector Lombard on September 12, 2008. His entry into the UFC happened suddenly as a last-minute replacement to fight Chris Lytle in Australia. The 31-year-old took advantage of this fortune and ended up defeating Lytle in what would be Fight of the Night at UFC 127. Ebersole followed that up by destroying Dennis Hallman at UFC 133 with a first-round TKO (elbows) and then edged out Claude Patrick in a grapple-heavy split decision at UFC 140. UFC Welterweight Contender James Head (+250) Profile: James Head (8-2) is a young fighter out of Oklahoma who has been impressive in his short career. As a blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Head won the silver medal at the 2010 World Championships. Versed in boxing for years, the 28-year-old has made the transition to training full-time at Lovato’s Mixed Martial Arts and began his UFC career with a third-round submission loss to Nick Ring at UFC 131. That bout against Ring came at middleweight, and Head has since dropped the 15 pounds and moved to welterweight, where he has found some early success. He is coming off a first-round submissin of Papy Abedi at UFC on FUEL TV 2 and will look to make it two straight wins against Ebersole at UFC 149. Opening UFC 149 Odds Analysis: MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas made Ebersole a big -320 favorite (bet $320 to win $100) while Head opened as a +250 underdog (bet $100 to win $250) according to the MMA odds. Ebersole’s record and winning streak are definitely flying under the radar, as you will be hard-pressed to find many fighters with as many as 50 victories. He has also never been knocked out in 66 career bouts, which is another incredible accomplishment. The only problem is that just four of those fights have taken place in the UFC, and Ebersole’s pro MMA career started in 2000. He also fought less than a month ago at UFC on FX 4 and went the distance, so he may not be properly prepared for this bout. Head does not have anywhere near the experience of Ebersole despite being only three years younger, but he is a well-rounded fighter who is constantly looking to improve with every chance he gets.
