UFC 72 Betting: Rich Franklin vs. Yushin Okami

Dana White and the rest of the UFC clan take their act across the pond this Saturday as Belfast, Northern Ireland hosts UFC 72: Victory. Headlining the eight fight card is one time Middleweight Champion Rich “Ace” Franklin as he takes on the fast rising Yushin Okami out of Japan. 

Hey folks, Carrie Stroup reporting for Sports911.com and reminding you that Sportsbook.com has all your UFC 72 betting needs.

This will be Franklin’s second trip back to the Octagon since losing his middleweight title back in October.  Franklin will look to keep this fight off the mat as much as possible to best utilize his superior stand up game while neutralizing Okami’s strength: the ground and pound.

Okami should not be taken lightly by the ex-champ; in his previous fight, Okami scored a unanimous decision over Mike Swick who is considered one of the top talents in the middleweight division. Both fighters have plenty to brawl over as the winner of this bout could very well jump to the head of the line for a title shot with Anderson Silva. On paper this definitely looks as if it is Franklin’s fight to lose hence the -205 odds. Keep in mind the absolute onslaught of upsets in the UFC over the last year.

“Favorites and champions have been dropping like flies since last fall.” Sportsbook.com spokesman Dave Staley stated. “If you like the value of underdogs, you have probably made a small fortune in the UFC as of recent. I love Franklin’s well rounded game and his knockout skills but I will definitely have to look at the underdog a little more closely before making my decision.”

With mixed martial arts growing in popularity by the month, don’t miss out on all of the fighting odds for UFC 72 at Sportsbook.com. Keep in mind, Sportsbook.com was the first to offer odds and sponsor UFC and MMA; this fact alone makes Sportsbook.com the obvious choice for all of your MMA wagering. Log on now to check out all the odds for UFC 72: Victory.

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Sportsbook.com odds for upcoming MMA events:

UFC 72:

Rich Franklin -205 vs. Yushin Okami +165



Strikeforce:

Frank Shamrock +105 vs. Phil Baroni -135



Cage Fury Fighting Championships:

Kimbo Slice -175 vs. Ray Mercer +145



Ultimate Fighter 5:

BJ Penn -360 vs. Jens Pulver +280



UFC 73:

Sean Sherk -185 vs. Hermes Franca +155

Open an online UFC betting account here today

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Carrie Stroup, Sports911.com

Originally published June 16, 2007 1:51 am ET