Live on Saturday May 2, 2009 at The MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.  Pound for Pound Filipino sensation Manny”Pacman” Pacquiao (48-3-2) will square off with England’s Ricky “Hitman” Hatton (45-1) in the battle of East and West for Hatton’s Ring Magazine junior welterweight title.  Pacman is coming off a very impressive win over the bigger De La Hoya back in December of 2008. Manny showed how speed can determination can do spectacular things.

Hatton is also coming off a big win over Paulie Malignaggi in November of 2008. Like Manny, Malignaggi is known for his hand speed, but Hatton proved that he could overcome that and his hand speed looked very impressive. Come fight night we are sure to see a very exciting fight.

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Manny Pacquiao vs. Ricky Hatton

Sportsbook.com Odds (US betters accepted)

• Pacquiao (-290)
• Hatton    (+230)
• Over 9.5 rounds    (-105)
• Under 9.5 rounds  (-103)

Betus.com Odds (US betters accepted)

• Pacquiao  (-240)
• Hatton     (+190)
• Over 9.5 rounds   (-155)
• Under 9.5 rounds (+125)

Check out the Pacquiao vs. Hatton Weigh In Video

Here is the fight between Anderson Silva vs. Nate Marquardt at UFC 73. This was Silva's first title defense after taking the belt from Rich Franklin. Silva showed the world why is the pound for pound king once again. Silva via first round TKO.

Here is the fight between Anderson Silva vs. James Irvin. The Spider moved up to the LHW division to fight Irvin. Irvin learned the hard way that the Spider is a beast at any weight class. Silva caught the leg of Irvin and threw a vicious right hand sending him to the floor and that was all it took. The Spider via first round KO.

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Here is the fight between Mark Coleman vs. Mauricio Rua at UFC 93. This should have been an easy fight for Shogun fighting an old and battered Coleman. But that wasnt the case, Coleman actually put up a good fight and showed his heart. An extremely exhausted Shogun finally finished Coleman via third round TKO.

Here is the fight between Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva at UFC 79. This was a war that went back and forth, but The Iceman got the best of the exchanges winning a unanimous decision.

 I have provided  below everything you will need to help with your betting picks for UFC 97.

Fight Odds & Betting Lines

• UFC 97 Betting Odds
• MMA Betting Sites

UFC 97 Fight Card

• Full UFC 97 Fight Card

Pat’s Expert Predictions

• Quick UFC 97 Predictions Page

Detailed Fight Predictions

• Silva vs. Leites
• Liddell vs. Rua
• Soszynski vs. Stann
• Kongo vs. Hardonk
• Cantwell vs. Cane

UFC 97 Fighter Profiles

• Anderson Silva
• Thales Leites
• Chuck Liddell
• Mauricio Rua
• Krzysztof Soszynski
• Brian Stann
• Cheick Kongo
• Antoni Hardonk
• Steve Cantwell
• Luiz Cane

UFC 97 Video Promo

• UFC 97 Trailer
• UFC 97 Extended Trailer
• Anderson Silva vs. Nate Marquardt Video
• Anderson Silva vs. James Irvin Video
• Mauricio Rua vs. Mark Coleman Video
• Chuck Liddell vs. Wanderlei Silva Video
• UFC 97 Weigh-In

For the MAIN EVENT we have our Anderson Silva vs. Thales Leites prediction page

Chuck Liddell vs. mauricio Rua

• For a detailed prediction of this fight visit our Liddell vs. Rua prediction page

Pats Prediction

• The Iceman will get back to his winning ways and Shogun will eat a trademark Liddell haymaker for a second round KO.

 - Liddell vs Rua Odds

Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Brian Stann

• For a detailed prediction of this fight visit our Soszynski vs. Stann prediction page

Pats Prediction

• Brian Stann is making his UFC debut against The Polish Experiment. Stann a former WEC light heavyweight champ will have what I believe his toughest fight to date. Stann will definitely look to keep this fight standing and Soszynski will look for his chance to take Stann down.

I see Soszynski clinching up, taking away Stann’s power and securing a first round guillotine choke.   - Soszynski vs. Stann Odds

Cheick Kongo vs. Antoni Hardonk

• For a detailed prediction of this fight visit our Kongo vs. Hardonk prediction page

Pats Prediction

• This will be a very exciting fight between Kongo and Hardonk. Both fighters are very comfortable on their feet, where this fight will most likely stay.  Kongo’s experience and experience against top level competition will be the difference here.

I see Kongo’s conditioning paying off with a third round TKO over Hardonk.  - Kongo vs. Hardonk Odds

Steve Cantwell vs. Luiz Cane

• For a detailed prediction of this fight visit our Cantwell vs. Cane prediction page

Pats Prediction

• Steve Cantwell is the former WEC LHW champ and looked very impressive in his UFC debut against Razak al-Hassan, securring a first round armbar. His opponent is the hard hitting Brazilian Luiz Cane. Cane is on a two fight win streak both via TKO against Sokoudjou and Jason Lambert. His only loss in the UFC was against James Irvin due to an illegal knee to the Head.

I see Cane closing the distance and working the clinch to a second round TKO over Cantwell. - Cantwell vs. cane Odds

Check out our UFC 97 Information page for all your betting needs.

Preliminary Card Quick Picks

Sportsbook.com Odds

• Mike Ciesnolevicz over Eliot Marshall via 3rd round submission
• Denis Kang over Xavier Foupa-Pokum via 2nd round rear naked choke
• Jason MacDonald over Nate Quarry via 2nd round rear naked choke
• Ed Herman over David Loiseau via unanimous decision
• David Bielkheden over Mark Bocek via 3rd round submission
• Ryo Chonan over TJ Grant via unanimous decision
• Sam Stout over Matt Wiman via 2nd round TKO

UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva (23-4) vs. Thales Leites (14-1)

The main event of the evening sees widely-regarded Pound for Pound #1 Anderson “The Spider” Silva look for a record fifth successul Middleweight title defense against dangerous Brazilian grappler Thales Leites.  Silva has been ridiculously dominant in UFC, but turned in a bizarre and underwhelming performance in his last outing against Patrick Cote.  Leites, a top-level grappler, will be looking to finish what guys like Dan Henderson and Travis Lutter started, namely taking the champion down and submitting him.  Silva -525 / Leites +325 current odds

Since debuting in UFC, Anderson Silva has proved that he is one of the most dynamic and resilient fighters in the history of the sport.  He has yet to see a fight go the distance, and he has yet to taste defeat inside the Octagon.  His Muay Thai prowess is the stuff legends are made, and his dismantlings of former champion Rich Franklin from the Thai Clinch will be on highlight reels for the next fifty years.  What is even more impressive than his explosive offense, though, is how well he handles adversity during his fights. 

 Against Travis Lutter, he was taken down and fully mounted before coming back and making Lutter tap to elbow strikes.  Against Henderson, he was controlled completely on the ground for almost the entire first round and most of the second round, but managed to come back and choke Henderson out near the end of the second round.  His ability to finish a fight is obviously his best attribute, but it is only enhanced by how difficult he is to finish.

No one can deny Thales Leites’ skill set, but the fact that he is receiving a title shot is more a testament to Silva’s dominance than to Leites’ accomplishments.  While his record is certainly impressive, the only win he has against top level competition is an extremely controversial split decision over Nathan Marquardt.  Leites was dominated in the fight, but Marquardt was deducted two points for controversial illegal blows which allowed Leites to sneak by with the decision.  Leites has not necessarily earned a title shot, but Silva has already defeated pretty much everyone who has, so Leites gets the next shot, deserved or no. 

This might be a huge break for Leites, as if there is a type of fighter capable of defeating Silva at this point, Leites is the prototype.  He’s powerful and aggressive, has excellent takedowns and a top-notch submission game.  Silva has proven time and again that he can be taken down, and Leites has a far better chance of securing a submission than did Henderson or Lutter.

Even so, it’s hard to bet against a striker as dangerous as Silva.  No matter how good Leites’ takedowns are, he is going to have to stroll through a minefield to get close enough to Silva, not to mention putting himself at risk to get caught in Silva’s thai clinch, the MMA equivalent of the Bermuda Triangle.  Leites is a substantial underdog, so a small bet on him could wind up paying well if he manages to execute his gameplan, which is entirely possible. 

More likely though is that Silva will make history by mangling Leites in the first round with knees and punches.

Visit our UFC 97 Info Page

Chuck Liddell (21-6) vs. Mauricio Rua (17-3)

The semi main-event of the evening is a big-name Light Heavyweight showdown between former UFC Champion Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell and former World #1 Light Heavyweight Mauricio “Shogun” Rua.  Both names were once synonymous with greatness at 205 pounds, but recent poor performances have put some tarnish on both men’s reputations.  This is a do-or-die fight for both men.  The winner will be able to parlay a big win into some more high-profile fights, but another big loss for either fighter would undoubtedly spell the end of their time as a top Light Heavyweight.      Liddell -175 / Rua +145 current odds

“Shogun” Rua was, at one point, considered unstoppable at 205 pounds.  In PRIDE, he was destroying Top 10 fighters left and right, including Ricardo Arona, Little Nog, Alistair Overeem, and Quentin “Rampage” Jackson.  He hit his first snag, though, when his arm snapped like a twig after a powerful takedown from Mark Coleman.  While he did recover from the injury, and put together another impressive string of wins, that incident marked the beginning of Shogun’s well-publicized string of major injuries. 

His UFC debut was pushed back because of a knee surgery, and when he finally did fight, he looked out of shape and lethargic, getting manhandled by Forrest Griffin for much of their fight and finally submitted.  His next fight, a rematch with Coleman, was over 18 months later, and while he did win the fight, he looked unimpressive and out of shape again.

His opponent, Chuck Liddell, is synonymous with UFC and the Light Heavyweight division in particular.  A multiple-time champion, Liddell holds wins over a bevy of future hall of famers, including Randy Couture, Tito Ortiz, and Wanderlei Silva, along with almost every other notable light heavyweight employed by UFC this decade.  Chuck’s style itself is legendary, the potent combination of unbeatable takedown defense and power punching known as Sprawl and Brawl. 

 Recently, though, the only sprawling Chuck has been doing is sprawling out on the mat unconscious.  Both Quinton Jackson and Rashad Evans sent Liddell to dreamtown, and he was thoroughly out-kickboxed by gatekeeper Keith Jardine.  In fact, his only win in his last four fights was against an equally depleted Wanderlei Silva.

This has all the makings of an interesting stylistic matchup.  While Shogun is well known for being a knockout artist, his Muay Thai really isn’t all that good, at least technically.  One of his less-recognized gifts is a surprisingly good and extremely underrated ground game.  Against Liddell, though, that is irrelevant, since Shogun doesn’t have anywhere near the wrestling he would need to take Chuck down.  Truth be told, I expect Liddell to surprise most of his fans, and actually use his wrestling offensively to take Shogun down if he gets in trouble.  For the most part, though, this should be decided on the feet.  Rua, like all of his former Chute Boxe teammates, is often times recklessly aggressive. 

 Against many opponents, this has worked to his advantage, but Liddell has made a career of walking backwards and flooring his opponents with huge counter power punches.  Considering that stylistic advantage, and Liddell’s hugely superior cardio, I see Shogun biting off more than he can chew midway through the second round and eating a trademark Liddell counter haymaker. 

Chuck by TKO, round 2.