Jon Jones’ odds have dropped, but he is still the favorite at UFC 128 in his Light Heavyweight title fight against the champion Mauricio “Shogun” Rua on Saturday.

Jon Jones opened at -215, but he is now down to -185 in UFC 128 odds while Rua is paying +155.

Jon Jones (12-1-0) has taken the UFC by storm going undefeated while knocking off his opponents in both convincing and spectacular fashion. Jones has a freakishly long reach and he uses it to his advantage whether it is dominating stand up, or getting opponents to the ground where his excellent wrestling skills come in to play.

If there is any weakness in Jones’ game it’s that he hasn’t had his chin tested yet and testing chins is something Shogun Rua is pretty good at. The Pride veteran has showcased his power on a number of occasions.

Jones has also never faced a fighter as experienced as Mauricio Rua and Rua has shown that he can execute game-plans against unconventional fighters before. While Jones may be able to use his reach advantage to control stand up, Shogun can take a punch and he is technically the better striker so you have to think that at some point he will hit Jones harder than he’s ever been hit before.

We may not see it very often, but Shogun is also an excellent BJJ fighter. Jones might be able to get this fight to the ground, but he could be in for a big surprise when it happens.

I like Jones as a fighter, but I don’t think it is his time yet. Take the veteran Rua with the better pay day.

Dana White talks about Mauricio Rua, Kimbo Slice, Paul Daley and more in the wake of UFC 113.

The highlight of UFC 113 was definitely the redemption of Mauricio Rua. He left no doubt as to who deserves the light-heavyweight title in his fight with Lyoto Machida. But there was plenty more drama including Paul Daley doing his best to end his own career with a cheap shot after his fight with Josh Koscheck ended and Kimbo Slice dropping a bout to someone he was supposed to easily win.

Next up is UFC 114 headlined by Rashad Evans and Quinton Jackson. Rampage is the early favorite, but at -125 this is one of the closest UFC odds matchups ever.

On Saturday May 8, 2010, Mauricio Rua will square off against current light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida at UFC 113. This fight is expected to be an epic battle because of the history between these two fighters.

Lyoto Machida has had quite an impressive UFC career. He has won 8 out of 8 UFC fights so far and is a perfect 16-0 in his professional fighting career. Machida has walked over the majority of his opponents in his professional career. The only true contender in any of his UFC fights has been Rua, the opponent set to face off against Machida on May 8th. (more…)

Last year’s fight between Lyoto Machida and Mauricio Rua was easily the most controversial UFC fight of the year. Machida defended his light-heavyweight championship in a unanimous decision, but Shogun Rua had clearly done the most damage and was the winner in the fan’s eyes. UFC 113 will bring us the real match to show who is truly the best light-heavyweight on the planet.

Lyoto Machida UFC 113 odds list the champion as the favorite at -200 versus Shogun Rua.

Mauricio “Shogun” Rua finally gets another shot to prove that the Light Heavyweight belt really should belong to him after pummeling Lyoto Machida, but losing the fight on the decision.