Usually trilogies have an epic quality to them. This is not one of those trilogies.
Forrest Griffin shocked the world to become light heavyweight champion, however after falling to Rashad Evans, he’s never quite been the same. He narrowly edged out Tito Ortiz at 106, and scored a solid win against Rich Franklin at 127, however he was finished quickly by Shogun in his most recent performance which just screamed no motivation. It is incredibly unlikely that Griffin sees a title shot ever again, and retirement seems like a possibility with a loss here.
Current UFC 148 Forrest Griffin vs Tito Ortiz Odds;
Griffin – (-325) @ Bovada.Lv
Ortiz – (+250) @ Bovada.Lv
With Tito Ortiz, retirement is a fact with a win or loss. The former champion somehow kept his career alive with an unbelievable upset over Ryan Bader last year, however the Cinderella story wasn’t meant to be as knees to the body saw him crumble against Rashad Evans and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. While he didn’t look categorically bad in either fight, those losses have barred him from relevancy.
Stylistically, I think we’re almost guaranteed to see a striking battle. Ortiz was probably the stronger wrestler at one point, but now I think they’re both at a point in their careers where scoring takedowns against each other seems pretty likely. It’s entirely possible Ortiz looks to bring things to the ground, but I seriously doubt it.
Standing up, who knows how to call this. Griffin has always been great at looking active, and his leg kicks are actually pretty solid. Ortiz has never been an elite level striker, however he’s put a lot of time into his striking over the last couple of years, and his hands may be able to edge out Griffin.
The Forrest Griffin vs Tito Ortiz prediction is that Griffin narrowly edges Ortiz in a primarily standup fight. A finish seems very unlikely, but like their second fight, this should be pretty close. Further, if either guy is likely to score the knockout, it’s probably Ortiz, albeit his susceptibility to body shots as of late has been a little suspect. Whether I’m willing to play Griffin at the -325 price? No chance. If anything, the value is on Ortiz at +250, although you always look like a genius or an idiot after putting money on him.
UFC 148 Forrest Griffin vs Tito Ortiz Betting Odds Conclusion: Ortiz is an auto-fade, but Griffin is no spring chicken, and an Ortiz upset isn’t out of the question. I’ll make a tiny value play (1pt bet) at +250, expecting to lose my bet.
