It is 9 AM in Vegas and it is Christmas in July. And it's all because tonight Anderson Silva and Chael Sonnen get to legally fight tonight. The hype on this "Silva vs. Sonnen II" fight is the biggest for any UFC event since UFC 100 when Brock Lesnar and Frank Mir did that thing they do inside a cage. So if you're not following the drama of UFC 148, here it is in a nutshell: Chael Sonnen and Anderson Silva fought two years ago at UFC 117 with Sonnen beating up Silva for 4 rounds before losing with 2 minutes left in the fight to a triangle choke, Sonnen has mercilessly teased and taunted Silva (who is undefeated in the UFC at 14-0) in the buildup to this fight, Silva is now officially pissed off and is threatening to break bone and teeth [sic.] inside the cage Saturday, and to top it off Silva actually hit Sonnen during yesterday's weigh-in at Mandalay Bay. To make matters worse for the challenger Sonnen, the great and rotund Steven Seagal is in Anderson Silva's corner tonight-seriously!
Tonight's UFC 148 main event has this town abuzz, and the per-capita of Affliction and Tapout shirts is setting a world record as thousands of fellow UFC fans are here for the UFC Fan Expo (think Comic Con for cage fighters). Hundreds of people are waiting in line to meet and greet their favorite UFC heroes. Thousands waited hours in line to get the best seats at the weigh-in, a 30 minute event where fans watch fighters step on a scale, that's it.
What does it all mean to the casual UFC fan? Get together with your friends and family and buy that UFC 148 pay-per-view. Grab some buddies and go to a local sports bar / Buffalo Wild Wings / Hooters and take it in with a bigger crowd. The UFC 148 main event is a FIGHT you don't want to miss.
If you are so inclined, get your fantasy picks in at a few places even though it's Saturday:
MMA Weekly's Head-to-Head leagues
Here's some sample picks for the UFC 148 card:
11-Chad Mendes-ko-2
10-Forrest Griffin-dec-3
9-Dong Hyun Kim-Dec-3
8-Mike Easton-dec-3
7-Melvin Guillard-ko-1
6-Constantinos Philippou-dec-3
5-Yoislandy Izquierdo-KO-3
4-Gleison Tibau -Dec-3
3-Chael Sonnen-sub-5
2-Cung Le-KO-3
1-Shane Roller-dec-3