UFC commentator Jon Anik not surprised UFN 40’s Silva is favorite over Brown

Should Erick Silva be a nearly 2-1 betting favorite over Matt Brown ahead of Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 40 main event? Ask the question, and you’re bound to get some heated discussions.

Brown (18-11 MMA, 11-6 UFC) has publicly stated that the betting line makes no sense to him, particularly because he’s riding a six-fight UFC winning streak while Silva (16-4 MMA, 4-3 UFC) is a mere 3-3 in his past six trips to the octagon.

Silva has not defeated an opponent as accomplished as Brown inside the octagon, but it appears oddsmakers and the public share a similar line of thinking in that the Brazilian will break through in the FOX Sports 1 headliner at Cincinnati’s U.S. Bank Arena.

UFC commentator Jon Anik has witnessed what both men have to offer over the years, and while he’s not in the business of making fight predictions, he feels the odds are justified.

“I think a lot of people were surprised to see Erick Silva installed as a 2-1 favorite, but I really wasn’t,” Anik, whose Twitter feed often features fight odds, told MMAjunkie Radio. “I think it speaks to the destruction of past opponents, even if they weren’t as qualified as Matt Brown.”

Silva’s UFC opponents, or at least the ones he’s defeated, are far less qualified than Brown; the four fighters the Brazilian has beaten under the UFC banner own a combined record of 6-11 with the organization.

That’s not very telling as to the caliber of fighter Silva is capable of defeating. However, if you examine the nature of those victories, as well as his flashes of brilliance in losses to Dong Hyun Kim and Jon Fitch, then his favorite status may not seem so crazy after all.

“I think the line speaks to his potential, which he hasn’t really scratched or reached yet,” Anik said. “I think when Erick Silva is on, he can be the best in the world, and I still contend that one day Erick Silva will fight for a UFC title. He’s that explosive, he’s that good, and now the motivation is actually falling in line with the talent and the skill.

“We heard some rumblings that when Erick Silva fought Dong Hyun Kim, he only trained for three or four weeks. You fastforward to his fight with Takanori Sato, and he was a -1100 (11-1) favorite, and he put in the training camp of a lifetime and certainly the results spoke for themselves. I’m firmly on the Erick Silva bandwagon.”

Not only does Anik have high expectation for Silva in his first-ever UFC main event, but he also has high expectations for where a potential victory could put him in the weight class.

The UFC welterweight division grows more crowded by the day following the departure of longtime champion Georges St-Pierre. Everyone wants the first crack at newly crowned titleholder Johny Hendricks once he returns from injury.

While many are pegging next month’s UFC 174 co-main event between Tyron Woodley and Rory MacDonald as a likely title eliminator, Anik believes that a strong showing by Silva or Brown could put either right in the thick of the title discussion.

“This main event in particular is high stakes,” Anik said. “I don’t think people realize just how big this fight is and potentially a finish on either side could propel the winner here into a mammoth fight.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 40, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

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