(Anyone else feeling suddenly very uncomfortable?)

Odds for the five televised bouts at UFC 93 are out on all the big betting sites.  Since the undercard (with the possible exception of the Martin Kampmann-Alexandre Barros bout) is made up mostly of guys you don’t know well or at all, it’s probably best that the off-shore experts don’t entice you to guess your money away.  Then again, maybe you have a hot tip on Tom Egan that you’re just dying to act on.

The most favorable odds on the ‘net are compiled, as usual, from our friends at BestFightOdds.com.  

Rich Franklin (+115) vs. Dan Henderson (-125)
Mark Coleman (+320) vs. Mauricio "Shogun" Rua (-336)
Alan Belcher (+275) vs. Denis Kang (-271)
Jeremy Horn (+275) vs. Rousimar Palhares (-455)
Marcus Davis (-131) vs. Chris Lytle (+121)

Thoughts…

- Is Rich Franklin, at slightly better than even odds, worth a small risk against Dan Henderson?  Yes, he is.  Let’s be clear: no one is arguing for “Ace” to be the favorite in this fight.  It’s very easy to imagine Henderson wedging his head against the cage and elbowing him in the face for three rounds.  But it’s also not so far-fetched that Franklin might find a little of the old magic and keep things standing long enough to pick Hendo apart.  Don’t forget, Franklin hasn’t been beaten by anyone not named Anderson Silva in over five years.  Though there is the distinct possibility that he’ll throw the fight just to avoid coaching “The Ultimate Fighter."

- The nostalgic voice in your head is telling you that Mark Coleman is your ticket to a big payday at better than 3-1 odds.  After all, he already beat “Shogun” once, right?  Wrong.  He won by freak injury, which is not the same thing as winning by being a better fighter.  The fact is, as loveable as Coleman is, it’s like my man Stankie says: “You can dress up Mother Nature, but you can’t fool Father Time.”  In other words, it ain’t worth the risk.

- Of the three big underdogs on the night: Jeremy Horn, Alan Belcher, and Coleman, your best bet is probably Belcher.  That’s mostly due to process of elimination, of course.  Horn isn’t going to submit Palhares, which leaves him with no arrows in his quiver.  Coleman is, as we’ve already discussed, too far past his prime.  Belcher at least he has a shot at upsetting Kang, even if it’s not much of one.

- Oddsmakers slightly favor Marcus Davis in the planned epic stand-up brawl with Chris Lytle.  We might have put it closer to even, though we’d love to see odds on whether this recipe for an instant classic will result in a first-round KO for somebody.