Betting lines are funny ol’ things.
Chad Mendes opened up as considerable favourite over Conor McGregor but the crazy amount of money going on the Irishman means that Money is around a 13/8 underdog going into the interim featherweight title bout.
Many UFC fighters are amazed at those odds, considering the fact that Mendes’ only two career losses came against world champion Jose Aldo while McGregor’s two defeats have been at the hands of Joseph Duffy and Artemij Sitenkov who, to be fair, are not exactly on the level of an Aldo.
And UFC commentator Joe Rogan is also surprised that McGregor is the significant favourite going into the main event of UFC 189.
Speaking on his podcast with UFC heavyweight fighter Brendan Schaub, Rogan said “I think Chad Mendes should be the favorite.
“Chad Mendes knocked Ricardo Lamas, dead. Dead. With one punch. He smashes dudes. He goes after guys. He’s a destroyer.”
Schaub chimed in saying that he felt the UFC were taking a massive risk by putting their biggest draw in there against such a dangerous opponent in Mendes.
“See, I disagree,” Rogan said. “Mendes easily could be as big a star as Conor McGregor. He wouldn’t talk like Conor McGregor did, but neither did Georges St-Pierre. Georges St-Pierre was the biggest pay-per-view star of all time. Because he was a gentleman. Georges St-Pierre got a million pay-per-view buys.”
Rogan claimed that if Mendes was to put on a dominant performance against McGregor and halt the hype train then it could change his career.
“Let me tell you something, if he [Mendes] goes out and starches Conor, he’s a giant.”
