Jon Jones
Jon Jones opens as the favorite against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua
The Ultimate Fighting Championship made the announcement following Jon Jones’ UFC 126 submission win over Ryan Bader that the 23-year old light heavyweight will replace the injured Rashad Evans in the UFC 128 main event against Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, and Jones opens the betting lines favorite.
Noted odds maker Joey Oddessa of MMAOdds.com set the initial line with Jones as a -155 favorite. At the time of publication, the line has moved at sportsbook.com making Jones a -165 favorite to win the 205-pound championship.
Rua obtained the title by avenging a controversial split decision loss to Lyoto Machida by knocking out the fellow Brazilian at UFC 113 in May of 2010. He has been sidelined with a nagging knee injury that required two surgeries to correct.
Evans was forced off the UFC 128 card due to a knee injury suffered in training.
UFC 128 takes place on March 19 at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.
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