Gambling Addiction Enabler: Strikeforce – Shamrock vs. Diaz

(‘Look what I found in the dumpster behind Jake Shields’ apartment!  Honestly, the things some people throw away.’)

The Gambling Addiction Enabler isn’t going to jerk your chain here, after last week’s dismal performance he considered giving it up.  He went to a couple meetings, listened to those quitters down at Gambler’s Anonymous whining about the houses and cars and marriages they’d lost because of their compulsive betting.  He even thought about taking up a less destructive hobby, like tennis or pornography. 

Then he thought about you, the members of the Potato Nation who depend on him for his reckless and often unsound gambling advice, and who live vicariously through his wins and his losses.  Dear readers, he decided he simply couldn’t let you down.  That’s how much he cares about you/is willing to use you as a justification.  And besides, if his wife really loved him she wouldn’t ask him to change, right?

Odds for the main card of this weekend’s Strikeforce event come courtesy of BestFightOdds.com:

Frank Shamrock (-165) vs. Nick Diaz (+145)
Benji Radach (-165) vs. Scott Smith (+145)
Gilbert Melendez (-315) vs. Rodrigo Damm (+275)
“Cyborg” Santos (-455) vs. Hitomi Akano (+375)
Brett Rogers (-440) vs. Abongo Humphrey (+360)

Thoughts…

– If we’ve learned anything in bouts between fighters from two different weight classes, it’s that the bigger guy always deserves to be the favorite unless the other guy is Anderson Silva.  Nick Diaz is not Anderson Silva.  He is a natural 160-pounder, only that’s not a real weight class (neither is 179, but this is premium cable, so screw you).  He’s too big to make 155 consistently and not quite powerful enough for 170, and definitely not powerful enough for 185.  Shamrock may be kind of old and he may be about 400 times better in his own mind than in real life, but he’s smart enough to know that the bigger fighter should take advantage of that fact and toss this punk kid around all night en route to a decision victory.  My bet: $20 on Shamrock.

– In theory, Benji Radach should beat Scott Smith.  Despite Smith’s “Hands of Steel” (just imagine how foolish Radach must feel going in there with his puny hands of bone and flesh), I think Radach’s the better all-around fighter and the better athlete.  But to be brutally honest, the guy has a flash chin.  He gets dropped at some point in 78% of his fights (rough estimate).  Matt Horwich knocked him out, one of only two career KO’s for Horwich.  Often Radach battles back to win after getting floored, but Smith is not Ryan McGivern.  If he catches you, you’re probably done.  And the chances that Radach will get caught if the fight goes longer than ninety seconds are just too good.  My bet: $20 on Smith.

Absolutely Don’t Bet Against: Brett Rogers.  Seriously, why would you?  What do you know about Abongo Humphrey except that he was on “Iron Ring” after you stopped watching and his real name is Ron?  That’s what I thought.

Official Cage Potato Parlay: Shamrock + Melendez + Santos + Rogers.  There isn’t much to chose from, but I’ll take the four favorites who look good and hope for the best.  Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to get to my local Off Track Betting establishment.  If I’m not there by the start of the second race they start to worry about me.