UFC 132 Silva Vs. Leben Winner Prediction

The Chris Leben vs. Wanderlei Silva matchup will likely be the co-main event for UFC 132 along with the main event title fight of Urijah Faber vs. Dominick Cruz.

The Leben vs. Silva fight is a difficult prediction to make because Silva has been off since February of 2010 when he beat Michael Bisping, while Leben was very sick during his loss to Brian Stann in his own last fight.

Both fighters are berserkers who like to wade in and exchange blows and that's why this fight is so highly-anticipated.

In the case of Leben, he has a big left hand and a great chin and presents problems that Silva hasn't seen in a while. His stock rose a little higher than it should have after the big UFC 116 win over Yoshiro Akiyama, however, in a fight that could have gone either way.

Many are predicting an upset for Leben because of his power and his experience in big fights among other things. His fight with Silva on July 2 will be right around the time he beat Akiyama, but he will have a hard time getting fan support opposite Wanderlei, who is one of the most popular UFC and MMA fighters of all-time.

Many are considering that Silva is coming off nagging injuries and has looked older than usual in some videos heading into this fight. Also, Silva has no doubt seen some of his older PRIDE Fighting contemporaries lose in recent weeks as well. Perhaps time is catching up to him as well as injuries.

But he beat a very good fighter in Michael Bisping the last time out and he is still one of the better strikers in MMA. Leben is anything but technical and Wanderlei is a better combination of technicality and straight-up brutality on the feet.

This one isn't likely to go to the ground but if it does it will likely end up being a draw.

When it's all said and done, however, Leben's big left hand and the fact that he's four years younger and not coming off a long layoff give him the edge in this one.

UFC 132 Silva vs. Leben pick: Leben by split decision.