TUF 13 Finale odds: Ferguson motivated by being the underdog

By the end of the season on "The Ultimate Fighter," Tony Ferguson felt like it was one against 13. During a drunken rant, Ferguson managed to have most of the TUF house turn on him including his own Team Lesnar teammates. He got through that experience so it was no surprise to see his reaction today when he was told Las Vegas sportsbooks has tabbed him the underdog in Saturday's TUF 13 Finale against Ramsey Nijem.

"I always want to be the underdog," Ferguson said today during the TUF 13 workouts at the Palms in Las Vegas. "This is my time. I've been putting in my time day in and day out. I've had those office cubicles where everyone hates it, and nobody wants it — but nobody really does anything. They just settle for it. I don't want to settle. This is exactly where I need to be. This is what I deserve, and I need to be the next Ultimate Fighter."

Considering Ferguson's performances on the show, it was a little surprising to see Nijem listed as the minus-155 favorite.

Ferguson won all three of his fights via finish. Ferguson knocked out Justin Edwards with a first-round upkick and punched out Ryan McGillivray just 46 seconds into their fight. In the semis, it took a little over three rounds, but Ferguson finished Chuck O'Neil via strikes as well.

When Cagewriter mentioned how impressive Ferguson was, Nijem simply shrugged. He said Edwards was winning the first fight when Ferguson got off a lucky kick and that McGillivray had a concussion going into the second fight. He also said O'Neil broke in the other fight as a result of fighting four times in a short period.

Neither fighter lacks confidence. That's for sure. We'll see how the betting public reacts. TUF events are not easy to bet. Limited fight action and overall footage from a reality show aren't the most reliable tools to use when handicapping a match.

TUF 13 betting odds (Courtesy Lagasse's Stadium Las Vegas):

Clay Guida (+140) vs. Anthony Pettis (-170) - Lightweight

Tony Ferguson (+120) vs. Ramsey Nijem (-155) - Welterweight

Fabio Maldonado (+150) vs. Kyle Kingsbury (-180) - Light heavyweight{ysp:more}

Ed Herman (-105) vs. Tim Credeur (-125) - Middleweight

Chris Cope (+170) vs. Chuck O'Neil (-200) - Welterweight

Danny Downes (+240) vs. Jeremy Stephens (-320) - Lightweight

George Roop (+300) vs. Josh Grispi (-400) - Featherweight

Ken Stone (+325) vs. Scott Jorgensen (-450) - Bantamweight

Francisco Rivera (+155) vs. Reuben Duran (-185) - Bantamweight

Clay Harvison (+130) vs. Justin Edwards (-160) - Welterweight

Ryan McGillivary (+220) v. Shamar Bailey (-300) - Welterweight