Sports

THE MAIN EVENT BEST BETS: UFC 154

Georges St-Pierre is one of the most dominant champions in UFC history. He hasn’t lost since 2007 and has rarely been challenged.

When it comes to GSP, bettors know what they’re getting. Just not this time.

St-Pierre hasn’t fought since April 2011 due to a torn ACL. How his knee holds up is very much the big question Saturday night when he meets Carlos Condit at UFC 154 in Montreal to unify the welterweight title.

Coming back from a surgery like that is bad enough in the NBA and NFL, contact sports where you’re running and making cuts. Doing it in a combat sport where your opponent can attack that part of your anatomy is a whole different matter.

How you wager on UFC 154 will begin and end with how you think St-Pierre’s knee will affect him.

Here are the lines from 5dimes:

MAIN CARD (PPV, 10 p.m.)

Georges St-Pierre (-325) vs. Carlos Condit (+265)

Johny Hendricks (-140) vs. Martin Kampmann (+120)

Francis Carmont (-260) vs. Tom Lawlor (+220)

Costa Philippou (-255) vs. Nick Ring (+215)

Mark Hominick (-310) vs. Pablo Garza (+255)

PRELIMS (FX, 8 p.m.)

Patrick Cote (-270) vs. Alessio Sakara (+230)

Cyrille Diabate (-155) vs. Chad Griggs (+135)

Sam Stout (-210) vs. John Makdessi (+175)

Rafael dos Anjos (-145) vs. Mark Bocek (+125)

PRELIMS (Facebook, 6 p.m.)

Antonio Carvalho (-290) vs. Rodrigo Damm (+245)

Matthew Riddle (-160) vs. John Maguire (+140)

Ivan Menjivar (-280) vs. Azamat Gashimov (+240)

Steven Siler (-115) vs. Darren Elkins (-105)

Physically, I believe St-Pierre when he says he’s all the way back from ACL surgery. The mental part is what worries me. As Fuel TV analyst Jay Glazer told me yesterday on the phone, sometimes your brain can hesitate for a second when the knee is tested. That one second could be all Condit needs to end the fight.

I’m not saying Condit is definitely going to win. I’m saying stay far, far away from this fight when you make your bets. There’s way too much uncertainty.

Hendricks-Kampmann might as well be a pick ’em and there’s a reason. They’re so close it’s impossible to predict a winner. Kampmann has fought better competition over the years and is a better striker. But Hendricks is a better wrestler and has more power. Stear clear. Very tough one to call.

Carmont has submitted his last two opponents in the UFC and is 3-0 with the organization. But I’m just not sold he should be that big of a favorite. Lawlor is thought of as a sideshow attraction, like at the workouts this week when he had a sumo wrestling match with his training partners. No middleweights walk through him though and I don’t think Carmont is more than an average 185-pounder in the UFC.

Philippou has big power in his hands and is a Long Island native, so he’s easy for me to root for. But Ring, when he wants to be, is a pretty solid wrestler with a good ground game. He should take this one to the ground quickly and either grind out a decision or submit Philippou. I’ll take the underdog here.

From top contender to nearly out of the UFC, Hominick has had a roller coaster career. After three losses, though, I like him to bounce back against Garza. His striking is just too good to lose to another guy who has lost two straight to primarily standup fighters. Hominick is my first parlay selection.

I can’t believe it has been four years since Cote has won a UFC fight. Granted, he blew out his knee and missed a lot of time during that stretch, but still. He was fighting Anderson Silva for the middleweight title back in 2008. Cote lost to Cung Le in his last fight, but it was a competitive decision. His power should be more than Sakara can handle. Another parlay pick.

It feels like there are 100 fights on this card. I guess with all the UFC’s injury troubles, there’s a bottleneck at the end of the year. Stout is a more technical striker than Makdessi and Carvalho far more well-rounded than Damm. Put them both in your parlays.

And if you’re looking for a big sleeper pick, take a chance on Gashimov. This is his first fight in the UFC and the United States – and you know how I hate taking guys like that. But he boasts a nice ground game and is a Jackson’s Gym fighter. Menjivar has holes in that area.

BEST BETS

Ring over Philippou

Gashimov over Menjivar

Parlay: Hominick, Cote, Stout, Carvalho

LOOKING BACK

For the fourth straight event, we were victorious in at least one bet. Takanori Gomi’s decision win over Mac Danzig sealed that last week at UFC on Fuel TV 6. Our parlay was shattered with one punch, though. Three victories in with one to go, Cung Le knocked Rich Franklin cold in the first round and stopped our payout, too.

RECORDS

Straight bets: 6-10

Parlays: 4-4

mraimondi@nypost.com