Saturday’s UFC 147 event will take place in the MMA-crazy country of Brazil and will feature plenty of Brazilian fighters that will have the fan support behind them. The most notable of them is Wanderlei Silva, who will be looking to avenge his loss against American Rich Franklin. The question is whether the home-soil advantage will ultimately help him.
Silva isn’t the only Brazilian underdog who will be looking for a lift from the crowd, though. All but two of the fighters on the massive card hail from Brazil, and several of them are obviously underdogs. Many of the bouts are likely going to go the way that the oddsmakers expect them to, but anything can happen in UFC and that will be on display at UFC 147.
Here are three betting-line dogs that will shock the viewing audience by reigning supreme on Saturday night.
Wanderlei Silva
When Wanderlei Silva and Rich Franklin first fought way back at UFC 99 back in 2009, they put on an excellent show that saw Franklin prevail by unanimous decision in the fight of the night. Silva certainly held his own, but he is just 3-6 in his past nine fights since 2006. Franklin is just 1-2 since that fight as well, though, and he hasn’t fought in nearly a year and a half. Franklin is a slight favorite in the bout, but Silva has what it takes to pull the upset.
This will be the first time that Silva is fighting in his home country of Brazil since 2000 and I expect him to be amped and determined to win in front of his adoring fans. Both Silva and Franklin are in a bit of a do-or-die situation at this point. Silva is 35 years old, while Franklin is 37, so neither of them has many fights left in the tank in all likelihood. A loss could send Silva into retirement, but I highly doubt that he will allow that to happen on his home soil.
Sergio Moraes
In the second-last match of the night, Cezar Ferreira and Sergio Moraes will do battle in the finals of The Ultimate Fighter Brazil middleweight tournament. Ferreira has been dominant en route to the finals, while Moraes was the beneficiary of some good luck. Moraes lost to Daniel Sarafian in the semifinals by way of first-round knockout, but Sarafian had to be pulled from the finals due to an injury. That has opened the door for Moraes to win the high-profile tournament.
Ferreira is the favorite based on how well he has performed throughout the tourney, but Moraes is no pushover. Moraes actually has a better professional record in the octagon than Ferreira as he is 6-1 as opposed to Ferreira’s 4-2 mark.
Ferreira is the hotter fighter, but he is at a disadvantage since his opponent was changed, prompting him to alter his training regimen. I see that rattling Ferreira a bit and playing right into Moraes’ favor.
Hacran Dias
When Yuri Alcantara and Hacran Dias go at it on Saturday, it will certainly have the potential to be the most exciting fight on the card. Alcantara and Dias are two of the most exciting lightweights in the sport and both will be desperate to give the home fans what they want. The 31-year-old Alcantara is slightly more experienced than the 28-year-old Dias, and that likely has something to do with why Alcantara is favored in the tilt.
Alcantara has a career record of 27-3 and has won 13 straight decisions. Dias, on the other hand, is 20-1-1 with his only loss coming against Yui Chul Nam in 2009. Both fighters are on incredible hot streaks and have similar styles, so I find it a bit curious that the odds aren’t a bit closer.
Dias is more adept at winning on the scorecards than Alcantara is, so if he can avoid getting knocked out or tapping out, Dias has a great chance to win. I believe he will do precisely that.
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