The UFC is in Curitiba, Brazil, for UFC 198 on Saturday and put together an absolutely stacked card for the occasion. The event, for the most part, follows the standard “Brazil vs. The World” formula of South American UFC cards but with a few interesting departures.
First, there are a number of competitive matchups on the card, rather than the usual selection of crowd-pleasing squashes. The main event, a heavyweight title fight between Fabricio Werdum and Stipe Miocic, should be a competitive matchup between a well-rounded, athletic challenger and a crafty Top 10 stalwart. Also on the card are interesting stylistic matchups in Demian Maia vs. Matt Brown, John Lineker vs. Rob Font and Francisco Trinaldo vs. Yancy Medeiros.
Second, the co-main event is actually going to feature Brazilian-on-Brazilian violence as Vitor Belfort takes on Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza. That’s an especially big fight, as the winner will likely take on the winner of the upcoming middleweight title fight between Luke Rockhold and Chris Weidman.
So who should you place your bets on this Saturday? Well, the Bleacher Report MMA staff is here to let you know. Read on and find out our predictions for the main card fights.