The preliminary fight at UFC Fight Night 29 that I’m most looking forward to is a welterweight bout between Yuri Alcantara’s younger brother Ildemar Alcantara and TUF 16 alum Igor Araujo. Alcantara is currently a -350 favorite (bet $350 to win $100) at Several Bookmakers while Araujo is a +250 underdog (bet $100 to win $250) in this battle of fellow Brazilians. MMA oddsmaker Nick Kalikas originally opened Alcantara at -315 and Araujo at +235, meaning the early public action is on Alcantara, who I believe is the correct side in this fight. Alcantara (19-5) debuted as a light heavyweight at UFC on FX 7 earlier this year, where he surprised everyone by submitting Wagner Prado with a kneebar, of all things. But Alcantara was too small to compete as a 205-er in the UFC and made the decision to drop not one, but two weight classes. He made his UFC welterweight debut at UFC on Fuel TV 10, where he won a decision over Leandro Santos. The 30-year-old Alcantara is a very crafty mixed martial artist as he showed in the Prado fight and he can win fights by either knockout, submission or decision as he is well-rounded in every facet of the game. He’s huge for the welterweight division, too, and I think his size and reach advantage is going to help him go far in UFC. Araujo (23-6, 1 NC) was a member of season 16 of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) but never got a shot in UFC because the show was so bad. Araujo didn’t impress me at all on TUF, losing to Colton Smith in the quarterfinals, but after picking up a win on the regional circuit earlier this year, UFC is going to give him one chance to shine in the Octagon. He needs to make the most of it because I expect him to get cut with a loss. The Jackson’s MMA product does have a lot of experience and several stoppage wins on his resume, but for his first official fight in UFC I think it would have been better had they matched him up with David Mitchell instead, who is fighting Yan Cabral on the same card. I think Cabral should have fought Alcantara too. Bad matchmaking here, in my opinion. I don’t really understand why the UFC keeps on giving Alcantara guys at the bottom of the food chain and I really don’t think he’ll face any adversity against Araujo. Yes, Araujo has a good record, but Alcantara is the guy winning fights in the Octagon and he deserves to be a big favorite in this fight, like he is. A -350 price tag may seem steep for a fighter that many of you may have never heard of before but I’m telling you right now, Alcantara is a stud and could be a dark horse contender in the welterweight division. I’m that high on him. And at UFC Fight Night 29, I’m putting my money where my mouth is and betting on him to win.
