Nik Lentz seems to have found a home at 145 pounds. | D. Mandel
Featherweights
Diego Nunes (18-3, 3-2 UFC) vs. Nik Lentz (22-5-2, 6-2-1 UFC): The world-ranked Nunes used an aggressive offensive attack to outduel Bart Palaszewski at UFC on FX 5, flooring his opponent with right hands several times. After back-to-back losses to Mark Bocek and Evan Dunham, Lentz looked like a new man in his first bout at 145 pounds, stopping Eiji Mitsuoka in the first round at UFC 150. The well-rounded Nunes holds off a hard-charging Lentz to win via decision.
Featherweights
Godofredo Castro (8-1, 0-1 UFC) vs. Milton Vieira (13-7-2, 0-0-1 UFC): Castro, a cast member on “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil,” came up short against Rony Mariano Bezerra in the reality show’s 145-pound final at UFC 147. It was not an especially inspiring effort, as Castro offered little offense and pulled guard on several occasions. Viera, who claims to have invented the anaconda choke, battled Felipe Arantes to a draw on that same card. Castro utilizes his 6.5-inch reach advantage and holds his own in the positional battles to take a decision.
Middleweights
Ronny Markes (13-1, 2-0 UFC) vs. Andrew Craig (8-0, 2-0 UFC): Markes took a hard-fought split decision over Aaron Simpson in his middleweight debut at UFC on Fuel TV 1. The Brazilian has solid wrestling, ground-and-pound and good finishing instincts. Craig has done better than expected in the Octagon, upsetting Kyle Noke in his first appearance before rallying to knock out Rafael Natal with a head kick in July. Markes wins by decision.
Lightweights
Edson Barboza (10-1, 4-1 UFC) vs. Lucas Martins (12-0, 0-0 UFC): Barboza appeared to be on the fast track to a 155-pound title shot until he lost to Jamie Varner in 2012’s biggest upset. Now, the talented Brazilian will have to prove he can rebound from adversity against Martins, a Chute Boxe member who fought a whopping 10 times last year. Despite the prolific schedule of the newcomer, Barboza is the more seasoned pro with something to prove. Barboza takes this by second-round technical knockout.
Featherweights
Iuri Alcantara (28-4, 2-1 UFC) vs. Pedro Nobre (14-1-2, 0-0 UFC): Alcantara had his 13-fight winning streak halted at UFC 147, where he was unable to stay on his feet against Nova Uniao product Hacran Dias. That disappointing effort aside, Alcantara is an accurate striker with good submissions who should have better luck staying upright and landing punches against promotional debutante Nobre, a replacement opponent for George Roop. Alcantara ends it by stoppage or submission in round three.
Light Heavyweights
Wagner Prado (8-1, 0-1 UFC) vs. Ildemar Alcantara (17-5, 0-0 UFC): Prado’s ground game was exposed the second time around against Phil Davis, as “Caldeiro” tapped out to an anaconda choke in round two of their UFC 153 encounter. For his second Octagon challenge, he gets Alcantara, who has won his last seven bouts, six of them inside of a round. With neither combatant likely to waste much time once the bell sounds, this one could be headed for a quick finish. Alcantara is a natural middleweight, and he succumbs to the power of Prado via knockout or technical knockout in the opening frame.
Lightweights
Francisco Trinaldo (11-2, 1-1 UFC) vs. C.J. Keith (8-1, 0-1): Trinaldo was not able to consistently stop the takedowns of Gleison Tibau in his last outing, but the “The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil” alumnus did throw a scare into the veteran by rocking him with a left hand and nearly earning a submission. He should be able to keep the bout upright against Keith and win via TKO stoppage or decision.