Iuri Alcantara will have the home crowd advantage at UFC Fight Night 125 in Brazil on Saturday, as he takes on Joe Soto. Alcantara is from Marajo Island in Para, Brazil and he needs all the support he can get, as he looks to break a two-fight losing streak. Soto comes into this fight with a record of 18-6, including 3-4 in the UFC. This fight is one of four on the FS1 portion of the preliminary card, leading up to a six-fight main card, also on FS1, that features Lyoto Machida vs. Eryk Anders.
Bet on UFC at BookMaker.eu
Iuri Alcantara (35-9-1, 9-6-1 UFC)
Alcantara didn’t fight that well for much of last year, as he was submitted by Brian Kelleher in the first round at UFC 212 in June and Alcantara was beaten by Alejandro Perez in a unanimous decision in December. Alcantara does have 35 wins in his career and nine in the UFC, but it is hard to find many top level opponents he has beaten. The good news for Alcantara is that Soto isn’t a marquee fighter.
Alcantara has far more experience, as he has been a pro since 2003. He has 13 knockout wins and 14 submission victories. Five of his last eight fights have gone to a decision.
Joe Soto (18-6, 3-4 UFC)
Soto has fought seven times in the UFC and he has been inconsistent. He began by losing his first three UFC fights, as he was beaten by TJ Dillashaw, Anthony Birchak and Michinori Tanaka. Soto bounced back to win three straight, as he defeated Chris Beal, Marco Beltran and Rani Yahya. Soto last fought in December and he was submitted by Brett Johns in the first round.
Soto said to MMAWeekly.com that he thinks he can learn from the loss to Johns. “The year started off pretty good,” Soto said, “I beat Rani Yahya who was ranked #14 in the world, in March in Brazil. Then I had a hiccup in my last fight against Brett Johns in December. My year started off good and kind of ended bad. I got caught in a good submission, a good move, that I didn’t see coming. You can learn, especially when you get caught with a technical error. There’s situation stuff like being put in that position and being more aware and what I did wrong.”
Soto said that he expects a tough fight against Alcantara. “Iuri is a tough opponent,” said Soto. “He was in the Top 15 for a while. He has a lot of experience, like myself. It’s going to be an interesting match-up; to go to Brazil and compete in front of a hostile environment with them probably cheering him and booing me. I’m excited to go out and perform, and make up for my last fight.”
UFC Picks
What has Soto done in his career to be listed as a favorite against Alcantara? I can’t see that either of these two fighters has beaten any marquee fighters, but Alcantara has more experience and he will have the home crowd edge. I will take Alcantara to get this win.
UFC Fight Night 125 takes place on Saturday, February 3, 2018 at Arena Guilherme Paraense in Belem, Brazil, with a middleweight rematch between Lyoto Machida and Eryk Anders as the event headliner. There are six fights on the main pay-per-view card and six preliminary bouts, with four on FS1 and two on UFC Fight Pass.
Main Card (FS1)
Middleweight - Lyoto Machida -266 vs. Eryk Anders
Bantamweight - John Dodson -147 vs. Pedro Munhoz
Women's Flyweight - Valentina Shevchenko -651 vs. Priscila Cachoeira
Lightweight - Michel Prazeres -160 vs. Desmond Green
Heavyweight - Marcelo Golm -180 vs. Timothy Johnson
Middleweight - Thiago Santos -278 vs. Anthony Smith
Preliminary Card (FS1)
Welterweight - Tim Means -190 vs. Sérgio Moraes
Lightweight - Alan Patrick -217 vs. Damir Hadžovic
Bantamweight - Marlon Vera -140 vs. Douglas Silva de Andrade
Bantamweight - Joe Soto -120 vs. Iuri Alcântara
Preliminary Card (UFC Fight Pass)
Flyweight - Deiveson Figueiredo -150 vs. Joseph Morales
Women's Strawweight - Polyana Viana -325 vs. Maia Stevenson
How to Bet
Access live betting lines from your mobile device at BookMaker sportsbook! Real-time spreads, totals, props and money line are all available so start betting with BookMaker today.
