UFC Fight Night 137 Preview: UFC Fight Night Sao Paolo - Anders vs. Santos Preview, Main Card Preview

UFC 227 Dillashaw v Garbrandt 2

UFC Fight Night 137's build is underway, and the ever-changing card has finally settled down. We finally have a main-event we can actually look forward to, and the fact that the card has been nailed down can only help to increase the hype for the pay-per-view going forward.

While Eryk Anders and Thiago Santos are nailed down for the main-event, there is a lot more to look forward to, from a potentially underrated card for UFC Fight Night 137. The show signifies the return to Brazil for UFC, as it will air from the Ibirapuera Gymnasium in Sao Paolo.

The main card of the night will also include Andre Ewell, who is set to take on Renan Barao. In other spots, Randa Markos will fight against Marina Rodriguez, and Sam Alvey will take on Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, who is returning from a near 2-year time span away from the UFC. The co-Main Event of the night, will see Alex Oliveira take on Carlo Pedersoli, another fight the crowd is sure to enjoy.

With all of this and more awaiting the viewers, let's take a look at UFC Fight Night 137's preview for the main card. Before getting into the main card, however, these are the matches lined up for the Undercard.

UFC Fight Night 136 Preliminary Card:

1. Christos Giagos vs. Charles Oliveira
2. Evan Dunham vs. Francisco Trinaldo
3. Luis Henrique vs. Ryan Spann
4. Augusto Sakai vs. Chase Sherman

UFC Fight Night 136 Early Preliminary Card:

1. Sergio Moraes vs. Ben Saunders
2. Mayra Bueno vs. Gillian Robertson
3. Thales Leites vs. Hector Lombard
4. Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos vs. Luigi Vendramini
5. Alex Chambers vs. Livia Renata Souza

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#5 Renan Barao vs. Andre Ewell:

UFC 214 Aljamain Sterling vs. Renan Barao

Before the fight even starts between the two, the eyes of UFC fans will be on the weigh-in. One of the best pound-for-pound fighters of his time, Barao has not had the best time with cutting weight. He had to fight against Aljamain Sterling at a Catchweight of 140 pounds, due to concerns from the California State Athletic Commision.

On the other side of things, Ewell is looking to make his Octagon debut in the UFC. Ewell has been one of the top stars outside the company and has won a fair few matches. He is the favourite heading into this fight against Barao, with Renan having lost 4 of his last five matches.

A win over Barao would give Ewell quite the advantage, while Barao will be hoping the home crowd support and experience on the big stage carries him through the fight.

#4 Randa Markos vs Marina Rodriguez:

UFC Fight Night: Randa Markos v Juliana Lima

Randa Markos has become known as one of the most inconsistent fighters in the UFC. It is as if for every win that she gets, she seems to pick up an equal numer of losses. On this occasion, she is set to face Marina Rodriguez, who has had an immensely successful career so far outside UFC.

With a win over Samara Santos, Rodriguez is definitely the one to watch out for going forward. A win here, in her fight in UFC, would enable Rodriguez to propel to the next stage in UFC, and possibly even secure a bigger fight and a move up the rankings.

#3 Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs Sam Alvey:

UFC 190: Rousey v Correia

Returning to UFC after almost two years away from the company, the return of Nogueira is not generating any kind of hype which a returning fighter usually gets. The reason?

Rogerio's first run with UFC was less than the spectacle which had been predicted after his debut. He was not able to fight in the company the way he had on the outside, and after his last match with the company in November of 2016, he had 5 wins and 5 losses.

Given that he defeated Tito Ortiz, his run was not all that bad, but it was definitely a let-down from the expectations that people had.

Going into the fight with Sam Alvey, Nogueira will have to look out for the one punch power of his opponent, which has put the likes of Marcin Prachnio and Kevin Casey to sleep.

#2 Carlo Pedersoli vs. Alex Oliveira:

UFC 218: Oliveira v Medeiros

Carlo Pedersoli may have bitten off more than he can chew, when he signed up to be the co-headliner for UFC Fight Night 137. Pedersoli has featured in UFC on only one occasion before, where he won his fight by split decision.

While his performance was entertaining and showed that he had a grasp of all the basic skills needed to be one of the top names in the business, he is still far away from being that good. Fighting against hometown hero, Alex 'Cowboy' Oliveira, Pedersoli will have to look out.

Oliveira has received performance of the night the last three times he came to the Octagon, wrapping up a huge win against Carlos Condit in one of them.

#1 Eryk Anders vs Thiago Santos:

UFC Fight Night: Weidman v Gastelum

The headliner that was never supposed to happen, Eryk Anders and Thiago Santos have both stepped up to fill in the gaps left by Teixeira and Manuwa, when both were forced to pull out of the fight.

Neither man is at an exact disadvantage given the fact they both prepared in a short amount of time.

With Anders coming in off a high after knocking out Tim Williams, and Santos coming off a win as well, the fight is expected to be a good one. Santos will have to change the game plan he had for Manuwa, whose offence was a strictly striking one when he faces Anders. Anders is more well-rounded, and unless Santos prepares well, may shock the Brazilian by stealing a win away from him on his home turf.

The fight card of UFC Fight Night 137 may not look like much, but it may be one of the most underestimated cards of the year. Expect some shocks, when the fights start on the 22nd of September.