Previewing the Favorites, Dark Horses of TUF Brazil 4

 The UFC continues its tradition of provided the great MMA country of Brazil with another season of The Ultimate Fighter, starting on April 6. TUF Brazil 4, which will be coached by Mauricio "Shogun" Rua and Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, will be taped in Las Vegas this time, as the previous three seasons were shot in Brazil itself.

Previous seasons of the show have provided five winners in different weight classes. Cezar Ferreira and Rony Jason were the winners from season one, Leonardo Santos was the lone winner of season two, and Antonio Carlos Jr. and Warlley Alves were the winners of the most recent season three.

The show itself is known for its outstanding fights and tense personalities. It's a formula that has made the show a hit and drawn in more fans around the world to watch on UFC Fight Pass.

This season will feature lightweights and bantamweights. Who are the favorites and the dark horses coming into this season? Let's take a look before the season premiere comes to us in a few days.

Lightweights

Fighter	Gym	Record
Fernando Bruno	Nova Uniao	15-2
Alexandre Cidade	Team Tavares	11-1
Carlos Costa	Team Nogueira	7-1
Adilson Fernandes	Clube de Luta	11-4
Glaico Franca	Astra Fight Team	12-3
Gabriel Macario	Lotus Club	3-0
Nazareno Malegarie	Team Tavares	27-3
Raush Manfio	Team Nogueira	6-1

Nikolas Motta	Nova Uniao	6-1
Bruno Murata	Demian Maia JJ	6-0
Jeferson Negrini	Sombra Team	10-0
Joaquim Neto	Evolucao Thai	7-0
Edson Pereira	Fight Fitness	12-2
Andre Ricardo	Corinthians MMA	3-1
Erick Carlos Silva	Astra Fight Team	15-4
Arlen Viana	V8 MMA	8-1

Favorites

The funny thing about TUF is that the best overall fighter in the tournament doesn't always win. In fact, there can be case made that more often than not, they don't win.

That said, in examining the 16 lightweights set to compete on the show, the three favorites as of right now have to be Fernando Bruno, Nazareno Malegarie and Nikolas Motta.

Bruno is a Nova Uniao member that is one of the most experienced fighters in the house and one of the most skilled. He has natural gifts of athleticism and speed, which co-exist well with his ability to get the fight to the mat, where he plies his excellent submission skills. He's normally a featherweight, so he will be cutting less weight on this show.

Malegarie is a familiar face because he is a former Bellator tournament combatant with 30 total pro fights and a major following in Argentina and Brazil. He is likely the most well-rounded fighter of the lightweights, possessing great ground skills and underrated stand-up. He has competed at bantamweight and featherweight, so he too will be cutting less weight on the show.

Lastly, Motta is another Nova Uniao featherweight who will be looking to make a name for himself on this show, as the 22-year-old Brazilian is among the best strikers on the show. He has great knockout power and diversity on the feet, which has led him to knockouts in all but one victory. He may be lesser known, but he is a favorite just based on potential.

Dark Horses

The three dark horses in this tournament to keep watch for are Erick Carlos Silva, Bruno Murata and Glaico Franca. These are the three that may not stick out, but have great upside and surprise power.

Silva, not to be confused with already-UFC fighter Erick "Indio" Silva, is a 19-fight veteran with good experience and some strong competition on his resume. He owns a 2009 victory over UFC contender John Lineker, all the while showing a well-rounded game that makes him dangerous against every man in this tournament.

Murata is a Demian Maia disciple, as the jiu-jitsu specialist trains under the UFC welterweight contender back in Brazil. Undefeated, he has shown off those fantastic jiu-jitsu skills in all of his fights, where he has finished all but one of his opponents via submission. Any man who engages Murata on the ground is either brave, a fool or both.

Finally, the biggest dark horse of them all might be Franca, a 24-year-old member of Astra Fight Team (same team as Erick Carlos Silva) with 15 pro fights and tremendous upside. In addition to having good power on the feet, Franca can handle himself on the mat with surprisingly sound submission ability. He could be the hidden gem of the season.

Bantamweight

Fighter	Gym	Record
Franklyn Arrocho	Astra Fight Team	4-0
Eduardo Diez	011 Fight Team	4-0
Bruno Gustavo	Team Nogueira	8-2
Leandro Higo	Pitbull Brothers	13-2
Bruno Korea	Tata Fight Team	4-0
Dileno Lopes	Nova Uniao	18-1
Marcos Maju	Nova Uniao	9-2
Matheus Mattos	Team Nogueira	8-0-1

Renato Monaco	Parana Vale Tudo	10-1-1
Peter Montibeller	Team Tavares	7-0
Matheus Nicolau	Nova Uniao	10-1-1
Gustavo Sedorio	Checkmat	4-0
Maycon Silvan	Nova Uniao	7-2
Giovanni Soldado Jr.	Hikari	15-1
Mateus Vasco	Fabio Maldonado Team	12-1
Reginaldo Vieira	Peso Pesado Gold Team	12-3

Favorites

In examining the favorites for this season, the three men who should have the most hype behind them are among the most experienced. Those men are Leandro Higo, Dileno Lopes and Giovanni Soldado.

Higo has long been considered a top prospect coming out of Brazil, so he's a no-brainer to be a favorite on this season. A fighter who runs with the Pitbull brothers, Higo has a strong resume and skill set in his pocket, as well as physical gifts that make him a tough matchup for his opponents. Look for him to have a big target on his back for this competition.

Lopes and Soldado make their second appearance on TUF, as they were members of the first season. Both were taken out in the elimination round, but have shown great potential and skills since then, earning their spot on this cast.

Lopes is yet another member of Nova Uniao, whose only career loss comes to One FC champ and stud Adriano Moraes. Other than that, he has terrorized the Brazilian MMA scene with a well-rounded skill set and killer instinct, two things which make him a big threat in this competition.

Soldado is also a once-beaten Brazilian circuit vet, though his loss came in his pro debut. Soldado is extremely well-rounded and tough as nails, all the while beating some tough Brazilians such as Rildeci Lima in the process. He is normally a flyweight, so he may save some weight cutting in this season to his benefit.

Dark Horses

The bantamweight bracket has more talent than the lightweight bracket, so picking dark horses is not as easy as it seems. That said, the three guys we will choose as dark horses are Matheus Mattos, Matheus Nicolau and Mateus Vasco.

Mattos is a Team Nogueira rep that has yet to taste defeat and has only gone to the judges once, which ended in a draw. He has tremendous striking and power, as he mixes up things with his hands and will target the body with bad intentions. He is just 22 years old, meaning he has big things ahead of him, so this could really be a launching point for this dark horse.

Nicolau is yet another Nova Uniao rep on this cast, as the 22-year-old joins over half a dozen more of his teammates. Normally a flyweight, Nicolau has tremendous power in his hands for a guy his size, which he also uses to target the body in addition to the head. That said, he does have good ground skills as well, meaning this all-around threat is one to be taken seriously.

The last of our three dark horses named "Mat," Vasco is a disciple of UFC fighter Fabio Maldonado. Unsurprisingly, Vasco has good boxing and power, though it overshadows a good submission game that has led to almost half of his finishes. He has never experienced a judges scorecard, showing that he prefers to end things before the bell or go out on his shield.