"Bigfoot is in a great camp, and he is flying. He shocked the world against Fedor, who was a favorite. Overeem is a favorite too, but I think Bigfoot might surprise again. He has everything to be a champion. I do not know how the fight will be, I just know that it will be tough. But nobody believed in Bigfoot against Fedor or against Andrei Arlovski. Werdum did an awesome fight, and against Velasquez he suffered a cut on his forehead early in the fight. Had he not suffer the cut, perhaps the result would be different." - Pedro Rizzo via PVT

Former UFC heavyweight contender Pedro Rizzo explains why nobody should be counting out Antonio Silva in his upcoming bout against former Strikeforce heavyweight champion Alistair Overeem at UFC 156.

Heading into his fight against mixed martial arts legend Fedor Emelianenko at Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Silva, the former EliteXC champion was considered a +325 underdog according to Bet DSI, however, the Brazilian caught the Russian by surprise with a powerful double leg takedown late in the first round and began punishing the former Pride champion with heavy ground-and-pound.

The fight was eventually stopped by ringside physicians and Silva's star was on the rise. But, after back-to-back knockout losses since his shocking victory over Emelianenko, and a stained victory over Travis Browne at UFC on FX 5 after Browne suffered an injury early in the fight, Silva is once again considered the underdog against Overeem.

The two heavyweights were previously scheduled to fight for Strikeforce during the second round match ups for the organizations' heavyweight Grand Prix, but Overeem was forced to pull out of the contest due to injuries.

UFC 156 is scheduled for Feb. 2 inside the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.