ATT Head Coach ‘Conan’ Silveira Downplays Underdog Status of ATT Fighters at UFC 272

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American Top Team head coach “Conan” Marcus Silveira is not used to seeing his fighters as betting underdogs on big Ultimate Fighting Championship cards.

On March 5, UFC 272 will take place at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main event will see a grudge match between former ATT teammates Colby Covington and Jorge Masvidal, and the remainder of the main card is equally littered by ATT standouts like Renato Carneiro and Edson Barboza. Ahead of the event, Sherdog spoke to the chief coach of the renowned fight camp, Silveira, who did not seem overly concerned that Masvidal (+270), Carneiro (+150) and Barboza (+145) are all coming in as betting underdogs.

“Most important than odds is the hard work,” Silveira mentioned. “And I’m sure Barboza, Masvidal and Moicano are in great shape for Saturday.”

When it comes to “Moicano,” who stepped in to replace Rafael Fiziev four days before the event, Silveira reaffirmed that he is not normally in favor of short-notice fights. As Carneiro last competed in February, tapping Alexander Hernandez in the second round, Silveira believes that Carneiro is still in fighting shape and will put on a good showing against Rafael dos Anjos.

“[Regarding Carneiro], in that case, we gave total support to Renato,” Silveira explained. “This kid is in great shape. He trained so hard for Alexander Hernandez, on Feb. 12, that we are confident that he will have a great performance against RDA. Of course, Rafael is a former champion and deserves all respect, but huge risks may turn into great rewards. For everything Moicano is doing in sparring, we believe that he belongs to the top-10 rankings, and we expect him to show that on Saturday.”

Right before “Moicano” vs. dos Anjos, Barboza will square off against undefeated grappler Bryce Mitchell in a classic grappler vs. striker battle. Barboza is coming off a loss against Giga Chikadze, and the 36-year-old ranked in the top 10 of his division will be aiming to get back on track against a submission specialist. Silveira did not expect that Barboza will struggle in this matchup.

“Bryce is proving to be a talent of the new generation,” Silveira analyzed, “but I truly believe that Edson’s style will not fit well to him.”

Concerning the main event between two former ATT fighters that he was used to train, the Carlson Gracie black belt believes that experience will make the difference for Masvidal.

"I’m really impressed how, after 50 MMA fights and almost [a] 20-year career, Masvidal [has] reinvented himself,” “Conan” remarked. “If Colby [doesn’t] win fast, putting him down and attacking his gas tank, he will have problems. Masvidal improved a lot his wrestling skills and has much more weapons than Colby in the stand-up game.”