Middleweights
NR | Darren Stewart (12-6, 5-5 UFC) vs. NR | Eryk Anders (13-5, 5-5 UFC)It sure has been an up-and-down UFC run for Anders. He first made his name on the gridiron, where he had a breakout senior season for the University of Alabama as a linebacker, helping the Crimson Tide clinch the 2009 national championship. That athletic pedigree made Anders a fascinating prospect when he pivoted to mixed martial arts, and he quickly made it to the UFC, scoring an impressively fast finish of Rafael Natal in his 2017 debut. Then things got a bit weird. Anders’ sophomore effort was a flat and wrestling-heavy win over Markus Perez, after which he called out Lyoto Machida. It was a pairing that did not make much sense at the time, given Anders’ status as a raw fighter without much of a profile. However, the UFC had an upcoming card in Machida’s hometown and decided to put the fight together, apparently banking on Anders’ football career to make him a marketable B-side. Anders nearly won the fight, and from there, the UFC seemed unsure exactly what to do with him. He probably could have used more bouts like his UFC Fight Night 135 pairing with Tim Williams, which allowed him to put in some rounds in a winnable fight, but his status as a former headliner meant the UFC often rushed him in over his head. Whether it was his matchmaking or his training, Anders just has not really developed much in the three and a half years since he hit the Octagon. He still hits hard and can still bully around his opponents, but there is not much depth to any individual part of his game or much taste for defense or pace. With all that said, Anders is still fairly early in his professional career and has the physical tools necessary to carry him to a decent ride, even if he does not improve much from here on out. Maybe the breakout will finally come against Stewart.
London’s Stewart has slowly been figuring out things during his four-plus years on the UFC roster. Coming into the promotion as a light heavyweight prospect, “The Dentist” had a fairly clear approach, relying on his speed and aggression to pressure forward and run over his opponents. Once Stewart started meeting some resistance—whether it was the neutralizing Francimar Barroso or offense from Karl Roberson and Julian Marquez—things would quickly go off the rails. Stewart eventually redeemed himself in what likely would have been his last UFC shot against Eric Spicely and seems to have turned a corner in fits and starts. Stewart has gotten better about fighting back from adversity and even pulled out a tricky guillotine choke to beat Maki Pitolo in August. Stewart is coming off of an impressive performance in a loss against Kevin Holland, who seemed to bring out some fire in a positive fashion. It will be interesting to see how much of that carries over against Anders.
Stewart seems to have solved his issues when it comes to opponents that want to pour offense on him, but does he fare any better against more neutralizing fighters? That is essentially the question on which this fight hinges. If he can be the aggressor, Stewart should be able to win this as the quicker fighter with some snap to his strikes. However, if Anders just keeps plodding forward and throwing big strikes with an eye towards taking this fight to the clinch, Stewart’s track record suggests he will get discouraged and physically overwhelmed at some point. If Anders was any less durable, this would probably be a call for Stewart. However, Stewart’s one-off appearance against Bartosz Fabinski in Cage Warriors Fighting Championship—thrown together at the beginning of the pandemic—showed that he can still flag against an opponent who just wants to make things a grind. The pick is Anders via decision.
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