UFC Predictions: UFC Vegas 14: Felder vs. dos Anjos Predictions and Picks

#4 UFC Middleweight Division: Eryk Anders vs. Antonio Arroyo

The power of Eryk Anders makes him a dangerous opponent for anyone in the UFC.

Few fighters in recent memory have enjoyed such an up-and-down UFC career as Eryk Anders. Debuting in the UFC in mid-2017, Anders used his crushing power punches to take out veterans Rafael Natal and Markus Perez, despite having just two years’ MMA experience to his name.

That was enough to elevate him into his first UFC main event – a tight decision loss to former UFC Light Heavyweight champ Lyoto Machida. Big things were predicted for Ya Boi, but unfortunately, his path just hasn’t panned out that way.

Since the Machida fight, Anders is 3-4 inside the UFC, with a couple of nice KO wins being offset by disappointing losses. An ill-advised move to 205lbs can be blamed for two of those defeats – to Thiago Santos and Khalil Rountree, who were far bigger. But what can you say about his losses to Krzysztof Jotko and Elias Theodorou?

Essentially, the issue for Anders in the UFC has always been the same. He’s such a great athlete that when he wins, he tends to do it spectacularly. However, he’s never really picked up the basics of the sport from a technical standpoint, meaning his striking can be countered relatively easily, and he can also be out-grappled.

Obviously, his athleticism and raw power have made sure he’s never fully out of a fight. But at the age of 33, he’s less of a prospect and more of a “what if?” question. Thankfully for him, though, Arroyo is less of a technical, meat-and-potatoes type of fighter than someone like Jotko or Gerald Meerschaert, who Anders also struggled with.

Instead, Arroyo is cut from the same cloth as the kind of Brazilian prospects we would’ve seen on TUF Brazil a handful of years ago. Offensively, he’s brilliant, with nine wins on his ledger and only one going the distance. He’s capable of taking an opponent out with a slick submission, but also with a brutal knockout.

However, his UFC debut showed that like say, Rony Jason, Godofredo Pepey, Warlley Alves, and many more who’ve preceded him, he tends to struggle when he’s up against trickier opponents. That UFC debut saw him have Andre Muniz in trouble at points, but when he couldn’t put him away, Arroyo gassed out and fell victim to a technically better fighter.

Essentially then, this fight should come down to whether Anders can actually be the more technical, calmer fighter inside the Octagon. If he can do that, then there’s every chance that he uses his athleticism to avoid Arroyo’s offense, land some of his own, and put the Brazilian away.

If he comes out sloppy, though, then Arroyo’s more than capable of turning the tables to land something nasty. However, I’m backing Anders here. Ya Boi has far more UFC experience than Arroyo, who also hasn’t fought in almost a year.

That experience hasn’t always been good, but it should allow him to avoid the wildness of a flashy opponent like Arroyo. As always, Anders carries absolutely brutal power in his hands. Can he pick up a KO? I’m not so sure, but like he did against Perez, I think he’s got enough about him to hurt Arroyo enough times to earn a decision.

The Pick: Anders via unanimous decision