Eryk Anders is an ex-football player that Mixed Martial Arts fans actually cheer for. He is not overly technical, but he’s got skills and grit. Middleweight is a nasty division with a lot of tough guys, but Eryk just stands out. He seems familiar. On Saturday night, he will face off against Krzysztof Jotko, and it will be a tough night for both of them.
Jotko’s a solid striker. He has never beat any top talents, but is still fun to watch. He is what I would sum up as someone talented, but beatable. Every now and then he shows flashes of what he could be in this league. Jotko lost to Brad Tavares, Uriah Hall, and David Branch in a row. None of these have ever been top guys.
In his interviews, Krzysztof does not give you much in terms of entertainment. There isn’t much of an opportunity to connect with him on a personal level. It is amusing though when he mentions Uriah Hall. Coming up short against Hall after losing focus like that, it makes sense why he is so frustrated. His footwork is pretty good, his power is solid, but on Saturday, his endurance will probably be his most important tool.
Alongside everyone else in the division, Jotko has had some harsh words for the champion, Israel Adesanya. The loquacious manner in which Adesanya promotes himself seems to rub many Middleweights the wrong way. Fighters that feel this way are usually not very marketable themselves. Jotko is no different.
Eryk Anders has a fitting nickname. As we can all relate there is always one person that we know that we just want to win. Maybe they aren’t talented, but it would be nice to see them pull it off anyway. In Eryk Anders, we have one of those fighters. With a nickname like, “Ya Boi”, it makes sense why he is so familiar to the fanbase. Anders also lacks a signature win, but at this point I don’t think that’s what any of us are expecting from him. Fans are just going to see a good fight, and that’s okay. While this is a league where the best fight the best, everybody can’t be the best. Some are simply fun to have around. This is why in self-promotion, it’s so important to give fans moments that they can remember you by.
During a pre-fight promotion, the UFC showed Nick Saban and Eryk Anders watching film together in a theatre. Now we can never know how close the two really are. I acknowledge that, but the fact that Saban came over to help Anders promote himself says a lot. Regardless of how close they are, Saban showed a lot of respect to a guy that had played for him years ago. This is one of the biggest names in American sports we’re talking about. He welcomed Anders into the Alabama facility to give him a bit of clout as he tried to take a leap forward into the elite ranks of the UFC. Eryk Anders seems to really be having fun in the UFC, what’s not to like about him?
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