Heavyweights
Waldo Cortes-Acosta (8-0, 1-0 UFC) vs. Chase Sherman (16-10, 4-9 UFC)Cortes-Acosta earned a UFC contract via Dana White’s Contender Series in August and showed some potential as a bit more than the typical heavyweight slugger. A former baseball prospect, “Salsa Boy” showed enough athleticism and cardio to outmaneuver and outlast his opponents, along with the requisite heavyweight power. Cortes-Acosta made his UFC debut against Jared Vanderaa just three weeks ago and came out victorious, but that is about all there is to say in terms of positives. Cortes-Acosta connected a lot over three rounds but also showed little urgency, as Vanderaa constantly chopped down his legs. Perhaps he will show a bit more here against Sherman, who is riding some career momentum for the first time in two years. A raw but talented prospect upon hitting the UFC in 2016, things never quite came together for Sherman. He showed some striking potential but mostly gave up his gains due to a lack of feel for his defense, resulting in a lot of extended beatings where Sherman was too durable to quickly get knocked out. After sliding out of the UFC in 2018, Sherman was one of the first calls the UFC made when it needed to fill out some cards during the coronavirus pandemic; and while Sherman was obviously an improved fighter, things eventually wound up in much the same place, with the added wrinkle of his obviously having some mental struggles once things started to turn against him. Sherman was actually released in April, but the UFC immediately needed a late-notice replacement and brought him back into the fold. His bout against Alexander Romanov did not go particularly well, but Sherman managed to gut through and score a third-round knockout of Vanderaa that served as a huge point of catharsis. He could make it two straight wins here. There is honestly less separating these two fighters than there should be, and Sherman has a level of speed that could make Cortes-Acosta pay for his lackadaisical nature. However, the Dominican has not been knocked out yet, and the bet is that, over three rounds, he can find something to suddenly turn things around in what should otherwise be an ugly fight. The pick is Cortes-Acosta via third-round knockout.
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Lewis vs. Spivak
Nzechukwu vs. Cutelaba
Cortes-Acosta vs. Sherman
Fialho vs. Salikhov
Della Maddalena vs. Roberts
The Prelims